Backup Power

Punk

Punk

Joined
4 Sep 2007
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Johannesburg
hi guys,

i'm busy buying all my equipment & one of the things i need to get is a UPS + generator

i have some questions i hope you guys can help me out with

(1) what's the minimum equipment that has to run on backup power for 8 hours? (all my equipment will be pulling about 5KW but i obviously don't have to run all of it when power fails)?

(2) any suggestions on good (bang for your buck) UPS + SILENT generators (i live in a complex) + where can i buy them?

any pics + info of your current backup power setups would be greatly appreciated so i can steal with my eyes

thanks once again

ant
 
Geez Ant i dont know of any silent generators, but i must say you on the right track by looking for a genny already.
 
Alan said:
Geez Ant i dont know of any silent generators, but i must say you on the right track by looking for a genny already.
Click to expand...

one of my buddies told me he once saw a gen that's runs as loud as a car idling... i wish, otherwise i got a real problem :(
 
how long can corals go without light?
 
I think that even though it would not be suggested, but personally I think that they should be able "to go" without light for at least 24 hours..... BUT, this would not be the case, because they would get SOME light during the daytime - even if there's a power-outage - where one can open all blinds/curtains, etc in the room where your tank is in..... (unless your tank is in the garage which might not have a window at all)....
 
I think my first priority would be the return pump. Not too much other than that really. Chillers/heaters will chow the battery so I'd try use a 12V fan in place of a chiller but you shouldn't really battle heat with all the equipment off. As for low temps you can use styrofoam etc. If tank is heavily stocked and then might have to run skimmer and possibly a powerhead (tunze nano streams use about 7W!).
 
Hi Guys,

Another option would be to look at a charger conditioner on a deep cycle 12v battery with an inverter. If all that is running is a skimmer and a return pump this should cope quite well. With regards to cost and possible run time I would need to work out accurate power consumption.

Not sure if it would be cheaper than a genny but sure will be quiet.
I can supply these if needed.
 
Punk said:
how long can corals go without light?
Click to expand...
Light isn't too much of a problem here, 3 or 4 days no hassel. Your biggest problem is water movement and temp, without water movement you down to hrs before your corals start suffering and if the temp rises too high or drops too low its also hrs.
 
Dude go for a inverter my mate has got one to run his pc in power outages, but from what i understand they can run a lot more if needed.
 
I have had to use one when I lost power for 7 days. I didn't have one and went out and got one in day 2. I wouldn't worry about the light. Even a week your corals would survive. If you have spare power run them, but the priorities are circualtion, heat/cooling, skimmer. Temp is the most important thing to maintain. I got a small one (forget the exact size) but I kept my tank going, freezer, a few lights to live by, and the tv and heaters....
 
hello, not yet, still busy setting up my first tank, had a couple of setbacks but i'll be looking for a good gennie soon... cheers
 
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