Morbid...but do you worry about getting shocked?

Brew12 · May 17, 2020

goldslinger said:
I’m scared to death of gfci or whatever they’re called. I’ve heard stories of them tripping and killing tank with hours of no circulation. I do have a probe, though.

I solve that issue by splitting my pumps between multiple GFCI's. One can trip and my tank will be fine for hours.
My fear is that I would have a failed pump leaching copper or toxins into my system for days, weeks, or even months and not know it. With a ground probe and GFCI combination, I no longer have to worry about that.
I have helped multiple people figure out which piece of equipment they had go bad after ICP tests showed high copper in their systems. That is a very ugly situation. I'll take a GFCI tripping to take out half my flow any day!

Doctorgori · May 18, 2020

Yes and its happened before ...I practice good wire mgmt: Drip loops, watching salt creep, secure mountings , ground wires et

Rosie · May 18, 2020

You couldn't have timed this question any better for me!

My corals aren't looking their best at the moment and whilst I was trying to rule a few things out I decided to dip my fingers in my tank on the off chance it could be a faulty cable (I usually put gloves on when I'm working in my tank as I've got all sorts of lotions and potions on my hands... so I wouldn't have noticed it) - well I got an answer pretty quickly with an initial short shock and some tingling fingers! The painful part wasn't the shock though, it was trying to figure out what the faulty item was... it turns out it wasn't just one item.... it was BOTH of my powerheads!

Brew12 · May 18, 2020

Rosie said:
You couldn't have timed this question any better for me!

My corals aren't looking their best at the moment and whilst I was trying to rule a few things out I decided to dip my fingers in my tank on the off chance it could be a faulty cable (I usually put gloves on when I'm working in my tank as I've got all sorts of lotions and potions on my hands... so I wouldn't have noticed it) - well I got an answer pretty quickly with an initial short shock and some tingling fingers! The painful part wasn't the shock though, it was trying to figure out what the faulty item was... it turns out it wasn't just one item.... it was BOTH of my powerheads!

I'm glad you are ok! Odds are the electricity itself isn't hurting your corals, its likely that your powerheads have released some toxins or copper into your system. If you aren't already, I would recommend running activated carbon and if you can get Polyfilters, even better!

Paul B · May 18, 2020

After being an electrician for fifty years, I need a good shock in the morning to get me going.

I started my tank way before GFCIs were invented. I used to get shocked so many times I could swear I kept an electric eel in there. ;Wacky

Rosie · May 18, 2020

Brew12 said:
I would recommend running activated carbon and if you can get Polyfilters, even better!

Thanks Brew! Ah I never would've thought of that, I'll throw some activated carbon in there now!

srad750c · May 19, 2020

I worry sometimes. I got a really bad shock back in the day while working at an aquarium shop, I have a small spot under my chin where the hair stopped growing as a result. I was many, many years before it started to grow back. Not sure that was the reason, maybe it was just a coincidence. It really lit me up, almost passed out that day at work. I was a broken glass heater in a tank. As a result I had titanium heaters in my tank. But unfortunately I have a glass heater right now because the last two electronically controlled titanium ones failed and almost killed my tank.

DrDeGuzman · May 20, 2020

I got shocked a few times. It wasn’t too bad

Chefwheredyougo · May 20, 2020

I voted never. Reluctantly because I thought I'd jinx myself.
Turns out I was right. Doing a water change today I went to unplug my pump, (while fighting with cats), and got a pretty good shock. My arm tingled for awhile. Not too bad, but the tank finally got me

Dburr1014 · May 20, 2020

I've had a power head leak voltage. I had to unplug everything one by one to figure it out. I still use it to mix water but never put my hand in, just grab the cord. I live dangerously, lol.
One thing I do now is always have rubber sole shoes on before touching any water. Mixing or the tank.

Brew12 · May 20, 2020

Dburr1014 said:
I've had a power head leak voltage. I had to unplug everything one by one to figure it out. I still use it to mix water but never put my hand in, just grab the cord. I live dangerously, lol.
One thing I do now is always have rubber sole shoes on before touching any water. Mixing or the tank.

And you don't worry about that pump leaching copper or other toxins into your RODI?

Calebb8133 · Jun 9, 2020

Just remember that if a GFCI trips and you are not home it could've the end of your tank... My uncle owns a multi million dollar electrical contracting company and I asked him if I should change the outlet and he said no because if they breaker for whatever reason accidentally trips and I am not home my tank could be without power for quite some time

Brew12 · Jun 9, 2020

Calebb8133 said:
Just remember that if a GFCI trips and you are not home it could've the end of your tank... My uncle owns a multi million dollar electrical contracting company and I asked him if I should change the outlet and he said no because if they breaker for whatever reason accidentally trips and I am not home my tank could be without power for quite some time

I've never been a fan of this argument. It is easily solved by using multiple GFCI's for your tank instead of one. Make sure you have your return pump off one and your power heads off of the other. If your tank doesn't lose all flow it should be fine for many hours.
If you have a pump on your system that should trip a GFCI and doesn't, you could leach copper into your system for months. Not only do you lose everything, but you have to toss all your rock and sand and start over. I know a few people that have had to go this route. I don't know anyone that has had to restart a tank due to a power outage if they have used at least 2 GFCI.
If you have a fault that a GFCI could have isolated that draws more than 15A for long enough, it will trip the breaker leaving your tank without all power for quite some time. GFCI's are also excellent at isolating fires in power strips that get wet. It isn't their designed function, but it is a nice side benefit.
It is all about risk mitigation. We can't protect against everything, but we should do our best.

Calebb8133 · Jun 9, 2020

Brew12 said:
I've never been a fan of this argument. It is easily solved by using multiple GFCI's for your tank instead of one. Make sure you have your return pump off one and your power heads off of the other. If your tank doesn't lose all flow it should be fine for many hours.
If you have a pump on your system that should trip a GFCI and doesn't, you could leach copper into your system for months. Not only do you lose everything, but you have to toss all your rock and sand and start over. I know a few people that have had to go this route. I don't know anyone that has had to restart a tank due to a power outage if they have used at least 2 GFCI.
If you have a fault that a GFCI could have isolated that draws more than 15A for long enough, it will trip the breaker leaving your tank without all power for quite some time. GFCI's are also excellent at isolating fires in power strips that get wet. It isn't their designed function, but it is a nice side benefit.
It is all about risk mitigation. We can't protect against everything, but we should do our best.

Good point
His point made sense to me and I didnt c any way around it but maybe I could do that. I have 4 tanks though so to add 8 GFCI's isn't ideal although I could get special pricing on them. TBH though the chances of me getting electrocuted is pretty low I am not worried about it to much.

Brew12 · Jun 9, 2020

Calebb8133 said:
Good point
His point made sense to me and I didnt c any way around it but maybe I could do that. I have 4 tanks though so to add 8 GFCI's isn't ideal although I could get special pricing on them. TBH though the chances of me getting electrocuted is pretty low I am not worried about it to much.

I don't worry about getting electrocuted by my tank either. I use GFCI almost exclusively to protect my coral from contaminants from failed electrical equipment.
If your 4 tanks are close enough, you could do something like this and share one GFCI with 2 tanks. Total cost would be under $70

DIY GFCI installation

I have a reputation for having a passion for safety, especially electrical safety. I want to share how I will be implementing GFCI on my new system. First, I made a big box store run and picked up a 2 gang, new construction style electrical box. I also picked up 2 heavy duty cords, 2 gfci...

www.reef2reef.com

Randy Holmes-Farley · Jun 9, 2020

Brew12 said:
I don't worry about getting electrocuted by my tank either. I use GFCI almost exclusively to protect my coral from contaminants from failed electrical equipment.
If your 4 tanks are close enough, you could do something like this and share one GFCI with 2 tanks. Total cost would be under $70

DIY GFCI installation

I have a reputation for having a passion for safety, especially electrical safety. I want to share how I will be implementing GFCI on my new system. First, I made a big box store run and picked up a 2 gang, new construction style electrical box. I also picked up 2 heavy duty cords, 2 gfci...

www.reef2reef.com

I got shocked in a way that the GFCI didn't protect.

I grabbed a 2 prong plug with salty wet hands to pull it out. The water dribbled into the gap between plug and socket as I pulled it out. Guess there was a path from hot to neutral at least partly involving my hand.

Not too bad of a jolt, but I was far more careful after that. lol

Calebb8133 · Jun 9, 2020

Brew12 said:
I don't worry about getting electrocuted by my tank either. I use GFCI almost exclusively to protect my coral from contaminants from failed electrical equipment.
If your 4 tanks are close enough, you could do something like this and share one GFCI with 2 tanks. Total cost would be under $70

DIY GFCI installation

I have a reputation for having a passion for safety, especially electrical safety. I want to share how I will be implementing GFCI on my new system. First, I made a big box store run and picked up a 2 gang, new construction style electrical box. I also picked up 2 heavy duty cords, 2 gfci...

www.reef2reef.com

My tanks r all in separate rooms. Cost isn't a big deal because I buy them in bulk for work.
Don't diy a GFCI btw

I have had to fix people's because they thought they knew how to do it and it wound up costing them 2-3 times as much to fix what they did then it would have to just hire someone to do it.

Just not worth it to me

Brew12 · Jun 10, 2020

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
I got shocked in a way that the GFCI didn't protect.

I grabbed a 2 prong plug with salty wet hands to pull it out. The water dribbled into the gap between plug and socket as I pulled it out. Guess there was a path from hot to neutral at least partly involving my hand.

Not too bad of a jolt, but I was far more careful after that. lol

I've felt that pain myself. It isn't dangerous since it doesn't involve a path through the core of the body, but it sure can hurt!

Gumbies R Us · Aug 7, 2024

So far no. However, I did almost shock myself trying to figure out why my light's power brick stopped working. Come to find out it had water in it, and started to making zapping sounds when plugged in