Ultimate power outage protection

[MakerofThings]

Hey guys!

I thought a lot of people here would like to see the events of the next couple of weeks. I thought I'd just use this thread to keep a log of how everything goes.

I just setup my first real reef tank and the day before I had the power go out for an hour for "line work" with no warning and it freaked me out.

So, being a designer/fabricator and a massive tinkerer, I decided to build what I think is the best option for power outages.

The entire thing will be a custom built box mounted on my wall by the tank, hidden behind a painting.
I'll be using x160 18650 cells to create a massive battery array, with a custom set of circuitry to manage charging, UPS switching function, and monitoring.

Considering almost everything in the tank is DC powered, it makes absolutely no sense to switch DC/AC/DC just to power pumps as shown by BRStv's recent videos. So I'll be using direct DC power from the battery bank with more circuitry to control pumps when they have to switch to "power saving" mode.

I'll also have some circuity for an emergency heater.

Currently, the theoretical potential is 13 days of battery power, and basically unlimited once I add a small solar unit to the system.

I look forward to posting updates as parts come in and I finish building parts of the system and install it!

 

[Fourstars]

I’ll be watching. Something I’m interested in doing also.,will be interested to see how you heat the tank with DC?

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

Champion Power Equipment 8500-Watt Air Cooled Home Standby Generator with 50 Amp Indoor Transfer Switch (not for CA) 100174 - The Home Depot

Champion Power Equipment Air Cooled Automatic Standby Generator with Transfer Switch gives your home a permanent source of backup power.

www.homedepot.com

Done. :)

 

[eggplantparrot]

Champion Power Equipment 8500-Watt Air Cooled Home Standby Generator with 50 Amp Indoor Transfer Switch (not for CA) 100174 - The Home Depot

Champion Power Equipment Air Cooled Automatic Standby Generator with Transfer Switch gives your home a permanent source of backup power.

www.homedepot.com

Done. :)

yes also about 5 times the cost lol

 

[Jason boles]

Very interesting. Excited to see how this shapes up. Following along.

 

[MakerofThings]

I’ll be watching. Something I’m interested in doing also.,will be interested to see how you heat the tank with DC?

Yeah, Heat will actually be AC, but done in the most efficient way I can manage.

 

[MakerofThings]

Champion Power Equipment 8500-Watt Air Cooled Home Standby Generator with 50 Amp Indoor Transfer Switch (not for CA) 100174 - The Home Depot

Champion Power Equipment Air Cooled Automatic Standby Generator with Transfer Switch gives your home a permanent source of backup power.

www.homedepot.com

Done. :)

Ha! Won't fit in a small apartment sadly... also isn't $600!

 

[ambientaquatics.adam]

I was thinking about doing a diy Tesla wall as well. Following.

 

[Crustoceous]

Super interested in how you plan this one out. I have played with 18650's in building E-bike batteries, and I've been toying with what I want to do for a battery backup system. I'm not talented enough to figure out the circuitry... so can I just give you my credit card to make all the same purchases? :D

 

[robbyg]

Exciting project but I don't know how comfortable I would be with 160 LiPo batteries on charge in my House. I have seen one of the 4x 18650 packs for an RC Glider plane go up in flames and wow was that impressive! Six foot flame shooting out like an After Burner. Luckily this was in a garage while being monitored.

 

[MakerofThings]

Exciting project but I don't know how comfortable I would be with 160 LiPo batteries on charge in my House. I have seen one of the 4x 18650 packs for an RC Glider plane go up in flames and wow was that impressive! Six foot flame shooting out like an After Burner. Luckily this was in a garage while being monitored.

They're actually very safe given the right protections. These batteries will never be stressed. I will also be adding a fire suppression system inside JUUUUUST in case. I run a 3D printing company and we use them in our machines as a precaution.

 

[MakerofThings]

Super interested in how you plan this one out. I have played with 18650's in building E-bike batteries, and I've been toying with what I want to do for a battery backup system. I'm not talented enough to figure out the circuitry... so can I just give you my credit card to make all the same purchases? :D

haha! I'll have a detail guide on how to do it yourself once I've worked it all out and been my own test dummy! ;)

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

I just used a cheap 8 pole 110v relay connected to a pair of 12v 7 amp hour lead acid batteries in series to run my gyre pump when the power is out. I then added a $5 12v battery maintainer to keep the batteries charged.

Total cost was less than $50 and lasts way longer than any commercially available battery backup.

 

[living_tribunal]

Hey guys!

I thought a lot of people here would like to see the events of the next couple of weeks. I thought I'd just use this thread to keep a log of how everything goes.

I just setup my first real reef tank and the day before I had the power go out for an hour for "line work" with no warning and it freaked me out.

So, being a designer/fabricator and a massive tinkerer, I decided to build what I think is the best option for power outages.

The entire thing will be a custom built box mounted on my wall by the tank, hidden behind a painting.
I'll be using x160 18650 cells to create a massive battery array, with a custom set of circuitry to manage charging, UPS switching function, and monitoring.

Considering almost everything in the tank is DC powered, it makes absolutely no sense to switch DC/AC/DC just to power pumps as shown by BRStv's recent videos. So I'll be using direct DC power from the battery bank with more circuitry to control pumps when they have to switch to "power saving" mode.

I'll also have some circuity for an emergency heater.

Currently, the theoretical potential is 13 days of battery power, and basically unlimited once I add a small solar unit to the system.

I look forward to posting updates as parts come in and I finish building parts of the system and install it!

This is a good thread to follow for ideas.

Thanks for taking the time to log your build and test new ideas.

 

[MakerofThings]

I just used a cheap 8 pole 110v relay connected to a pair of 12v 7 amp hour lead acid batteries in series to run my gyre pump when the power is out. I then added a $5 12v battery maintainer to keep the batteries charged.

Total cost was less than $50 and lasts way longer than any commercially available battery backup.

Yeah, that would totally work! Could absolutely do it cheaper and simpler. For me this is an experiment and way to get creative to include the monitoring, protection, updating, etc.

I want to be able to be stress free in knowing everything's working right from anywhere in the world, and this is a small step in that direction.

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

I don't want to discourage you. Go BIG!

I'm following along to see how you do a DC powered heater on backup power.

 

[Dragon52]

Following this Sounds like a good way to make some extra money.

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

I'm following. Would be nice to have for my little tank. The big tank however...that needs a propane powered generator to stay safe when the power goes out. :(

 

[andrewkw]

How long will these batteries last (not the charge) before they have to be replaced? I use a gas powered generator as my main backup power supply but I'm currently looking for a secondary backup power supply.

 

[kidrobotny]

Very interesting. Excited to see how this shapes up. Following along.