COR 20 BATTERY BACK UP

[Shadows Reef]

Has anyone successfully set up a COR20 with a battery back up?

I've seen people talking about the icecap battery backup V2 with it's 24v output and transfer switch as a viable option to bad it's not around anymore.
but id imagine this could easily be done with two 12v batteries hooked up in series or with a converter/booster.

The must would be the transfer switch that charges the battery till full and only switches over to the battery power when source power from the power supply.

But As long as the battery can provide 24v with 100w draw I don’t see why this shouldn’t work....

better question why hasn’t Neptune done this yet......?

 

[Biglew11]

I run my energy bar on a ups with power monitoring and a 12v transformer on the apex. When power goes out the apex switches stuff to a low power state.

 

[Shadows Reef]

I get and understand that but in a low power state with a UPS how much battery time can you really get?

I want to achieve straight DC to DC battery back up like my ecotech pumps

i also have large APC UPS that I do the same but with the DC to AC to DC conversion that must happen Even in a low power mode with all the wasted power used up in the transformers the UPS lasts barely 2 hours, using the same exact battery size and amperage to run three vortechs MP-10’s and a vectra S2 lasts me 2 whole days and I stopped it there without seeing how far it could go since I had to eventually leave the house and didn't want to risk anything while I was away.

Point is DC to DC is where it's at.

 

[Biglew11]

Very true about the waste with dc to ac back to dc. I have two 600 amp hour motorcycle batteries on mine and it ran for 4 hours when I wasn't home to switch over to a generator. Power was back on by time I got home. I don't know how long it could actually run the stuff for.

If your comfortable soldering and diy you could make a transfer switch using a relay and barrel connectors to connect stuff without cutting wires. Run 2 small 12v batteries in series to get 24v.
Here's a calculator that can tell you roughly how long the batteries will last.
https://www.digikey.com/en/resources/conversion-calculators/conversion-calculator-battery-life

 

[Shadows Reef]

Very true about the waste with dc to ac back to dc. I have two 600 amp hour motorcycle batteries on mine and it ran for 4 hours when I wasn't home to switch over to a generator. Power was back on by time I got home. I don't know how long it could actually run the stuff for.

If your comfortable soldering and diy you could make a transfer switch using a relay and barrel connectors to connect stuff without cutting wires. Run 2 small 12v batteries in series to get 24v.
Here's a calculator that can tell you roughly how long the batteries will last.
https://www.digikey.com/en/resources/conversion-calculators/conversion-calculator-battery-life

I'm extremely comfortable soldering and what you've mentioned is exactly what I'm considering doing, just curious if anyone else has done this.

One thing I'm concerned about is if the driver is smart enough to recognize a foreign power source and if so what would it do? not allow the pump to work at all, send an error message? Lol

I already built the same thing for my vortechs and vectra since I refused to buy ecotechs version except that one is wired in parallel.

 

[Shadows Reef]

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-ecotech-battery-backup-for-60.328279/

Just in case anyone is interested Amazing step by step

 

[Biglew11]

The transformer puts out 24v dc I don't think the controller would see a difference where that 24v came from. I may do this with mine as I run a cor20 my self.

 

[TheHarold]

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-ecotech-battery-backup-for-60.328279/

Just in case anyone is interested Amazing step by step

That DIY would not apply to the COR20. The Ecotech driver has all the internal electronics that are required to support that simple battery system, and the COR20 driver may not.

To my knowledge, the COR20 needs a stable 24v power source. The COR driver itself may not have regulation, so the 22-29v a 24v battery would provide could be unacceptable. It does not have features that a simple battery system would need, such as low voltage cutoff before items are damaged, a way to shift from the normal 24v supply to the battery supply, etc.

TLDR: Double check with Neptune Systems before you try that.

 

[Shadows Reef]

That DIY would not apply to the COR20. The Ecotech driver has all the internal electronics that are required to support that simple battery system, and the COR20 driver may not.

To my knowledge, the COR20 needs a stable 24v power source. The COR driver itself may not have regulation, so the 22-29v a 24v battery would provide could be unacceptable. It does not have features that a simple battery system would need, such as low voltage cutoff before items are damaged, a way to shift from the normal 24v supply to the battery supply, etc.

TLDR: Double check with Neptune Systems before you try that.

Yeah I have not tried anything yet and I probably wont try anything till I see someone else has successfully achieved the same thing.

As much as id like to have my return cor20 on the battery back up like my vectra I know it's not needed as long as I have my vortechs on the battery back up As I doubt ill ever have an outage longer then a day....but who knows

My vectra is being repurposed from being a return to only running the manifold in the sump.

 

[User1]

That DIY would not apply to the COR20. The Ecotech driver has all the internal electronics that are required to support that simple battery system, and the COR20 driver may not.

To my knowledge, the COR20 needs a stable 24v power source. The COR driver itself may not have regulation, so the 22-29v a 24v battery would provide could be unacceptable. It does not have features that a simple battery system would need, such as low voltage cutoff before items are damaged, a way to shift from the normal 24v supply to the battery supply, etc.

TLDR: Double check with Neptune Systems before you try that.

Agreed. When I first read the post I thought maybe the OP was asking about the Cor 15 since it is plugged directly into the EB832. If so that is the one I would think has a higher success or chance to work in a DIY kit. The 20 as you state has a external power supply.

I use a cyber power ups which shuts everything down but one power head for water movement. The tank can withstand no lights, skimmer, and sump to display flow for a long while. All I care about is time allocation for crises management and making sure there is oxygen for the animal.

 

[Shadows Reef]

Agreed. When I first read the post I thought maybe the OP was asking about the Cor 15 since it is plugged directly into the EB832. If so that is the one I would think has a higher success or chance to work in a DIY kit. The 20 as you state has a external power supply.

I use a cyber power ups which shuts everything down but one power head for water movement. The tank can withstand no lights, skimmer, and sump to display flow for a long while. All I care about is time allocation for crises management and making sure there is oxygen for the animal.

Well maybe one day Neptune will come out with something to address their lack of battery back up options, I definitely don’t expect it to run the 120v outlets off the eb832 but at least all the 24v accessories would be amazing....come on Neptune my wallet is ready to throw $$$ at you.

 

[Adrift]

That will be really nice if they did. I’m currently trying to figure out solutions myself. Have 4 wav’s and 2 cor 20s. Only two options I see atm is buying a back up generator or the tunze solution.