Contingency Plans- North East US??????

[Jen1978]

Questions folks

First off, I'm thinking about all you southerners right now as Hurricane Sally passes through. Hope you are all well.

Kinda new to the game and so I'm just wondering, do any of you folks up north here (Pennsylvania, Ohio, W. Va and close areas) who don't really have hurricanes, tornadoes, or long power outages have contigency plans for your tank. Does anyone up here keep a generator on standby? Where I live, my power glitches almost every single week, just for maybe 20-30 seconds so that doesn't have any effect on my tank. I can count on one hand how many times the power has been out for more than a few hours in the past decade. Is there anything I should do to plan here for a weather event or not stress it too much.

 

[WV Reefer]

Questions folks

First off, I'm thinking about all you southerners right now as Hurricane Sally passes through. Hope you are all well.

Kinda new to the game and so I'm just wondering, do any of you folks up north here (Pennsylvania, Ohio, W. Va and close areas) who don't really have hurricanes, tornadoes, or long power outages have contigency plans for your tank. Does anyone up here keep a generator on standby? Where I live, my power glitches almost every single week, just for maybe 20-30 seconds so that doesn't have any effect on my tank. I can count on one hand how many times the power has been out for more than a few hours in the past decade. Is there anything I should do to plan here for a weather event or not stress it too much.

its always a good idea to have an emergency plan in case you need it.

I have battery backups on my MP40’s and a battery powered air stone for the small tank.

 

[JMM744]

Whole house generator here in rural Ohio. One of the best investments I have ever made.

 

[gpd124]

We are in the northeast as well, but can’t seem to justify the cost of a whole house generator (given how infrequently the power goes out).

 

[Paul B]

I live on Long Island NY and always have a generator for that and I have had to use it quite a few times since my tank has been set up. Here as you know it also gets cold so I need it to run the heat.

 

[Waters]

I am in NE Ohio and just have a portable generator ready for anything extended. I get brownouts all the time though.

 

[hartin461]

Mid Maine requires a backup plan for sure. Snow storm in April dropped 14 inches of heavy wet stuff. I’m In a rural area so pretty much last on the list for the power company to get to. 4 days later power came on, so thankful for the standby generator....

 

[Nightrider76]

On Long Island as well. I am not new to the game but took a 15 year break before jumping back into the hobby this spring with a nano. I made the investment on a 1500VA battery backup which will absorb the occasional spike (Picked up a cyberpower refurb for under $100). If i lose power it will run my pump for about 3+ hours, I can cycle the pump to get more time out of the battery if needed. But i do have a generator (not wired to the house with a transfer).

You might want to consider a small low cost generator from the likes of Harbor Freight, so if you ever lost power you have something that can keep the tank going. Being up north with winters, having a heater/pump going is key, you never know what might cause an outtage and when or how long it can last. I am sure you have made a large investment, considering what this hobby cost a generator pals in comparison.

 

[Jen1978]

I was thinking of something like a battery booster pack. Like the ones that you use to start a car. Some of them have a normal 120 plug. Does anyone know how long one may run a heater and maybe just my wave makers for? Like I said, power outages are very few and far between.

 

[KStatefan]

I think a power outage plan should be part of every reef set up. The power can go out for so many reasons expediently. The power went out last month in parts of my location when a squirrel took at a substation for 6 hours in the middle of the day. Should be an automatic system for at least the short term.

 

[HeyJay]

I've had an extended power outage just once in the last several years and ended up having to run an extension cord out to our minivan which has a small power inverter.

It could only power a small heater and a vortech, just enough to scrape by.

 

[Nightrider76]

I was thinking of something like a battery booster pack. Like the ones that you use to start a car. Some of them have a normal 120 plug. Does anyone know how long one may run a heater and maybe just my wave makers for? Like I said, power outages are very few and far between.

You are better off with a proper UPS, because if you are not home when the power goes out the booster pack is useless. The UPS will kick on autmatically. You can figure out runtime by the wattage of your heater and the wattage or power consumption of the wave maker.

Runtime Calculator

CyberPower power runtime calculating tool for consumers and IT professionals.

www.cyberpowersystems.com

 

[ca1ore]

who don't really have hurricanes, or long power outages have contingency plans for your tank. Does anyone up here keep a generator on standby?

With climate change I have long been of the view that it is just a matter of time before we actually do get a hurricane up here in the North East. I had a portable genny on hand for years, just in case; but in 2018 'invested' in a whole house standby. Now the portable is backup for the backup LOL. Lots of threads here on R2R on generators. I consider one essential equipment if you keep a reef tank. Just last month, here in CT, we lost power for almost three full days. Tank would not have survived than sans genny.