power outage?

[scarpenter]

I use to have a large battery backup unit that I got 2nd hand and FREE. I moved, and in the move it got water on it and it shorted out. my tank has been without a safegaurd for a year now. what do you all use for backup that won't be a large expense?

 

[chicken]

search your local craigslist for an APC UPS. The one out here has them all the time.

 

[MBVette]

what systems do you plug into there?

Just the return pump and skimmer?

 

[chicken]

I have dual UPS's for both my tanks. One really large one that runs the return on one each of my tanks. It has enough battery capacity to run them (a Dart and a Hammerhead) for about 30 hours. I then have a smaller UPS on each tank that runs the Tunze Streams for about 12 hours. This way if I have a UPS failure I'll still keep circulation in the tank. As for heaters and skimmers I do not run those as circulation is the most important thing to keep the oxygen levels up. If its really cold out or its a prolonged outage (knock on wood I have not had one over 2 hours in a really long time) I have a generator in the shed I can break out to run both tanks including heaters, skimmers, lights, etc and still have enough power left over to run the fridge.

 

[mouserusker]

I've seen a reef tank water temperature get down to around 50 degrees F for several hours once (it's a long story). It's amazing what can survive being cold for a little while.
Just something to consider when prioritizing your emergency equipment...