jnguyen4007 January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 My father in law came over on Sat morning and put in 2 20 amp circuit breaker and mounted 2 dual GFI outlets for me. We also had company all day that day, I didn't get around to moving the DC8 over to the new outlet. Around 6:30 AM on Sunday, the power tripped again where the DC8 was connected to. My cell phone was down stairs so I didn't find out about it until around 10:30 when we came down stairs and were ready to head out. The tank's temp reading was around 71. Since we'll be out all day, I decided to move the DC8 over to the other side of the fish tank so it's closer to the new outlets and plugged everything back in. All of my wires were labeled so it was easy to know which wire plugs into where on the DC8. I verified that the heater was running again and the temp probe was in the tank. Everything looked good so we head out. Every hour, I received an alert showing me the tank's status because of the temp still lower than where it was supposed to be. 6 hours later, the tank's temp has gone up to only around 74. Still much lower than where it should be. When we came home around 10 PM, first thing I did was see if the heater was on and it was but it was barely producing any heat. I calibrated the temp probe to make sure it was working properly and it was. So it seemed that my heater somehow crapped out and no longer functioned like it should. I pulled out the 250W jager heater that I had in my fresh water reservoir for my discus. Washed it with the RO/DI water, then insert it into my sump. I programmed the ACIII to have that jager heater run as a second heater and prayed. This morning, I saw that the temp is back to 80.4. I don't know to what the extent the long cold might have damage the corals or harm any of the fish. I can only wait and see and hope for the best. 2 lessons learned. 1) have my cell phone next to me at night and not down stairs where I can't hear it in case of an alert from ACIII. 2) I need to have two heaters in the sump in case if one fails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txaggies07 January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 Two heaters is always a good idea anyways. I re-did some wiring a couple days ago and my tank got to 70 because I forgot to plug the heater back in. Everything is doing fine still. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnguyen4007 January 21, 2008 Author Share January 21, 2008 Two heaters is always a good idea anyways. I re-did some wiring a couple days ago and my tank got to 70 because I forgot to plug the heater back in. Everything is doing fine still. Good luck. That's good to know that your tank is doing fine. Hopefully mine will too. I pulled up the log on my ACIII and saw that the temp started to drop around 4 AM with it being lowest around 6 AM at 70.1. If I was home yesterday, I could have done something about it. But, that's just how it goes. Time to order couple more heaters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phisigs79 January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 I have one hooked up to my controller and the other on a outlet set at 74 just in case the controller failed which it has in the past but i didnt have a second heater Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhoch January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 Multiple of just about anything is a good thing in my book: Multiple temp probes Multiple heaters Multiple return pumps All on seperate circuts (in case 1 circult fails) Also keeping the cell phone close (priceless Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnguyen4007 January 21, 2008 Author Share January 21, 2008 Multiple of just about anything is a good thing in my book: Multiple temp probes Multiple heaters Multiple return pumps All on seperate circuts (in case 1 circult fails) Also keeping the cell phone close (priceless Dave I want to get a second temp probe, but that would require me to buy an expansion in order for me to use it. My ACIII fund is all dried up for a while. I do have a second mag 5 pump that I keep clean so once a month, I'd remove the one inside sump, replace it with a clean one. Then I soak the old pump in water in vinegar with a powerhead so it can clean off calcium and such. I'd do that for a few days until it's cleaned again then I put it away for next time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
txaggies07 January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 I dont have two return pumps, but not a bad idea. Luckily, the sump doesnt rise too much when the power goes out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zotzer January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 I want to get a second temp probe, but that would require me to buy an expansion in order for me to use it. My ACIII fund is all dried up for a while. That's why Phisig's idea is a good one. Doesn't need to be on a controller. Just plug it in and set it on a "low" but "better than nothing" temperature, so that it really will only come on if there is a problem with the first heater. Tracy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YBeNormal January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 The only problem I see with a second heater plugged directly into an AC outlet is that thermostats on heaters are know to go bad and it seems they prefer to stick in the "ON" position rather than the "OFF" position. Having a secondary controller to turn off the heater if the temp gets too high would be a good idea. James, It's not unusual for corals to be subjected to lower temps in shipping and most do just fine. Hopefully yours will too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite January 21, 2008 Share January 21, 2008 I hope your occupants are ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman January 22, 2008 Share January 22, 2008 (edited) The only problem I see with a second heater plugged directly into an AC outlet is that thermostats on heaters are know to go bad and it seems they prefer to stick in the "ON" position rather than the "OFF" position. Having a secondary controller to turn off the heater if the temp gets too high would be a good idea. James, It's not unusual for corals to be subjected to lower temps in shipping and most do just fine. Hopefully yours will too. Yeah... I'm thinking an outlet on the 'other' DC8 from the primary heaters; thermostat set to about 75, and AC-III set to have it 'always on' (but thermostat would normally have it off) - except if the temp exceeds 82; then shut that one off along with the controlled ones. bob Edited January 22, 2008 by lanman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnguyen4007 January 22, 2008 Author Share January 22, 2008 Right now I have two heaters on the same DC8 and it looks like the second one is barely working. I will have to order couple more, one to act as back up and the other to go back into my fresh water reservoir tank for my discus. A second DC8 and expannsion module on a separate outlet and breaker with a second heater and temp probe connect to it is definitely a safe way to go. I will eventually have to do that when budget allowed. I checked on the inhabitants of my tank today and theylook good so far. Knock on wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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