questions about battery backup

[sillysidewinder]

so if there is a power outage what will i do??????

first thing that comes to mind is battery backup... looked up some units, but im kind of searching blindly. This one that I found is made for computers.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000QZ3UG0/?tag=reefs04-20

i know that ive read the most important thing is that the flow should be kept above all else. but what about the heater? Could I plug all of my components into a system that could run off a battery in the case of an outage?

I need my system to be able to run without me there for atleast a couple of days just in case.

 

[KathyC]

A couple of days??
Not with a battery back up, they don't store enough power to run a heater for days

If you lose power you need to be concerned about temperature and oxygen - those are the 2 most important things. Flow is secondary (thirdendary? lol).
The battery powered air pumps that ALSO have the electrical plug (they stay plugged in all of the time -they are idle at this point - but they switch ON automatically to battery power if the electric cuts off. They run for about 36 hours off the batteries) are your best starting point.
Unfortunately it is the drop in temperature that usually wipes out a tank in wintertime
A generator is always the best thing - if you have a place outdoors to run it. Next best choice is a car battery hooked to an inverter to run a small heater so the temp doesn;t get too low...but either way you need to BE there!

Is this tank someplace you wouldn't be nearby if the power went out..like in an office?

 

[bizzarro]

Desktop UPS is only good for using pumps or powerheads. Plugging in a heater will shorten the battery life severely. Not sure how long the run time you're expecting but you should be able to get at least 1hr comparing to a similar UPS, APC 750V. Most of these desktop UPS has enough power to keep the PC on so you can just shut it down and save your work.

 

[TonyHNY]

I ended up buying a portable power supply from Home Depot for expected power failures. It was enough to power most of the essential items - basically all the pumps... A gal of gas would run for over 6 hrs! it got enough juice to keep my fridge running too....

I've owned 2 UPS at home and they are reliable only for a short period of time.

 

[sillysidewinder]

hmmmm. it sounds like what i have in my head doesn't quite exist. i guess i should just cross my fingers and hope for the best. i never thought going out of town could be so stressful!

 

[TonyHNY]

If you are out of town for more than a few days, you should ask your folks/friends to help babysit your tank. Everytime when I am away for the military, I always ask my brother to keep an eye on it. Power failures and flooding are both of my top worries.

UPS will work OK if the failures are short and intermittent and you dont want your pumps to stop and go...I got one from APC that is rated for 1000VA/600 Watts... It keeps my 2 MJ1200 running for around 2 hours and that's about it. Even thought the display would say something like 5-8 hrs...but that reading jumps and hence, unreliable in my case. I had Con Ed cut off my power 2 months ago (for 6 hrs) to do some major power line upgrades so I bought a power generator for like 500 from Home Depot.....That is REALLY my peace of mind owning one of them since I have 2 saltwater tanks and 1 75 freshwater....