Survived my first power outage. Things I learned quickly

[Bill_Moorman]

Hello friends.

Well if finally happened, last night we had a 5 hour power outage.

Most of you know Murphy’s Law. It explicitly states that the universe will give you a huge middle finger when it is the worst time to do so.

Story time:

As you know, yesterday was the 4th of July. I was sitting on the couch with my lady just telling her how much I appreciate her patience with the tank (dead serious) when the lights go out and the back up battery starts beeping.

The displayed estimated run time with all life support is 55 minutes. The actual run time: 1 minute and 45 seconds.

It started beeping louder and louder to warn me of the impending shut down. I frantically unplugged EVERYTHING but the sump return pump, as that’s the pump that breaks surface tension to aerate the water.

That bought me another 30 seconds, maybe. I got online to see where I could buy a generator, as I have seen suggested on many emergency help threads. I thought I would be able to buy one online and pick up, but then I realized it was 10:42pm on the Fourth of July. I remember reading a thread about battery powered air pumps in the sporting good section of Walmart, so I haul out there.

Of course, the Walmart in Pueblo, CO, a town of 269k people, doesn’t carry battery powered pumps of any kind. I remember reading that another option would be to buy an inverter to run from your car to power your life support.

Ended up picking one up for under $50, and then haul home.

Now here is where it gets tricky, Colorado has it illegal to run your car outside without you in it. As such, I had to bring the Jeep into my backyard and shut my gate (I’ve got RV parking) so I could run power to my tank.

Power came back on around 3 this morning, and nothing died!

So back to the point:

GO RIGHT NOW AND PREP YOUR DISASTER KIT:

I had a false sense of security with the battery back up. It only ran under 2 minutes with nothing but the return pump running. 2 minutes! *** that thing.

Order a battery powered air pump on amazon. You won’t be able to find one when disaster strikes.

Buy a generator. Today.

Okay that last one is expensive, but had I had a generator, all I would have needed to do is start it, plug my tank into it, and grab a beer and enjoy the darkness.

TL;DR: Don’t wait to buy things to sustain your tank until a problem exists like I did. Get them now, and when the time comes, be ready.

 

[andrewkw]

I think maybe your battery backup is set to automatically shut down. It should last more than 2 minutes. These computer UPS are designed to safely shut down pc's and give you time to save what you are working on. They aren't really designed to be used as a power source outside of that.

Good call on the generator. A couple of things to keep in mind. Gas doesn't last forever. If you google it it seems like the shelf life is only 90ish days. That being said 1 year seems safe in my own experience. Glad everything made it okay.

 

[fish farmer]

Good thing you were home.

Generators are nice things to have, just remember to exercise them. I use mine to power tools when I'm building stuff outside and to burn out the old gas.

 

[Flippers4pups]

I think maybe your battery backup is set to automatically shut down. It should last more than 2 minutes. These computer UPS are designed to safely shut down pc's and give you time to save what you are working on. They aren't really designed to be used as a power source outside of that.

Good call on the generator. A couple of things to keep in mind. Gas doesn't last forever. If you google it it seems like the shelf life is only 90ish days. That being said 1 year seems safe in my own experience. Glad everything made it okay.

Inverter to the rescue! I don't have a generator at the moment, but I do have a inverter and a battery powered bubbler.

Glad it worked out for you! It's soon to be hurricane season in the south and it's full blown thunderstorm season virtually every where else. Be prepared!

 

[sghera64]

I have a 180 gal system. When power goes out, I don’t run sump, lights or heater. I only run my 24v DC power heads in the display tank and frag tank. They are always aimed at the surface for gas exchange. With an AGM (absorbent glass membrane) 12V DC battery I can run all my pumps for about 24 hours. The battery is kept on a maintenance charger so it is always ready and recharged when necessary. I bought the battery from Amazon. The only down side is with the power heads turned all the way up, they only run at half power because the battery is 12V and not 24V.

About 15 years ago, I did as you suggest, buy two battery powered air pumps to drive air stones. One must remember to keep batteries in stock too. However, I’ve never had to resort to them.

Do you have DC power heads in your tanks?

 

[Greybeard]

I bought my generator a decade or so back... off of the back of a truck in a hardware store parking lot, three days into a MAJOR power outage. I ended up without power for 13 days. Let me tell you... that is NOT the time you want to be trying to buy a generator. I probably paid double what it was worth.

Battery powered air pumps are cheap. Got mine from Amazon. Nobody is going to have one sitting on the shelf... and waiting 2-4 days for it to be delivered _after_ the power outage makes little sense.

A little preparation makes all the difference.

I'm on a well. No power == no water. I've got a generator, but I can't use it to run my well pump. I keep a couple of cases of bottled water on hand at all times. Last time I had a lengthy power outage, I was able to use a small pump to pull a barrel full of water out of my swimming pool. You wouldn't want to drink it, but it works to flush a toilet, anyway.

 

[Greybeard]

Oh, forgot to mention:

Gas doesn't last forever.

Sta-bil is your friend. Buy premium (no alcohol) fuel, add a half ounce of Sta-Bil per gallon, and gasoline will be fine for over 2 years.

 

[Flippers4pups]

Another thing this time of year is the heat. Power outage during the summer time can cause temps to rise well into 90-100+ in a house. Dangerious to humans and animals alike. A fan can help, but keeping ice or being able to obtain ice will can be critical for our tanks.

Winter time can be as bad, but tank wise, generator/batteries/inverter can at least power heaters and a powerhead. Rapping a tank with thick blankets can help as well.

 

[vector824]

Hurricane season started June 1st! I bought a generator last year after Irma rolled though, tank was still cycling so didn't care then. But now that I have fish I've got it all set up and ready to roll once the next 'cane strikes. Plus I got a window AC unit because my wife gets CRANKY when she's hot.

A generator is a must if you have all that invested. I see it as $500 insurance policy for all the hard work and as good husbandry.

 

[jd371]

After 3 years into this hobby I finally bought a generator this past Winter, so I'm ready for any power outage. I do have a pair of battery powered air pumps on hand just in case there's a power outage and I'm not home, much easier for the family to turn on the pumps and throw an air stone in the tank then have them figure out the generator and tank hook up.

 

[cracker]

My generator saved my booty when Irma came thru last fall. I was able to run the fridge,both tanks & the TV /dvd. Maybe more but didn't need it. There are other things Ya need beside the tanks . My power was out for 41/2 days.

 

[Matyas]

For all the apartment folks like me who can’t use generators, would the Ice Cap battery backup be a reliable backup for a jebao pp-8? Right now all I have is a battery powered air pump and stone...