Replacing DC Power bricks?

SteveMM62Reef · Dec 20, 2021

You could also make your very own 12 vdc power strip. The 12 Vdc Jack Size is 5.5 x 2.1, I think the 24 Vdc is the same size, at least the fit when I mixed them up trying to untangle everything. The Jacks and Panel Mount Receptacles are available on Amazon. I also would put a Fuse ahead of all the Jack, so you don’t blow your power supply. Amazon Also has Panel Mount Fuse Holders.

iReefer12 · Dec 20, 2021

This all got very complicated real quick!

I’m not this handy ;Drowning

oreo54 · Dec 21, 2021

WallysWorld said:
I’m thinking about replacing the plethora of different DC power bricks on my tank with a single industrial grade power supply. I might have to get a multiple output voltage version because I think some stuff needs 24V and other 12V. I’ll need to look at each of the power bricks and look at output volts and watts/amps.

Am I crazy? Anyone else done this?

One other possibility is one large power supply and a bunch ( depending) on step down voltage regulators.

36v power supply will handle any output down about 30 v and down..so 12 and 24v.. no problem.

Limit is about 75w to each switching regulator.
LRS-350-36 is dirt cheap really .
You can get a lot bigger but costs really escalate especially if you find fanless ones.

https://power.sager.com/hep-600-36-3991227.html

HEP-600-MEAN WELL Switching Power Supply Manufacturer

MEAN WELL is one of the world's few standard power supply mainly professional manufacturers, covering 0.5 to 25,600W products are widely used in industrial control, medical and other fields, in line with international safety certification, short delivery of spot inventory.

www.meanwell.com

BTW I'm not vouching for the useability or quality of those cheap step down regulators under heavy loads such as motor startup draw ect.
This is just a concept to consider.

Projects with Sam · Dec 21, 2021

oreo5457 said:
One other possibility is one large power supply and a bunch ( depending) on step down voltage regulators.

36v power supply will handle any output down about 30 v and down..so 12 and 24v.. no problem.

Limit is about 75w to each switching regulator.
LRS-350-36 is dirt cheap really .
You can get a lot bigger but costs really escalate especially if you find fanless ones.

https://power.sager.com/hep-600-36-3991227.html

HEP-600-MEAN WELL Switching Power Supply Manufacturer

MEAN WELL is one of the world's few standard power supply mainly professional manufacturers, covering 0.5 to 25,600W products are widely used in industrial control, medical and other fields, in line with international safety certification, short delivery of spot inventory.

www.meanwell.com

BTW I'm not vouching for the useability or quality of those cheap step down regulators under heavy loads such as motor startup draw ect.
This is just a concept to consider.

You'd want to use buck converters because they are more efficient:

SteveMM62Reef · Dec 21, 2021

iReefer12 said:
This all got very complicated real quick! I’m not this handy ;Drowning

They also have “Y’s” on Amazon, just don’t reverse them and connect two power supplies together.

BZOFIQ · Dec 21, 2021

This is what I mostly use, depending on the total AMP rating needed.

Amazon.com

There is also a combiner that allows you to use 2 power supplies for redundancy and feed these from different circuits so if one fails the other is still running. Lots of possibilities for different redundancies with these.

Amazon.com: Redundant DIN Rail PS 30V 20A DR-RDN20 Meanwell AC-DC SMPS DR-RDN20 Series MEAN WELL Switching Power Supply : Electronics

Buy Redundant DIN Rail PS 30V 20A DR-RDN20 Meanwell AC-DC SMPS DR-RDN20 Series MEAN WELL Switching Power Supply: Internal Power Supplies - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

amzn.to

Then there is a UPS module that allows you to build your own "ups" style battery backup using standard SLA batteries.

Meanwell DR-UPS40 DIN Rail UPS Module - 24V 40A Max. - - Amazon.com

amzn.to

Between the above one can come up with very many different power circuits ranging from very simple to extremely complicated with a multitude of redundancies - your choice.

csund · Dec 23, 2021

When I first planned out my power distribution I was going to use those UPS power supplies but ultimately decided to run an inverter/charger for the whole system. Run the dedicated circuit through the inverter and hook up four 8D batteries and it will seamlessly transfer load to inverter in the case of power loss. Setup the GHL to monitor power from another circuit and setup to turn off non essentials like lighting. I would like to keep full flow and heating going for at least 24 hours to allow time to connect generator and not run generator at night.

MultiPlus Inverter / Charger 12/3000 - 24/3000

www.fisheriessupply.com

Joekovar · Dec 23, 2021

I'm using an Altronix power supply at 24vdc, and a few buck converters to step that down to 12, 5, and 3.3 volts for various things.

The power supply has battery back up built in, and an AC fail relay I can use to detect when it switches to batteries and disable non essential equipment.

//Edit - it's probably worth mentioning that I've had bad experiences with the cheaper Amazon buck converters. They seem to be fine stepping 24v down to 3-5v long term, but the longest I've had one last stepping down to 12+ volts is about 4 months, at which point they randomly drop the output to about 0.2v and never work the same.

iReefer12 · Dec 23, 2021

Does something like this work?

Ares Vision 18 Channel/Port 30 AMPS, 12V DC Power Supply Box, Individually Fused for CCTV, LED, and All 12v DC Devices.

iReefer12 · Dec 24, 2021

Would the unit I attached, work to power 12-14 Neptune SKY’s? 30AMPS means essentially 3000 watts max right, figure the SKY max power is 200W so the unit itself should be able to handle that?

Albeit, the outlet is a dedicated 20Amp circuit, so I’d only manage 10.

DopamineKata · Dec 24, 2021

iReefer12 said:
Would the unit I attached, work to power 12-14 Neptune SKY’s? 30AMPS means essentially 3000 watts max right, figure the SKY max power is 200W so the unit itself should be able to handle that?

Albeit, the outlet is a dedicated 20Amp circuit, so I’d only manage 10

That's 20 amps at 120v. At 12v that same circuit could support a draw of 200 amps, IIRC. 30 amps at 12v is 360 watts if my math is right.

SteveMM62Reef · Feb 11, 2022

Just bought this off of Amazon. Input 90 to 265 VAC Output 12 Vdc 25 amp 300 watts. I checked it with a Fluke Meter, there’s no AC Voltage leaking to the DC Side. 12.12 measured Vdc. Water Proof Power Plug is 36” Each DC is 9”

BZOFIQ · Feb 11, 2022

SteveMM62Reef said:
Just bought this off of Amazon. Input 90 to 265 VAC Output 12 Vdc 25 amp 300 watts. I checked it with a Fluke Meter, there’s no AC Voltage leaking to the DC Side. 12.12 measured Vdc. Water Proof Power Plug is 36” Each DC is 9”

How much?