Using ground probes in aquariums

[OZ0ne]

My aquarium shocked me.

I have a new setup and when I had my arm in the display tank it brushed against a LED box, which then shocked me.

I have (2) LED boxes suspended for a hanger I made from black pipe. The are both plugged into a surge protector which is then plugged into a GFI outlet.

Please advise how I can keep this from happening again, other than the obvious unplug the power strip.

Sharing my experience on what I discovered. I bought (2) ground probes, for sump and display tank. As soon as I added the ground probe to the display tank it tripped the GFI. Through deduction I discovered that it was the powerheads discharging electricity into the DT. I've since replaced them, no more shocks and no more GFI trips. I'm so happy I came across this thread discussing grounding probes.

 

[Cohibaman]

Most (if not all) titanium heaters are grounded. I have one in my tank and in my sump. Just make sure the temp controller ONLY breaks hot so you always have a path to ground from the heater. Easy enough to check with an ohm meter.

 

[JumboShrimp]

Question: In addition to a grounding plug in the DT, would I also need a separate grounding plug in the sump below— because I suppose I can’t just say, “Oh well, my water is all ‘connected’ through plumbing,” right?

 

[robbyg]

I always have a ground probe and gfi sockets. One thing I would point out is that 115v passing through the resistance of the water and human body before you rapidly put out your fingers in it will not kill you but it certainly will sting. I have gotten numerous 115v shocks from raw plugs. Never deadly but not pleasant

 

[Brew12]

I always have a ground probe and gfi sockets. One thing I would point out is that 115v passing through the resistance of the water and human body before you rapidly put out your fingers in it will not kill you but it certainly will sting. I have gotten numerous 115v shocks from raw plugs. Never deadly but not pleasant

I wouldn't say it will not kill you, only that it is unlikely to. This chart shows the benefit of GFCI's. Despite a massive increase in population between 1970 and now, and a proliferation of electrical devices, electrocutions due to 120V consumer products has declined. Granted, all of these saved lives aren't due to GFCI's. Battery powered tools have also made a very large positive impact, also.

 

[robbyg]

I wouldn't say it will not kill you, only that it is unlikely to. This chart shows the benefit of GFCI's. Despite a massive increase in population between 1970 and now, and a proliferation of electrical devices, electrocutions due to 120V consumer products has declined. Granted, all of these saved lives aren't due to GFCI's. Battery powered tools have also made a very large positive impact, also.

I wonder how many of those deaths are due to 110V-120V versus 220-240V. Although I suspect most of them are deaths not related to either. The 110V ones must be cases were people got stuck to the power source and could not get away or let go of it. As for that massive dip in the 1980's I don't think it had a thing to do with GFI's. I suspect it had to do with the switch over people were making from tube based products to solid state. Someone in the GFI industry did some sweet PR work when they made that graph. Notice how GFI usage went up from 1981 to 1990 by 10 Million units while the deaths dropped by 260 people but from 1991 to 2000 another 15 million GFI's came into use but the deaths pretty much leveled off with only about 100 people dying. This 1981 mark also just happend to coincide with the mass migration from tubes to solid state.

With Tubes you could get killed fairly easily. Anybody who has ever been shocked while tinkering with an old Tube TV can tell you just how bad it is, assuming they are alive. As a Ham Radio Operator I can tell you that Tube Amplifiers are deadly. Just one touch of the 3000 volts off of the transformer is typically instant death or really bad electrical burns. We had a couple of million ham operators in the USA in the 1980's- 1990's. Most of them home DIYers and many got killed while building or fixing equipment.

I still 100% advocate the use of a GFI system on any plug near water but just question how many people dealing with 110V device actually get saved from death rather than just from a nasty shock.

Rob

 

[Paleozoic_reefer]

Question: In addition to a grounding plug in the DT, would I also need a separate grounding plug in the sump below— because I suppose I can’t just say, “Oh well, my water is all ‘connected’ through plumbing,” right?

I have the same question. @Brew12 do you recommend one in DT and one in the sump as well? (Sorry if it's explained somewhere else in this post..)

 

[Brew12]

I wonder how many of those deaths are due to 110V-120V versus 220-240V.

I'll point out that household 240V is still only 120V to ground and the vast majority of shocks are to ground, not phase to phase.

The 110V ones must be cases were people got stuck to the power source and could not get away or let go of it.

This is true of most shocks under 600V. When you think about 320 million people in the US all using 120V devices the repeatedly every day the odds of getting killed are very small. However, unless you don't trust OSHA, NFPA or IEEE, 120V kills more non electricians than any other voltage. So for the rest we will have to agree to disagree.

 

[Brew12]

I have the same question. @Brew12 do you recommend one in DT and one in the sump as well? (Sorry if it's explained somewhere else in this post..)

I only run one in the sump. It protects the DT as long as the return pump is running. I consider the odds of a electrical failure while the return pump is off to be minimal.

 

[rmurken]

Helpful. Thanks. I am going to put in a ground plug. I put in a GFCI, but plainly there is more that can be done. Thanks.

 

[robbyg]

I'll point out that household 240V is still only 120V to ground and the vast majority of shocks are to ground, not phase to phase.

This is true but I have gotten hit by both phases of 220V and two legs on three phase 220V. In both cases it was not pleasant at all, especially the last one. The one I will absolutely not mess with is 440V. I have a coworker who was working on some industrial 440V equipment and he sprayed some WD-40 to loosen a screw on a panel cover of the machine and got an electrical/plasma gas blast from the machine. It severely burned about a six inch patch of his hand and his hand was bandaged up for weeks.
Also I do not work on HF tube Amplifiers at all. One touch is instant death!

This is true of most shocks under 600V. When you think about 320 million people in the US all using 120V devices the repeatedly every day the odds of getting killed are very small. However, unless you don't trust OSHA, NFPA or IEEE, 120V kills more non electricians than any other voltage. So for the rest we will have to agree to disagree.

Yeah I am sure 120V kills more electricians because that's what they will accidentally touch the most for 90% of their career. They get shocked by 110V on almost a weekly basis but every once in a while the perfect scenario comes into play and your hand is just stuck in place.

What would probably prove the GFI point further is if the graph went from 2000 - 2018. I think by now we probably have nearly five times as many GFI outlets in the USA versus 2000 and I suspect the number of deaths has not gone down much since 2000.

Rob

 

[cloak]

I apologize for not reading through the entire thread, but there were years where I have had a probe in the tank and years where I haven't had one. No problem.
GFCI?

 

[Bramzor]

My titanium heater is taking the role of ground probe (even if its turned off, it will always ground the sump). But just to be sure I also ordered a ground probe for my tank for when it wouldnt work via the sump if the water stopped flowing.

But now that I think of it. I do have an emergency power unit which takes over in case there is no power anymore. This makes it even more complicated because if a current is detected, the protection will make sure it stops flowing but than the emergency power supply will take over and I hope this one will also fail because of the current running to the ground, else it might be a nasty situation.

 

[Charles Wartsabaugh]

I am new to the hobby and I am also an electrician. I have made sure to only have a very few things with power in the water, right now it is a skimmer, return pump, heater, and UV. all the equipment is new but I went ahead and put a grounding probe in anyways because it only takes one piece of equipment to fail to start causing problems. Thanks for this article it really made me think about what I need to do to keep the tank safe.

 

[goliwala]

I had a chemical warfare in my tank and later I discovered it was due to leaked voltage from my heater. I had a mixed reef with mostly SPS and every day I would see brown slime all over. I would clean it up with turkey baster or a small power head and catch most of it in a filter sock but same next day. I could see corals releasing slime extensively during water changes or when all pumps were off. Culprit were two Finnex titanium heaters. Replaced both heaters and things got better but not completely normal. Found out that one of the replacement heater was leaking voltage as well, another Finnex.

I threw away all my heaters and bought new glass kind. Also got the grounding probe and no issues since.

 

[Bramzor]

I had a chemical warfare in my tank and later I discovered it was due to leaked voltage from my heater. I had a mixed reef with mostly SPS and every day I would see brown slime all over. I would clean it up with turkey baster or a small power head and catch most of it in a filter sock but same next day. I could see corals releasing slime extensively during water changes or when all pumps were off. Culprit were two Finnex titanium heaters. Replaced both heaters and things got better but not completely normal. Found out that one of the replacement heater was leaking voltage as well, another Finnex.

I threw away all my heaters and bought new glass kind. Also got the grounding probe and no issues since.

Finnex heaters look a bit cheap too with the plastic/rubber tips.
Have used the Aqua Medic and the other german titanium heaters myself without any issues so far. Don't like the glass kind because they can blow up. Plastic heaters probably also have their disadvantages...

 

[boacvh]

Thanks Brew. Just ordered one. Been reefing for a looong time & never had one. $10 for piece of mind & safety is a no brainer!

Newbie here and don't have one currently. Can you share which one is good to purchase? Definitely getting one after reading this.
Also, do I need a probe in the DT and another one in the sump?

 

[Brew12]

Newbie here and don't have one currently. Can you share which one is good to purchase? Definitely getting one after reading this.
Also, do I need a probe in the DT and another one in the sump?

Make sure it is titanium and has a plug. They are so simple that brand doesn't matter much. One in the sump is fine.

 

[boacvh]

Make sure it is titanium and has a plug. They are so simple that brand doesn't matter much. One in the sump is fine.

Thanks! Will start looking now

 

[Jon Fishman]

Random probe question....... or a probe-probe if you will.

To limit the obtrusive nature of the probe in my tank, I would like to put it next to my overflow/weir in the inside of my tank.

Can I drill a small hole (just large enough for the probe) through the 1” acrylic euro-brace and feed the probe through directly next to or even inder my overflow?

Does the probe need to be “in” the tank at all? Sump or overflow ok to put the probe in?


Edit. should have read. sump is fine? I will just do that