Keeping A Tank Running In A Power Cut

[littleme1969]

Ok my problem is this.. I live in a place that gets regular power cuts. Normally the power in never off for more than a few hours which would be OK in a 100g tank, but I have had on the odd occasion lost power for between 6 - 12 hrs. I lost quite a few large rainbows in the 100g when it happened.
I'm not too bothered about the heat issue as the gas fire can be put on it that room which will stop the water temp droppping too much. With 10mm glass and a warm room it can take the tank about 12hrs to drop only a few degress.
My worry is keep the circulation going to keep everything alive. With about £800 quids worth of contents I dont want to risk it.
Ive been looking at the option of a small generator but hubby thinks its bad idea as It would have to go in the conservatory if needed with windows open etc.
The other option is one of the UPS systems like you would buy for battery back up for a PC. Not sure how long these would run for. I run a PenPlax cascade external filter which is what I would want powering and its a 220v 50hz at 23.8 wat . I know little about electrics etc so just wondered if any one could tell me what sort of running time I would get out of something like THIS Thes are designed to run PCs systems which are really greedy on power. would it be any use?

Any info on how other deal with this problem would be much appreciated as I had 3 small power cuts yesterdya due to the snow

 

[SkiFletch]

Well thats a 1200VA model wihch on standard 220V for you guys gives you about 4.5 amp hours. The pump at 23 watts is drawing about 0.1Amps so that would give you best-case scenario 45 hours of run time for just one pump. It's designed to run a computer which draws ~1.5amps for 100minutes, at your significantly lower amp draw, you'd get a while out of it. Now don't ever expect these things to perform at best-case, especially after they're a few years old. I'd say it would be reliable for about 24 hours, then after that... who knows.

For yours, or anyone else's reference, UPS backups are great for just small propeller type powerheads which are very low-draw. They don't work well with heaters, lights, and sump pump returns, which are all high-draw devices. For these higher-current devices you need to look into large auto inverters (~750watt) or generators.

I personally use the large auto inverter option, but that's just me.

 

[Colin_T]

go to an auto store and buy a 75 or 100watt power inverter and a heavy duty deep cycle car battery, (the bigger the battery the better, more AMPS is what you want).
The power inverter converts 12volt DC into 220volt AC. You connect the inverter to the battery and the pump gets plugged directly into the inverter.
The pump will run for as long as the battery lasts, hence the bigger the battery, the longer it will last. Deep cycle batteries are designed for camping or use in vehicles that aren't often used and as such can be completely flattened and then recharged. Normal batteries don't do very well if completely flattened.
After the power has come back on you recharge the battery with a normal car battery charger.

If you want to use a generator you can normally run them on ethanol, commonly sold as methylated spirits. It burns cooler and cleaner than petrol or diesel but should still only be operated in a well ventilated place.

 

[littleme1969]

Thanks guys thats much appreciated
I'll look into both and see what works out most cost effective.
And yes Ski I was aware that the batteries in the UPS only last 3 years, but still thats a fraction compared to the cost of a tank restock.

Once again guys.. Thanks for talking the time to respond its much appreciated

 

[SkiFletch]

Oh yeah, still well worth it

 

[degsod]

Just came accross this topic, I know that it is a while since the last post but I just wanted to point out that the power rating on the PC ups is the max load and in no way refers to the amount of time that you can run an item.

Generally PC UPS are designed to run at the the max load for 10 minutes which is usally long enough to shut down a PC safely without loosing any data.

 

[ben1987]

vortech circulation pumps have a battery option