Clinton
Active Member
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2017
- Messages
- 315
- Reaction score
- 193
- What state or country do you live in
- Kansas
Long winded rant, proceed with caution. Oh and slipping to the last paragraph my be all that's necessary.
Hey All,
Clinton here, just messing things up and deciding to rant to you folks. In all my few months of wisdom I had decide to install a light hanging above my refugium to promote algae growth. You guys all know how that is.
Well, a few days before my pump had shorted out (I think) and even with what I thought was my grounding probe I still got a bit of a jolt (not near as much as when my 800w heater decided to short out and send me on a quick trip into the wall behind me). In fear for the feeling in my arm and of course my life's breathe I shut everything down and start investigating farther.
Now I'm deep in contemplation terrified to turn any thing on, wondering about the horrible remodel done to my basement prior to purchasing my house in February. As I follow the back of my thought to be grounded outlet I find that there's only 2 wires running from a most likely far from code junction box. Piece of mind destroyed and terror sinking back into me I push on. I am hanging this light dang or!
As I'm getting deep into the guts of my stand thinking of the best attack plan I notice a cricket has managed to find its way to my ATO container. Just what I want a rotting bug in my controlled RO/DI water. Hanging comes to a halt and I think maybe more clearance behind the aquarium through this shabby wall is a better place for my reservoir.
With no pause button I go to rip my reservoir from its tightly fitting confines just to remember it can't come out without removing my sump, but not in time to prevent me from commoving my drain pipes loosening the bulk heads to my drains and causing a flood of epic proportions, only a couple gallons since pumps were off, but my mind was not clear at the time. I swung my blue tub back into place capturing what the gates of inpatients had created and cursed the bulkhead gods.
Not detoured from my endeavor to have a more accessible reservoir I start taking pipes off and emptying my 55 gallon aquarium, modified as a sump, into my mixing container (A 110g livestock tank) just to find that I have more pipes harder to remove around the drain portion and even an empty a tank that size with rocks and sand was more than I was willing (my puny muscles were no match) to deal with. I give up, clean out my cricket and salt water infested RO/DI reservoir tighten my bulk heads and begin to pump the water back out of my cow trough.
Then my gut drops, bile threatens to rise up and my bare foot quakes; where hath this puddle beneath rose from?! It's my stupid cow trough that in my haste I jolted the bulk head on it loose and had been leaking water down upon my floor. Again I'm lucky it feels like more than it is, but then again it's still coming and here I am slowly emptying the close to 40g of water back into my stubborn sump. What's a foolish impatient wary man to do? Pride dictates yelling for help from the wife is no option of mine, as the leak grows larger, I fly into action. I secure the hose where surely it won't come flying out of the tank (again). I plant my feet firmly on the ground, grasping at the ridge of my water tank, and in a jerking twisting motion using only my back I force the tank upwards.
Turns out thanks to gravity and the large surface area it took little force to raise one end up and then the water pouring to the opposite end did the rest of my work for me. For the better part of a lifetime, 5 minutes, before I realized I had a board I could use to prop the tank up I stood there thinking of my next step. Then I recalled the light I set out to hang hours ago. I grab a painted board, secure it to the existing stand using 3 screws and then add an eyelet and boom light hung.
Long story short I have an electrician scheduled to get me a grounded gfci outlet for future fiascos, as well as a voltmeter on its way. I have no doubt my current electric situation is not safe. My reservoir has not moved or been put back together as an ATO, my aquarium is half running on power heads alone, I'm waiting on a not broken return pump, my basement is in shambles slowly drying, I'm hoping my bulk heads hold, praying nothing else explodes, but dang it I have my one more light added.
Hey All,
Clinton here, just messing things up and deciding to rant to you folks. In all my few months of wisdom I had decide to install a light hanging above my refugium to promote algae growth. You guys all know how that is.
Well, a few days before my pump had shorted out (I think) and even with what I thought was my grounding probe I still got a bit of a jolt (not near as much as when my 800w heater decided to short out and send me on a quick trip into the wall behind me). In fear for the feeling in my arm and of course my life's breathe I shut everything down and start investigating farther.
Now I'm deep in contemplation terrified to turn any thing on, wondering about the horrible remodel done to my basement prior to purchasing my house in February. As I follow the back of my thought to be grounded outlet I find that there's only 2 wires running from a most likely far from code junction box. Piece of mind destroyed and terror sinking back into me I push on. I am hanging this light dang or!
As I'm getting deep into the guts of my stand thinking of the best attack plan I notice a cricket has managed to find its way to my ATO container. Just what I want a rotting bug in my controlled RO/DI water. Hanging comes to a halt and I think maybe more clearance behind the aquarium through this shabby wall is a better place for my reservoir.
With no pause button I go to rip my reservoir from its tightly fitting confines just to remember it can't come out without removing my sump, but not in time to prevent me from commoving my drain pipes loosening the bulk heads to my drains and causing a flood of epic proportions, only a couple gallons since pumps were off, but my mind was not clear at the time. I swung my blue tub back into place capturing what the gates of inpatients had created and cursed the bulkhead gods.
Not detoured from my endeavor to have a more accessible reservoir I start taking pipes off and emptying my 55 gallon aquarium, modified as a sump, into my mixing container (A 110g livestock tank) just to find that I have more pipes harder to remove around the drain portion and even an empty a tank that size with rocks and sand was more than I was willing (my puny muscles were no match) to deal with. I give up, clean out my cricket and salt water infested RO/DI reservoir tighten my bulk heads and begin to pump the water back out of my cow trough.
Then my gut drops, bile threatens to rise up and my bare foot quakes; where hath this puddle beneath rose from?! It's my stupid cow trough that in my haste I jolted the bulk head on it loose and had been leaking water down upon my floor. Again I'm lucky it feels like more than it is, but then again it's still coming and here I am slowly emptying the close to 40g of water back into my stubborn sump. What's a foolish impatient wary man to do? Pride dictates yelling for help from the wife is no option of mine, as the leak grows larger, I fly into action. I secure the hose where surely it won't come flying out of the tank (again). I plant my feet firmly on the ground, grasping at the ridge of my water tank, and in a jerking twisting motion using only my back I force the tank upwards.
Turns out thanks to gravity and the large surface area it took little force to raise one end up and then the water pouring to the opposite end did the rest of my work for me. For the better part of a lifetime, 5 minutes, before I realized I had a board I could use to prop the tank up I stood there thinking of my next step. Then I recalled the light I set out to hang hours ago. I grab a painted board, secure it to the existing stand using 3 screws and then add an eyelet and boom light hung.
Long story short I have an electrician scheduled to get me a grounded gfci outlet for future fiascos, as well as a voltmeter on its way. I have no doubt my current electric situation is not safe. My reservoir has not moved or been put back together as an ATO, my aquarium is half running on power heads alone, I'm waiting on a not broken return pump, my basement is in shambles slowly drying, I'm hoping my bulk heads hold, praying nothing else explodes, but dang it I have my one more light added.
