Power Strips?

T2LEE

New member
What type of power strips are you guys using on your set ups? I have heard DJ power strips are nice b/c of the individual on/off switches for each outlet but a lot of reviews say they catch fire pretty easily. Just wondering what the majority is using!
 
Yea?!? I was looking at the APEX Jr. I have a 20g IM Abyss drop off. Dont really need many outlets on it. Thanks!
 
I use one of the DJ style switched power bars. I think it's an Eliminator E107 and ran about $35 or so. I opened it up when I first got it just to look at the wiring and it's made quite well. The casing is all metal too.
 
I've got a reef angel controller (8 outlet box) and have used just about every possible power strip out there.. from the dollar store cheapo to whatever brand..
It all depends on what you need specifically..
I've even made my own from individual outlets discretely wired as needed mounted in a plywood box,etc...

The most important is to protect the strip from moisture/salt creep,etc..
Fires start when you don't follow that rule due to corrosion/increased contact resistance causing heating,etc...
 
I have an 8-outlet DJ strip. It's great when you're advancing from a generic power outlet strip. FYI outlet spacing is generally sufficient for timers to be added on.
 
Im new but one thing I read about is power outages. If your power goes out it can kill your tank. So I bought a battery backup surge protector. It gives me about an hour if the power goes out.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/cyberpower-650va-battery-back-up-system-black/3938826.p?skuId=3938826

Maybe some of the more experienced reefers can chime in on this. I am also going to add a day/night power strip for my lights.


Uninterrupted Power Supplies are great for keeping the power on when the power goes out, but there are some big differences between low end and high end devices.

AC power is a sine wave of voltage, waving up and down in a continuous smooth wave. There are 3 types of UPSes, Pure Sine Wave, Pseudo Sine Wave (aka stepped/simulated like the UPS you linked) and the cheapest, Square Wave.

Some devices just need the waves to be the correct height (voltage) and they will work fine. Incandescent lightbulbs will work fine with a square wave UPS.

Pseudo sine waves will be fine for most electronics, especially ones that have their own power supplies / voltage regulators for AC->DC conversion.

AC powered aquarium pumps spin at a speed that is a direct function of the electricity fed to them. Square wave power might not even turn the pump, and it definitely isn't good for it. A pseudo sine wave will probably work okay for AC pumps, but they won't be smooth and quiet like when they are getting a pure sine wave from the power company. If you are going to be using AC powered pumps, you should definitely pay more and get a pure sine wave UPS.

You can learn lots more about UPSes, and look at pictures of various UPS power output "sine waves" here: http://superuser.com/questions/912679/when-do-i-need-a-pure-sine-wave-ups
 
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