Scheduled Power Outage!!!

[brandon p]

On 9/02 BGE is shutting down power for 8 hours for some line work. I finally have a mature mixed/mainly sps/mainly acro tank and I’m kinda freaking. Probably needlessly but better safe than sorry. I know when I order acros they are in much much less water with no flow/filtration/lights for triple the 8 hours and they arrive traumatized but ok.
On a 29g tank I have1300gph divided among 3 PHs, a HOB filter (200gph), and a slimmer of I’ll-repute (works GREAT for me) adding 100gph, and 2 kessil A360X’s. I have a 350wph backup battery.
Light and flow are what I need to concentrate on. I can run both lights and 3 powerheads for 2-2 1/2 hours. Assuming I’m not completely over reacting to 8 hours of no power, how should I handle this?? Should I do half hour on and off for example? Should I wait and turn it on as late as possible? Any advice?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Just a couple of general comments:

Watch for areas where water will be trapped and become anaerobic; inside piping, canister filters, etc. Consider opening them up or draining them.

You really should be in attendance for the entire outage, and be prepared for delays at the end (been there, done that!)

If you're in a warm region, you can pre-freeze some two liter pop bottles with ice to use to keep the temp moderated.

Just my opinion, but I wouldn't bother diverting EM power to your lights, use it for minimal life support function, tell the corals it is just an overcast day (grin).

Jay

 

[Gablami]

Just a couple of general comments:

Watch for areas where water will be trapped and become anaerobic; inside piping, canister filters, etc. Consider opening them up or draining them.

You really should be in attendance for the entire outage, and be prepared for delays at the end (been there, done that!)

If you're in a warm region, you can pre-freeze some two liter pop bottles with ice to use to keep the temp moderated.

Just my opinion, but I wouldn't bother diverting EM power to your lights, use it for minimal life support function, tell the corals it is just an overcast day (grin).

Jay

I agree! Only question I have is around the anaerobic water topic. I’ve never been too concerned about stagnant water in piping or overflows while the returns pumps are off. Even for longer periods of time. What is the potential negative effect when the electricity comes back?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

I agree! Only question I have is around the anaerobic water topic. I’ve never been too concerned about stagnant water in piping or overflows while the returns pumps are off. Even for longer periods of time. What is the potential negative effect when the electricity comes back?

Actually, that comes more from my background with rapid sand filters. They go anaerobic quickly, and when turned back on, shoot a huge bolus of oxygen depleted water back into the tank. Hydrogen sulfide is nasty, but a small amount in a pipe shouldn't be an issue. Just trying to cover all bases....

Jay

 

[secret_reefer337]

If you are too worried about depleting the O2 during outage, buy a boat/marine battery, a charger and inverter from Walmart or something. Charge the battery before the outage.

 

[brandon p]

Just a couple of general comments:

Watch for areas where water will be trapped and become anaerobic; inside piping, canister filters, etc. Consider opening them up or draining them.

You really should be in attendance for the entire outage, and be prepared for delays at the end (been there, done that!)

If you're in a warm region, you can pre-freeze some two liter pop bottles with ice to use to keep the temp moderated.

Just my opinion, but I wouldn't bother diverting EM power to your lights, use it for minimal life support function, tell the corals it is just an overcast day (grin).

Jay

I’m a total ‘helicopter parent’ so I will be 100% there! I like the comment about the light. That’s mainly what I needed to know. That helps a lot!
I can run 3 PHs (11w), my HOB filter (7w), and one of my old light bars (32w) and NOT use the skimmer, or the 2 good lights. That totals 50wph. With my fully charged 300watt battery I can keep it going for 6 hours, which I won’t start until after the first 2-3 hours.
Thanks for your help!

 

[brandon p]

If you are too worried about depleting the O2 during outage, buy a boat/marine battery, a charger and inverter from Walmart or something. Charge the battery before the outage.

Yup. I bought a nice back up battery. 300w. I think I’ve worked out all the watts per hour of the various components on the tank. I just posted another reply with a pic. They are definitely worth investing in. I forget how much it was but it was around the price of one acro colony so...
thanks