Sick of power outs/floods

[taftonomos]

My power likes to cut on an off, occasionally 2-3 times a week. MOST of the time, there isn't a problem, but sometimes the Ocean Runner 3500 won't start back up on it's own, and of course there is a small flood (contained in the stand) that happens.

Worse than the flood, the pump won't come back on half the time without removing the snail guard, and flipping the impeller over (with the power off), then turning the power back on.

When the power goes off, it's usually only for a few seconds. I'm going to lower the water level in the sump to prevent/reduce flooding, but I can't be away for several days having someone watch the tank and have this happen!

I found this UPS on ebay, seems pretty reasonably priced.

http://cgi.ebay.com/APC-Battery-Back-Up-Backups-725-surge-protector-NEW_W0QQitemZ250251501097QQihZ015QQcategoryZ99265QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem">http://cgi.ebay.com/APC-Battery-Back-Up-Backups-725-surge-protector-NEW_W0QQitemZ250251501097QQihZ015QQcategoryZ99265QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem</a>[IMG]http://cgi.ebay.com/APC-Battery-Back-Up-Backups-725-surge-protector-NEW_W0QQitemZ250251501097QQihZ015QQcategoryZ99265QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem">http://cgi.ebay.com/APC-Battery-Back-Up-Backups-725-surge-protector-NEW_W0QQitemZ250251501097QQihZ015QQcategoryZ99265QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem</a>


Could someone look at that and tell me if it should work?

 

[ralph atl]

That's a great idea for short power outages. Just make sure you only have your return plugged in it. Unfortunately, you need to get a "SMART" version instead of that version for a true sine wave for your pump.

 

[johnr2604]

You could also install a check valve in the return so you dont get as much water

 

[johnr2604]

dawgdude;182538 wrote: Check valves are typically not needed in this hobby is the pumping is done correctly. The only time you really need one is if you have so much head pressure that the pump cant start back up (ie 10-15 straight up). Check valves are just one more place to leak and salt creep is bad news for check valves because they have to be cleaned regularly. I would try to figure out why its flooding and redesign it.

Thats funny because I dug through about 50 of them in swc's storage building on old plumbing. The one way valve is to keep the water in the return lines and aquarium from returning to the sump during a power outage. Also I dont know how you are going to get salt creep in something that is sealed and full of water? Maybe I am missing something because mine and everybody else I know that runs one works fine. Also I doubt that it would help the pump start because mine actually has alot of back pressure and even more with all the water sitting on it closed. Are we talking about the same thing?

 

[taftonomos]

My return nozzles have siphon breaks in them

I have a C2C overflow along the back wall of the tank, inside the tank. There is a small leak in it, so until I reseal it, tank water will slowly leak into the overflow box and drain the tank down until level with the overflow....thats what the prob is.

 

[johnr2604]

Even with a siphon break it still drains the lines. I dont know how much water it dumps out of the sump. You would be surprised at how much water the lines hold. I have a small tank with a small sump and it dosn't take much to overflow. my returns are drilled pretty low and I cant do a siphon break without having a monstrosity of plumbing. The check is a great option for me.

 

[johnr2604]

dawgdude;182571 wrote: Epoxy putty should work on it. Just apply that to the area leaking and it should plug up the leak. Its the green mighty putty they advertise on TV.

And all I can tell you is that in the years that I have done installs and the countless numbers of tanks I have done maintenance on and installed. I have never needed one because a siphon break in the line will work just fine. Salt can build up on the spring and cause it to get stuck open. Its not truly salt creep but salt and calcium build up.

Gotcha but some setups actually require them. My tank returns are drilled to low to have a siphon break. I promise that if you ran my setup with the sump I have it cannot be run without the check valve. Also if you look at the big display at SWC they have the same issue. The returns are drilled in the middle of the tank on theirs. I have to small of a stand to be able to run a larger sump that will accomidate the influx of water from the tank. I also have a baffled sump that dosn't let me adjust the water level very much.

Anyway Glad you got the problem figured out Taft. That will do it everytime

 

[taftonomos]

I figured a 1/8" hole was cheaper than a check valve!

****, I forgot about the power of mighty putty! It has the strength, to pull this 800000000lbs tractor trailer....now thats the power of mighty putty...LOL

I need to figure out where exactly the leak is.....

 

[johnr2604]

well you know, I like to live on the edge like that .