Who uses UPS backups for life support?

[Avast Marine]

I would just like to get an idea of how long equipment can run with what size UPS. What equipment are you running for your backup life support and has anybody experimented with hooking deep cell batteries up to the supply to extend the run time?
Thanks.

 

[twkenny]

I messed with a UPS as a backup once. Had a hurricane and it ran my return pump for about 10 minutes. Not sure exactly which one it was, it was an APC though. I don't think they are designed for that kind of use. They work fine at my office keeping the PC running until the backup gen cranks up, about 1 minute.

 

[bergzy]

i have one seio 820 linked to a cheapo ups that should circulate water in the 180g for about 22 hours.

here in southern california...anything longer is a major catastrophe and most likely the last thing i am worrying about is my tank.

thus, dont run a return pump via ups...have it on an airpump with airstone to bubble circulate (pretty effective given the circumstances) or put it on a low watt circulator like a tunze or seio.

 

[Reefit]

I run an APC-UPS 2000 ON MY MAG 2400, MAG 950, and one two hundred watt heater for about four hours, at which time I have to switch to a generator. I havn't tried to add external batteries to extend the run time.

 

[BlueCorn]

I use an APC 1000 on one of my streams. They are very low power and have the benefit of using a transformer so the fact that most consumer UPS systems don't provide clean power doesn't bother them.

 

[vmelia@sbcglobal.net]

you can use a ups as long as when its on battery it supplies a true sine wave and not a simulated one. when runing a ups on any ac motor if it doesn't supply a true sine wave form it will damage the motor and 9 out of 10 times the ups will go into overload and shut down to protect it's self. most high end ups use a true sinewave apc smart ups use a true sine wave i use a apc smart ups 1000 for my poseidon t3

 

[jer1198]

i use a ups, it has 1 stream on it, with the low power use of the stream, not sure how long it will work for, but iits cheap insurance if the power goes out when im at work.

 

[bawla47]

vmelia, i think that was my problem. i bought some 20 dollar 200 watt UPS, to run 1 of my seios for a while. but when the power went out, it couldnt run the seio , youd hear it chatter bad. the seio was only like 23 watts i believe. good to know, im goign to try a smart ups. thanks

Jaymie

 

[frank2926]

Why are you running circulation pumps when the power goes out?
The problem with a tank when there is a power out age is temp and oxygen. An air pump is a much better solution than a power head. IMO I have an air pump hooked up to a ups and I also have a 1000 watt power inverter just for those long outages I tend to get in April showers

 

[Avast Marine]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7139627#post7139627 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by frank2926
Why are you running circulation pumps when the power goes out?
The problem with a tank when there is a power out age is temp and oxygen. An air pump is a much better solution than a power head. IMO I have an air pump hooked up to a ups and I also have a 1000 watt power inverter just for those long outages I tend to get in April showers

Do you leave the air pump on all the time? If so where is it in the tank? How long can the ups/1000w combo keep the pump running and what size is the ups? Where I live 8-12hours is common.
Thanks.

 

[robsmith32]

if you are down 8-12 hours.. get a generator, no question about it.

a lot of people will push inverters over a ups, well a cheap inverter is what is in the ups they are complaining about.

And frank, i was under that thought to, before a reg on club forum enlightened that indeed circulation is MUCHo necessary.
btw, a small powerhead pointing up, gets both of this oxygen by agitating surface and circulation.

personally using a 600w ups, and doesn't take long to deplete it with the return pump on it,
Working on a diy idea to use the ups to startup a generator.
Problem is making sure the generator is disconnected as soon as power is restored so that it doesn't get fried or fry something else. Auto transfer switches aren't cheap.

 

[Avast Marine]

The diy method is where I am headed with this. And yes backfeed would completely fry any equipment not to mention KILL any tech that happened to be working on powerline with a hardwired generator not protected by this kind of device!
I need to spend a little time tooling around the solar forums and picking some brains there. My thought is that if they can use the sun or wind to power a house than I should be able to come up with something that could run a stream and a 100w heater constantly just off solar. That way power or no power I wont be relying on the grid to keep my money pit....I mean reef tank, alive.
That is why I am trying to get run times from different equipment to see what type of kwh this type of system will require. I imagine this could be cheaper than a generator or a sine ups with big wattage.
Dan

 

[jumpincactus]

I read on this board couple weeks ago about some dude uses a couple of battery operated bubblers that he claims do the trick for 12 hours or so. Runs off regular flashlight type batteries. He said with two and running larger hoses you can actualy create some surface turbulence. Do a search I forgot where he said you can buy them. He did list a web site

 

[Avast Marine]

Any solar users out there?

 

[PatMayo]

I use a Honda 2000 watt generator. Actually it may be an invertor. It's gas powered and quiet. You can hardly hear this baby run. But I can run everything on the tank except the MH lights. I can also run my fridge and a couple of lights. I live in the foothills of Mount Rainier in Washington. I have lost power for days at a time. (Not very often but it does happen.) Usually for several hours and more frequently 5 or 6 hours at a whack.

It's the only way I can be assured that the tank will survive in a power outage.

I'm hoping if it is an invertor type and ruins a pump or two I'm hoping the pump fails after the power has returned. I'll just buy another pump. So far I have had the opportunity to use it once and so far no problem with any equipment.

Regards,

Pat

 

[ufans]

I have a 1Kw generator for long outages, but would like to consider a in-line UPS.

The important point is to ensure that you have enough wattage to handle the starting of the pumps. When a pump starts it typically demands twice the power as for when it is already running. So, if you can put your return or other pumps on a UPS then you can buy the time to get the generator on-line before the UPS dies so that you don't have to worry about the required start-up power. That means that you don't have to buy such a large generator and the generator can last a lot longer.

Here are some old posts on a DIY backup system using Boat Batteries and a power inverter.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=5421
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showt...age=25&highlight=playfair backup&pagenumber=1