Thermal Reckoning, a Fire in the making...

WVfishguy

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I was working on a customer tank when his wife casually informed me he dropped a power strip into the tank - not plugged in, thank God - and that said strip might still be under the tank in the stand. Not knowing if the strip I found was the one in question (it was dry and looked and smelled okay) , I gingerly plugged it in. I had no idea a wall of sparks / flames more than a foot high would shoot from the outlets of the powerstrip. I would not believed it possible had I not seen it. The water had evaporated, leaving invisible salt mulm in the strip. I could have used the thing as a weapon. If I'd had it near my face it would have blinded me. I was lucky not to be injured. The customer was a moron, and I didn't feel too bright either. I could have set his house on fire.
 

Turbo's Aquatics

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I had no idea a wall of sparks / flames more than a foot high would shoot from the outlets of the powerstrip. I would not believed it possible had I not seen it. The water had evaporated, leaving invisible salt mulm in the strip. I could have used the thing as a weapon. If I'd had it near my face it would have blinded me. I was lucky not to be injured. The customer was a moron, and I didn't feel too bright either. I could have set his house on fire.
Sounds like something you should have recorded and posted on YouTube. You might have made it on to Ridiculousness
 

WVfishguy

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I've never seen anything like it in 50 years of aquarium keeping. Hope to never see it again. One thing for sure, I treat suspect power strips with a lot more respect than I did before.
 

Tajaba

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guys, I have a question concerning Strip plugs. Is it a good idea to mount them directly under the tank upside down? it'll automatically have a drip loop this way. and I figured the safest place was right under the big'ol glass bottom
 

Brew12

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guys, I have a question concerning Strip plugs. Is it a good idea to mount them directly under the tank upside down? it'll automatically have a drip loop this way. and I figured the safest place was right under the big'ol glass bottom
Not a bad idea as long as they are in a location that won't be impacted by pump spray if something comes loose. Oh, and if you don't drill through and hit your tank!

I have mine mounted sideways on the top edge inside stand. Would have been better to put them outside the tank, but since I'm GFCI protected I don't worry to much.
 

Retro Reefer

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guys, I have a question concerning Strip plugs. Is it a good idea to mount them directly under the tank upside down? it'll automatically have a drip loop this way. and I figured the safest place was right under the big'ol glass bottom

I keep my power strips as far away from the tank as possible.. saltwater and electricity don’t mix well. One time while servicing my sump I had a small amount of water splash onto a power strip and the outcome wasn’t pretty.. learned my lesson and now I keep them well away from the tank or in a cabinet for protection from splashes and leaks.
 

CC13

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Does a GFCI outlet protect against these types of disasters?

Not at all. Found one of my GFCI's like this outside my house a few weeks ago. I ended up replacing all the plugs with new ones, and the housings as well.

jhRahxyl.jpg
 

Turbo's Aquatics

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Was it old? Most GFCI manufacturers recommend testing frequently and replacement after a certain # of years. Of course, no one actually does any of that.
 

Tajaba

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I keep my power strips as far away from the tank as possible.. saltwater and electricity don’t mix well. One time while servicing my sump I had a small amount of water splash onto a power strip and the outcome wasn’t pretty.. learned my lesson and now I keep them well away from the tank or in a cabinet for protection from splashes and leaks.

My bad, forgot to say my sump is underground not under tank
 

Dan Korczak

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This is awesome information that was well worth the read. I say this with my head hung low, it's easy to ignore this stuff even if you do know it.
 
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