Shutting off items during OFF-PEAK HOURS

[Jyetman]

I need to save money and wonder what equipment I can or shouldn't shut off during 3 to 8 PM Off-Peak hours? So far I have my scrubber lights and protein skimmer shutting off. The next item I'm thinking about is a in-line "closed-loop" little giant MDQ-4 which is the main circulation pump and a major power hog. My only concern is if I shut this pump down and leave my other smaller power heads running will it be enough and will it reduce the life of the pump? I don't want to hurt corals or fish. Any advice on what else can be done?

 

[Smokey Stover]

Water Heater, Biggest energy waster in any home.I have a 40 gal. It only takes 15-20 min to heat the whole tank and I have it wrapped in insulation, So that full tank of hot water can last a couple days without constant heating. I have the lowest electric bills around. Last years lowest $68.00, Highest $150.00, I use A/C in summer (Hot/Humid here) Heat when needed in winter.

 

[mcgyvr]

I need to save money and wonder what equipment I can or shouldn't shut off during 3 to 8 PM Off-Peak hours? So far I have my scrubber lights and protein skimmer shutting off. The next item I'm thinking about is a in-line "closed-loop" little giant MDQ-4 which is the main circulation pump and a major power hog. My only concern is if I shut this pump down and leave my other smaller power heads running will it be enough and will it reduce the life of the pump? I don't want to hurt corals or fish. Any advice on what else can be done?

Do you have an idea of how much money you need to save?
Its quite easy to calculate savings and really easy to see if its going to make a dent or not.. I really fail to see though how doing any of this is going to really make much of a difference unless you have a large system or just need a couple extra bucks a month.. But I don't know anything about your system nor how much or why you need to save money..

But in general everything except a powerhead can be turned off that entire 5 hour period or more...

 

[Jyetman]

I live in phoenix, AZ and its a major power hog in the summer time. I run my A/C at 82 and because my tank is acrylic with cut-out openings on top it insulates heat like you wouldn't believe. I have 6 to 7 small to large fans blowing on the surface of water and its still not enough the chiller in mid summer runs every 2 to 3 hours. With all equipment running my apex reports total of 6 to 7 AMPS between 3 EB8 bars chiller adds 5 more amps when running.

 

[mcgyvr]

What do you set the chiller at?


Focus on reducing heat sources then..
LED lighting?
DC return pumps?
Go powerheads vs closed loop..

 

[Jyetman]

So now that its 3 PM with Skimmer, Scrubber lights and LG MDQ-4 off I'm down to 4 AMPS vs 6 AMPS. The chiller is set at 81 so 30 minutes cools to 80 then off.

 

[Jyetman]

Just in 1.5 hours my temp has dropped from 79.2 F to 78.3 F with this configuration. Why would that much heat be coming off the little giant pump? I thought since the prop is magnetically driven there is no heat transfer? If this is the case my chiller may run less this summer. All these years just wasted money.

 

[jda]

There is always a little bit of heat from any pump.

Evaporation is the largest cooling force for me. Did you do anything to speed up evaporation?

 

[tkeracer619]

Most mag driven pumps are water cooled. There may be no direct path for water but the plastic transfers necessary heat away from the motor into the water.

 

[homer1475]

A pump can most certainly add that much heat.

I recently switched to a panworld pump(cheap external pump) for my mixing station. If I leave it running 24/7 my unheated water gets up to 79F in a few hours just from the heat of the pump.

 

[mcgyvr]

Problem solved.. Ditch that pump..

 

[Pitter98]

Problem solved.. Ditch that pump..

I have to say I agree. While that pump may be a tank and run forever - 150 watts for 850 gph is atrocious by today's standards. Pick up a good DC pump and you will get double the flow for a third of the power cost. The Ecotech Vectra S1 for example will do 1400gph for 55 watts if you want to splurge, though there are others out there for much cheaper. You don't need a pressure rated pump for a closed loop. They are essentially "0" feet head pressure (minus pipe fitting losses).

 

[rm41400]

Are you sure 3-8pm are the times you need to shutoff your extra equipment?

I would think those are “off peak” hours where consumption is of little concern.

Typically peak hours (daylight... morning and when everyone returns from work) are the primary concern.

Sorry if off topic

 

[Slarti]

So a somewhat related question, what heats up the water to the extend that my chiller seems to run more often than not even when the ambient temperature is below the water temperature?

 

[tkeracer619]

So a somewhat related question, what heats up the water to the extend that my chiller seems to run more often than not even when the ambient temperature is below the water temperature?

A watt is a watt.

So anything that is submerged acts like a heater, ex a 50w submerged pump is the same as a 50w heater that is stuck on. External pumps also heat the tank water unless they are specifically designed not to. Lighting will also heat the water.