Storm Season among us. Power outage readiness!!!

[OfficeReefer]

Full report on Amazon's $400 Jackery 500 lipo backup

full charge

loading test from 100%: only running one airstone bubbler and one tetra preset heater that runs 78 degrees, a bit cool outside so the heater for sure cycles on an off in the day not like summer/rarely ever comes on except for night

consider you guys' reef tanks and all the pumps and motion devices and heaters and the degree they have to work...compared to my fishbowl setup basically which is one air pump and a tetra heater for a 10 gallon tank from wal mart.

I only get one 24 hour run from 100% to 5%

that's crapola but dang I can't find any cheaper 500 watt-hour packs. it costs me $412 to be able to battery-carry a pico reef for one day. my gas powered igen 2200 westinghouse from amazon was $500 bucks and carries a full size fridge, very large, plus reefbowl plus five cell phones charging as much gas as we need to cycle through it.

that being said, setting it up is a hassle. this jackery can be set out and handle any 24 hour period for my pico reef even if I'm not home to connect it, kiddo could connect it for me. so I'll keep it. but that stings, I thought I could get three days on a childs bubbler setup for 1 goldfish pretty much lol!

Yeah, I know the feeling man. I get about a half day max out of my Golabs R500. I get about double that if I set up the solar panels and its a sunny day outside. I also gain 20-30 minutes extra from a UPS already present.

However, the UPS, along with the Apex system will draw some of its own power. I can however, get 12 hours or so with pump only and no heater. The best means is a full battery backup system on the home or select outlets.

 

[Harpo]

Is anyone using a Tripp lite 750?

 

[CallMeChris]

Some thoughts:

A Kill A Watt meter or some way to measure your total and average wattage usage per hour and surge is highly useful in forming a plan. Check normal, high and minimal usage amounts.

Don’t oversize the inverter. The larger the inverter the more power it uses just to run, lowering the amount of time your batteries will last.

Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePo) or bust.

If you have multiple batteries, you can use one for power and have the other one charging at your friends house, or an off-site generator , or however, if needed.

I run solar power systems on my Glamping rentals. Not an expert, just a user

edited to add: puresine inverter only

 

[Snoopdog]

Well it is about time for me to start pulling the empty gas cans out of the attic and filling one on occasion, with the crazy butt weather in the last few years, this could be a doozy.

 

[Hallowhead]

I've been waiting for my power to go out, hasn't since I installed my standby LOL

 

[zheka757]

i also cant wait for next hurricane, now im prepared better.

 

[brandon429]

Psa: only run non ethanol gas in your generator

I'm having to sea foam clean mine out now, for not knowing that the last two years. Find a gas station that sells the clean fuel only run that kind

 

[Snoopdog]

Psa: only run non ethanol gas in your generator

I'm having to sea foam clean mine out now, for not knowing that the last two years. Find a gas station that sells the clean fuel only run that kind

I do not run anything with ethanol on anything but my car. I learned my lesson on my poor Craftsman chain saw, RIP.

 

[BZOFIQ]

Psa: only run non ethanol gas in your generator

I'm having to sea foam clean mine out now, for not knowing that the last two years. Find a gas station that sells the clean fuel only run that kind

Very important suggestion indeed!

I don't necessarily run all on ethanol-free BUT I store all my small engine equipment: blower, generators, power washer, snow blower, etc, ..... with ethanol-free gas. Never have I had a problem starting any of my equipment to date and I've had it all for over a decade.

That said, it is impossible to find it (ethanol-free gas) in and around NYC. One can buy these expensive 1L cans at big box stores and larger (5L) cans at Landscaping suppliers in NJ but it is not cheap. That said, even at these higher prices, it is well worth it knowing that the equipment will just work when you need it.

I've also looked into converting my generators into propane which would eliminate the risk but have not done so on my generators yet. Perhaps in the future.

 

[BZOFIQ]

During a power outage, it's important to limit feeding to prevent excess waste from building up in the tank.

I would just skip the feeding if the outage lasts just few days.

 

[iamacat]

Just perusing this thread has me racing back all the memories of losing power and the panic.

I installed a whole home generator and it is for the reef. Heat was a nice bonus. First time it kicked on during an outage at 2am and I just smiled. Much better than getting the portable generator and extension cords out.

 

[Vladthelarge]

Good afternoon everyone, I wanted to make this thread to give myself and others who live in Florida and other outlying states who are affected by hurricanes and other storms which can leave us without power for days to weeks at a time. I am still newish to the hobby and I haven't had my tank up and running long so I haven't experienced a power outage lasting longer than a few minutes while the tank has been up and running. Anyone who has a good plan of action that will work on the smallest to largest sizes of tanks. I myself have a 25gal lagoon. I already have a bubble box and extra batteries, and frozen bottles of water to help oxygen levels and water temp. Any other tips or tricks to help your aquarium survive is greatly appreciated. Also I understand a generator is the best option probably, but I live in an apartment and don't have storage space for one. Thank you to all who post and happy reefing everyone, stay safe during this storm season.

Personally, I went with a small, portable gas generator from honda. It's sufficient enough to power a pump and heater without taking up a lot of space.

Be aware, ethanol in modern gas will wreck a generator when stored for long periods of time. Either use a stabilizer in it when you store it or find a gas station that sells non-ethanol fuel to use with your generator.

 

[Screwgunner]

I turn off the gas valve and let it run dry . Have not had a problem yet.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

Personally, I went with a small, portable gas generator from honda. It's sufficient enough to power a pump and heater without taking up a lot of space.

Be aware, ethanol in modern gas will wreck a generator when stored for long periods of time. Either use a stabilizer in it when you store it or find a gas station that sells non-ethanol fuel to use with your generator.

modern Honda engines are designed to not be effected by ethanol fuel and are fine to use with, thats from old engines and rubber gaskets and other plastic parts if you look up your model service manual it will tell you this.

stabilizer with ethanol fuel doest eliminate the ethanol so it wouldn't mitigate the risk of using ethanol fuel in an engine that specifically requires ethanol free fuel.

 

[Vladthelarge]

modern Honda engines are designed to not be effected by ethanol fuel and are fine to use with, thats from old engines and rubber gaskets and other plastic parts if you look up your model service manual it will tell you this.

stabilizer with ethanol fuel doest eliminate the ethanol so it wouldn't mitigate the risk of using ethanol fuel in an engine that specifically requires ethanol free fuel.

Ethanol has a much shorter shelf life and will begin to gel if unused. It's less about the gaskets and more about it dunking up the carburetor or fuel injection. A modern engine can be made to be more ethanol compatible but that doesn't mean that if you leave fuel sitting around for 12 to 18 months that it's not going to cause issues. No need to reference a manual I've seen it happen multiple times

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

Ethanol has a much shorter shelf life and will begin to gel if unused. It's less about the gaskets and more about it dunking up the carburetor or fuel injection. A modern engine can be made to be more ethanol compatible but that doesn't mean that if you leave fuel sitting around for 12 to 18 months that it's not going to cause issues. No need to reference a manual I've seen it happen multiple times

yeah true it doesn't do well for sitting long periods, but the engine and parts will run just fine on it. I use ethanol free in my generator also.

 

[Lebowski_]

Small tank, a power inverter would be a good choice. Run it off a car battery. Even better would be to be able to run it off a car battery in a car, so you can recharge it by running the car. Inverters aren't that expensive, depending on the size needed.

I’ve been trying to figure this out. Need to look into it more because we always get one or two whopper winter storms here.

 

[Brian_68]

I’ve been trying to figure this out. Need to look into it more because we always get one or two whopper winter storms here.

In the winter depending on where you live heat is the most important. Within a day your house will be too cold without supplemental heat and inverters off a car battery will not realistically run a heater large enough in a cold house.

 

[Lebowski_]

In the winter depending on where you live heat is the most important. Within a day your house will be too cold without supplemental heat and inverters off a car battery will not realistically run a heater large enough in a cold house.

Heat my house?

We’re talking about aquariums here. If I’m worried about my house dropping too low we’ve got much bigger problems. Haven’t had an outage for more than 12 hours (knock on wood) due to it being in the city.

 

[Brian_68]

Heat my house?

We’re talking about aquariums here. If I’m worried about my house dropping too low we’ve got much bigger problems. Haven’t had an outage for more than 12 hours (knock on wood) due to it being in the city.

Yes heat your house, for many winter storms knock out power for a day or more and if it is 32 or lower out your house will be in the 50s after a day or less. No inverter will help then without heat.