Protecting a tank during power outages. Advice?

[myvwrock]

*A GFCI*monitors the amount of current flowing from hot to neutral. If there is any*imbalance, it*trips the circuit. It is able to sense a mismatch as small as 4 or 5 milliamps, and it can react as fast as you can blink an eye

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[grouper therapy]

Exactly a ground fault,not a circuit overload.a circuit overload can have balanced current and still fry a device. Like I said it is great that it tripped in your case but should never be used for that purpose. Your breaker probably would have caught it. Was it the power supply that burnt up?

 

[myvwrock]

grouper therapy;1094642 wrote: Exactly a ground fault,not a circuit overload.a circuit overload can have balanced current and still fry a device. Like I said it is great that it tripped in your case but should never be used for that purpose. Your breaker probably would have caught it. Was it the power supply that burnt up?

No , the wave maker itself

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[grouper therapy]

Wow that is hot, was in the tank when it started smoking?

 

[Adam]

 

[xilez]

tWell, last night a HUGE storm came through Brookhaven. Trees down everywhere, power was out for 4 hours and the UPS provided enough power to keep the light running on max intensity the entire time and then some. I plan to only have the return pumped connected to the battery back up slot, which should provide 5-6+ hours of use, which is comforting.

Scary story Adam.

Question: If I can't get my apartment to install a GFCI outlet, will having these plugged into my UPS be a solution? http://www.lowes.com/pd/Shock-Buster-15-Amp-3-Wire-Grounding-Single-to-Single-Yellow-GFCI-Adapter/1135923">http://www.lowes.com/pd/Shock-Buster-15-Amp-3-Wire-Grounding-Single-to-Single-Yellow-GFCI-Adapter/1135923</a>

edit: found this statement:

[I]"I run somewhat the same setup you describe - portable GFCI coming out of a battery backup. However, I've never had an issue with my Lowe's purchased portable GFCIs tripping when the power has gone out. I've had several occasions to "test" my setup and the battery backup kicks on just as it should - with the GFCIs staying "on". So I guess I question the article.

The other issue is that a battery backup running out of a GFCI in the wall can be a dangerous thing if the GFCI is trying to do its job. Say you have a current leak in the tank. You stick your hand in the tank and the GFCI cuts out like it's supposed to. The battery backup senses no power and kicks in like it's supposed to. And now whatever component was causing the issue is back "live" again - with no GFCI to kick out. That's the whole reason I have not only a GFCI at my wall, but ones plugged into the output of my battery backup.

The question comes down to, when the power goes off, do you want the stuff you plug into the GPS to come back on automatically when the power comes back on, or do you want to have to reset the GFCI before it comes on. If you want it to happen automatically, you need to get an auto-reset GFCI.

The other thing to remember is, if you are going to use a UPS battery backup unit and use GFCI, make _sure_ you have a GFCI between the UPS and the tank equipment. "</em>

 

[Adam]

You can install the GFCI yourself. Just turn the breaker off and remove the current outlet and install the GFCI you get from Lowes or HD. If there are other outlets or lights wired through that outlet they will be protected too if they are past the GFCI in the circuit.

The question about the battery backup providing power after the GFCI trips is a good one. I know that the battery backups I've seen have an internal breaker, as do most power strips, but if it will trip in all scenarios is something I don't know. But I will research it.

 

[bulkrate]

xilex - good to know. That was pretty spectacular yesterday - had the UPS flipping over to battery power several times at work.

Technically in a power outage all you really need is circulation, heating & possibly cooling (if you're running a chiller) to avoid potential losses. Oh, and if you're running one a skimmer's nice to have on backup power as well since they can do wonders for aeration.

Lighting is optional in the short-term - as others have pointed out it's not sunny every day.

As for the gfci plug-in - yeah, it's kind of important, especially when power could continue to be delivered to the equipment even after a breaker trips (after all, it IS uninterruptible). I'd rather risk my entire tank dying than myself. :tongue: