What are some suggetions for battery back up for power outages?

Fish & Coral

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i would say a small generator is a good choice. You can run all your equipment with no worries. As long as it has fuel it will keep give you power and there are some brands reasonably priced (less than $500).
 

sghera64

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I use a Tunze Safety Connector and a Marine Absorbance Gas Membrane (AGM) 12V batter from Amazon. It drives 4 recirculation pumps; two in my DT and two in my Frag tank. All 4 pumps are 24V Jebao pumps. The pumps run at 1/2 speed since they "want" 24V but the batter is 12V. Has worked great for me in power outages. The battery is on a battery-minder to keep it topped off until the power is out.

Given the size of my battery and the draw from my four pumps, I think I could operate for about 16-18 hrs w/o power.
 

ichthyoid

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Fwiw,
Most generators require an oil change every 25 hours of run time. They also need fuel every few hours & shouldn’t be filled while hot. You may possibly need a means to safely store substantial fuel to run & will need to turn it over to keep it fresh, as it forms deposits over time. Even the whole home generators with automatic switchover require an oil change, at least every 50 hours, last I checked. Consider this when looking at backup options.

I’ve decided on multiple battery backups, which run 24+ hours & can be recharged via vehicle inverters for anything over 24 hours. My truck holds 25 gal & can do that for days, maybe a week. Anything beyond that would be apocalyptic, because our neighborhood is next to a substation.
-My $0.02
 

Jeffrey Fouty

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Just had a power outage today. Luckily my work allows me to leave when I need to. Got home plugged into my truck via pwr inverter and kept the water moving. Unfortunately, sometimes work takes me away for a couple weeks. So looking for suggestions for tried and true battery back ups or generators that are simple enough for a teenager to start when i'm away. Thanks in advance!
They do make a device that automatically starts a generator. I'm a electrician and you can install it by the electrical panel.
 

Adamantium

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Fwiw,
Most generators require an oil change every 25 hours of run time. They also need fuel every few hours & shouldn’t be filled while hot. You may possibly need a means to safely store substantial fuel to run & will need to turn it over to keep it fresh, as it forms deposits over time. Even the whole home generators with automatic switchover require an oil change, at least every 50 hours, last I checked. Consider this when looking at backup options.

I’ve decided on multiple battery backups, which run 24+ hours & can be recharged via vehicle inverters for anything over 24 hours. My truck holds 25 gal & can do that for days, maybe a week. Anything beyond that would be apocalyptic, because our neighborhood is next to a substation.
-My $0.02
Just as a point of reference, I recently bought a generac gp5500, and it only requires oil changes every 100 hours. I also fill it while it’s running, which I know is frowned upon, but if you’re careful, it’s not that big of a deal.

Not recommending doing that, by any means, it’s just worked out fine for me, and my Dad, for years.
 

Snoopdog

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I was thinking about battery backups today and had another thought. My GFI is on the wall, if there is an issue it will flip to protect me from going horizontal. If the power is coming from the UPS then there is no GFI protection. I know the UPS cannot produce as much current as a wall outlet, but that would still be bad.
 

ichthyoid

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I was thinking about battery backups today and had another thought. My GFI is on the wall, if there is an issue it will flip to protect me from going horizontal. If the power is coming from the UPS then there is no GFI protection. I know the UPS cannot produce as much current as a wall outlet, but that would still be bad.

My backups are mostly 12vdc (Ecotech) or 24vdc (most powerheads & pumps). I’m not worried about those, at all.

For a 120 volt AC ups, you can buy GFCI’s that plug into an ups itself. So, if you have a 120vac skimmer pump, you’re covered.

Fwiw, I don’t have everything on a gfci just because they aren’t needed, but mostly because they pop easily.

Like not for the Apex itself. If I lose that, messages stop too!
 

Snoopdog

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My backups are mostly 12vdc (Ecotech) or 24vdc (most powerheads & pumps). I’m not worried about those, at all.

For a 120 volt AC ups, you can buy GFCI’s that plug into an ups itself. So, if you have a 120vac skimmer pump, you’re covered.

Fwiw, I don’t have everything on a gfci just because they aren’t needed, but mostly because they pop easily.

Like not for the Apex itself. If I lose that, messages stop too!


I thought you were not supposed to have a GFCI past another GFCI?

I am at least going to have Nagios let me know if it cannot ping the lights and Apex, that will tell me the tank itself lost power.
 

rusty hannon

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I currently have 2 computer back power boxes.They are good for 6 to 8 hrs apiece so figure I have12 to 16 hours of power.they have multiple outlets and USB ports
 

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