ReefBoxx battery backup for return pump

[william Lutman]

Learned about ReefBoxx and built this:
Two Lithium 12V 15Ah LiFePO4 Battery $33 each Amazon
DC 12V Step Up to 24V 15A 360W Boost Power Converter DC Voltage Regulator Boost Converter Waterproof Module Transformer (12V-24V-15A) $25 Amazon
Reefboxx $99 from https://puddleaquatics.com/

Should run my Nautilus return pump for a half a day at 27.5 Watts
And I can add batteries as needed.

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

NIce! Thanks for posting this.

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

I wonder if I could power my hydros wave engine le with this, somehow. I'd like to keep the 2k gyres running automatically when power fails.

 

[VintageReefer]

Those batteries are 180wh each so you essentially built a 360wh power station for 200$

Runtime formula is (watt hour x .85) / watt load

So, (360wh x .85) / 27.5w = estimated 11.3hour runtime for $200

The Oupes 600 plus power station with ups cutover is $200 and provides 512wh of battery
(512 x .85) / 27.5 = 15.8 hours for the same price
https://oupes.com/products/exodus-600-plus
The Oupes 1200 is $350 and has 992wh and would deliver
(992 x .85) / 27.5 = 30.6 hours runtime

Both of these would use the onboard inverter and you would plug your pump in normally.

Your project is functional and cool but if someone else is reading that isn’t diy and wants a prepackaged solution, they can spend the same amount and get an out of box option that has more runtime plus a screen that shows in real-time the watt load, battery capacity, runtime left etc

 

[VintageReefer]

Like that this is upgradable though that opens a lot of doors

 

[CHSUB]

It looks cool, but another however…haha. I have a transfer switch inverter that automatically transfers to battery power when power is off, connected to a 300 ah lithium/phosphate battery. That is 3600 w/h. With another 100 ah battery ready in case…

 

[VintageReefer]

It looks cool, but another however…haha. I have a transfer switch inverter that automatically transfers to battery power when power is off, connected to a 300 ah lithium/phosphate battery. That is 3600 w/h. With another 100 ah battery ready in case…

Now THAT is a great battery!

 

[CHSUB]

Now THAT is a great battery!

Hurricanes and Florida….need extra, just in case! Haha…

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

Those batteries are 180wh each so you essentially built a 360wh power station for 200$

Runtime formula is (watt hour x .85) / watt load

So, (360wh x .85) / 27.5w = estimated 11.3hour runtime for $200

The Oupes 600 plus power station with ups cutover is $200 and provides 512wh of battery
(512 x .85) / 27.5 = 15.8 hours for the same price
https://oupes.com/products/exodus-600-plus
The Oupes 1200 is $350 and has 992wh and would deliver
(992 x .85) / 27.5 = 30.6 hours runtime

Both of these would use the onboard inverter and you would plug your pump in normally.

Your project is functional and cool but if someone else is reading that isn’t diy and wants a prepackaged solution, they can spend the same amount and get an out of box option that has more runtime plus a screen that shows in real-time the watt load, battery capacity, runtime left etc

While I love the pre-built options out there, I have 3 each 1280wh 12.8v batteries that were given to me for testing and app development. Done with all that now and we're on 2nd gen batteries now. The batteries have 3900+ charge cycles left and are begging me to use them.

 

[VintageReefer]

While I love the pre-built options out there, I have 3 each 1280wh 12.8v batteries that were given to me for testing and app development. Done with all that now and we're on 2nd gen batteries now. The batteries have 3900+ charge cycles left and are begging me to use them.

Then that is a great scenario to get something like the setup from CHSUB or the reef box that OP is using

DIY absolutely can be cheaper than prebuilt options but the price is coming down and gap is narrowing. The price savings does get more and more noticeable as you go up in capacity. IE 1200+ wh diy vs 1200+ wh prebuilt will have more savings compared to 300wh