Can I use electrical tape in an aquarium?

[One Reefing Boi]

Not sure how, but seems like someone (prob urchin) chewed through my Nero 5 and exposed the white and blue wiring. Hoping not to fry my tank, would electrical tape be safe to use? Might consider upgrading to an MP10 (as this nero 5 is in my 50gal and never goes above 20% power) and prevent wires from going into the tank but other than this, the pump runs great so I’d hate to toss it over this issue as it was pricey.

Thoughts?

 

[kyleinpdx]

it won't create a watertight seal, so I don't really understand what benefit you're looking to derive from it. the electrical tape sure wont stop any stray voltage/corrosion from leaking into the tank if the internal wiring sheathing has been compromised. not sure what compounds would be present in the tape itself or its adhesive, but I cant imagine any would be beneficial to a reef tank.

 

[Dan_P]

Not sure how, but seems like someone (prob urchin) chewed through my Nero 5 and exposed the white and blue wiring. Hoping not to fry my tank, would electrical tape be safe to use? Might consider upgrading to an MP10 (as this nero 5 is in my 50gal and never goes above 20% power) and prevent wires from going into the tank but other than this, the pump runs great so I’d hate to toss it over this issue as it was pricey.

Thoughts?

Just wondering. Are you certain the wires were not damaged when you purchased the pump?

 

[One Reefing Boi]

Just wondering. Are you certain the wires were not damaged when you purchased the pump?

Yup! Have had it for years, hasn’t been an issue.

 

[One Reefing Boi]

it won't create a watertight seal, so I don't really understand what benefit you're looking to derive from it. the electrical tape sure wont stop any stray voltage/corrosion from leaking into the tank if the internal wiring sheathing has been compromised. not sure what compounds would be present in the tape itself or its adhesive, but I cant imagine any would be beneficial to a reef tank.

So I should probably toss the pump? Not worth trying to fix and I figure if something got through that thick outer sheath, the smaller inner ones probably won’t be as durable

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

This is a tough one, I'd be concerned with the adhesives on the tape causing issues. And as stated it won't create a water tight seal.

Luckily, it doesn't appear to have exposed the copper wire, so the chief concern is to cover that back up to allow for a barrier in case the urchin comes back around. My first thought is heat shrink. I don't know if neros have a plug that allows you to remove the driver (youd have to open up the case). If it does it would be easy to run a strip of heat shrink up to the problem area.

 

[edd59]

liquid electrical tape

 

[One Reefing Boi]

This is a tough one, I'd be concerned with the adhesives on the tape causing issues. And as stated it won't create a water tight seal.

Luckily, it doesn't appear to have exposed the copper wire, so the chief concern is to cover that back up to allow for a barrier in case the urchin comes back around. My first thought is heat shrink. I don't know if neros have a plug that allows you to remove the driver (youd have to open up the case). If it does it would be easy to run a strip of heat shrink up to the problem area.

Yeah going away on vacation for the weekend so I will be turning the pump off over the weekend and address when I come back

 

[kyleinpdx]

So I should probably toss the pump? Not worth trying to fix and I figure if something got through that thick outer sheath, the smaller inner ones probably won’t be as durable

Not necessarily. if you are worried about stray voltage entering the tank you should pickup a grounding probe (you should get one anyway) but that wont stop things from continuing to munch on the wiring, nor will it do anything for the corrosive effects that salt water will have on the copper inside those wires if they're ever exposed.

If you have any soldering experience or are feeling adventurous there are a few different ways I might tackle this:

1. Fix it. cut off the end of the wire from the pump to the controller and de-solder the wire from the powerhead itself, solder in a new run of wire and re-solder the plug/connector for the controller to the end of the new wire run. you'll want to use an electronics epoxy to encapsulate the connections at the pump.

2. Enclose it. cut off the end of the wire from the pump to the controller and take some vinyl airline tubing and pull the wire through the airline tubing until it is almost to the housing of the pump, then epoxy that closed so no water can enter. re-solder the plug for the controller and epoxy the other end of the airline tubings opening for safety's sake.

 

[Reefer Reboot]

If you're just looking for something to keep the urchin at bay, you could try this