Donmarco December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I have two tanks (120G and 50G reefs)--my pride and joy and a sizable (as everyone in this hobby knows) investment. I'm not sure what steps to take to prepare for the inevitable--an electrical outage. I'm looking at a 3,000 watt portable generator with an inverter, but I'm not sure if that's a reasonable solution. I'm running a chiller, skimmers, metal halide, T5s and compact florescents, a calcium reactor, etc. The larger tank runs at almost 900 watts peak and the smaller about 265 watts peak. I wish I was able to install a house-wide generator, but that's not an option. A few emergency batteries for my VorTech pumps won't do for a prolonged outage, such as occurs after a hurricane or ice storm. So what is everyone else doing to prepare for that unavoidable outage? Thanks. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discretekarma December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I have a 13,000 watt Briggs and Stratton portable generator and a manual transfer switch that I installed so i can run 10 of my breakers off the generator instead of running extension cords. My 10 breakers that I selected use up a very small percentage of 13,000 watts so I could still run a few extension cords if I wanted to I guess. I have two tanks (120G and 50G reefs)--my pride and joy and a sizable (as everyone in this hobby knows) investment. I'm not sure what steps to take to prepare for the inevitable--an electrical outage. I'm looking at a 3,000 watt portable generator with an inverter, but I'm not sure if that's a reasonable solution. I'm running a chiller, skimmers, metal halide, T5s and compact florescents, a calcium reactor, etc. The larger tank runs at almost 900 watts peak and the smaller about 265 watts peak. I wish I was able to install a house-wide generator, but that's not an option. A few emergency batteries for my VorTech pumps won't do for a prolonged outage, such as occurs after a hurricane or ice storm. So what is everyone else doing to prepare for that unavoidable outage? Thanks. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I have a 13,000 watt Briggs and Stratton portable generator and a manual transfer switch that I installed so i can run 10 of my breakers off the generator instead of running extension cords. My 10 breakers that I selected use up a very small percentage of 13,000 watts so I could still run a few extension cords if I wanted to I guess. Where did you get the transfer switch? bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discretekarma December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 (edited) I actually got it from Home Depot. It was $200. I think it's called EmerGen. I hooked it up myself in half a day. I also bought a box that's mounted to the outside of the house. The wire from the transfer switch is connected to the inside of that box and then I just have to plug a cable to the outside of the box and run it to the generator. It allows 4 x 20 watt breakers and 6 x 15 watt breakers. I hope that makes sense. Edited December 9, 2009 by discretekarma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 (edited) I just experienced a 4 hour electrical outage last week. Happened at 4am. It happens all the time in this section of Lake barcroft. I had a 600 watt battery back up on my 75. It only lasted 2 hours. I had to pull out the battery powered air. The 75 was fine for the next two hours. No drop in temperature. I had another battery powered airstone for the pico which lasted the 4 hours but the temp in the pico dropped to 67 degrees. The power finally came back on at 8:30. My husband ordered a portable generator from Sears. I also purchased another battery backup. It's 900 watts. So now I have the 900 watt on the 75 gallon and the 600 watt on the pico. I'll let you know how the generator works out. We have outages here when the wind blows a little too strong so it's of great concern to me. Glad I was home and I'm glad I had the battery back up. As soon as the power goes out the back up sends out a very loud alarm. It woke me up. I have two tanks (120G and 50G reefs)--my pride and joy and a sizable (as everyone in this hobby knows) investment. I'm not sure what steps to take to prepare for the inevitable--an electrical outage. I'm looking at a 3,000 watt portable generator with an inverter, but I'm not sure if that's a reasonable solution. I'm running a chiller, skimmers, metal halide, T5s and compact florescents, a calcium reactor, etc. The larger tank runs at almost 900 watts peak and the smaller about 265 watts peak. I wish I was able to install a house-wide generator, but that's not an option. A few emergency batteries for my VorTech pumps won't do for a prolonged outage, such as occurs after a hurricane or ice storm. So what is everyone else doing to prepare for that unavoidable outage? Thanks. Mark Edited December 9, 2009 by Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dschflier December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I have a 5500 watt portable generator which I got used for like $250. If I need it I have it for that exact reason. I got it on craigslist. discretekarma do you have any pictures of your setup for your transfer switch. I didn't realizr HD sells them. I will stop by Home depot tomorrow and check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sikryd December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 Here is some info I posted on another forum on this subject - I figured it would be good to start a thread to combine our knowledge together to pass on the best information on how to PROPERLY backup our systems. I learned the proper way to hook up a generator in the most safe and efficient way possible from reading the net and talking to a few electrician buddies. I will try and find the online sources I used when I have more time (getting ready for my Tat appt and a big trade order coming in from CC ) I bought a Reliance Transfer Switch kit from lowe's ($279). I had it hardwired by my electrician with a plug and box on the outside of my house. So all I have to do is pull the generator out of the shed/garage and use the big 20a plug, jumper cable and plug it into the generator and the box. It cost me ~ $800 for everything, including the generator. I also bought the generator at Lowe's. $429 2 circuits will be for the fish tank, one will be for the living room (gotta have tv when the power is out - lol), and another for the refridgerator. I'm having a certified electrician hook this up. It is a little too complicated for me. I do 90% of my own stuff, but I know when to pay someone, and this is the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sikryd December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 Don't connect your generator directly to your home's wiring. Connecting a portable electric generator directly to your household wiring can be deadly. A generator that is directly connected to your home's wiring can 'backfeed' into the power lines connected to your home. Utility transformers can then increase this lower electrical voltage to thousands of volts. That's more than enough to kill a utility lineman making outage repairs many miles away. You could also cause expensive damage to utility equipment and your generator. If you wish to hard-wire a generator to your home, it should be installed by a licensed electrician with an approved cut-off switch that will automatically disconnect the home from the power grid when the generator is being used. Please check with your local utility company before installing a hard-wired generator. Don't plug a portable generator into an electrical outlet in your home or garage. If a generator is plugged into your home's electrical circuits, it can still 'backfeed' power into the utility company lines, which can injure or kill utility workers fixing on the downed power lines. The correct way to use a generator is to connect a heavy-duty, outdoor-rated power cord to the generator. Appliances can then be connected to the power cord. Make sure that the outdoor-rated power cord has a sufficient wire gauge to handle the electrical load. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmatt56 December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I just experienced a 4 hour electrical outage last week. Happened at 4am. It happens all the time in this section of Lake barcroft. I had a 600 watt battery back up on my 75. It only lasted 2 hours. I had to pull out the battery powered air. The 75 was fine for the next two hours. No drop in temperature. I had another battery powered airstone for the pico which lasted the 4 hours but the temp in the pico dropped to 67 degrees. The power finally came back on at 8:30. My husband ordered a portable generator from Sears. I also purchased another battery backup. It's 900 watts. So now I have the 900 watt on the 75 gallon and the 600 watt on the pico. I'll let you know how the generator works out. We have outages here when the wind blows a little too strong so it's of great concern to me. Glad I was home and I'm glad I had the battery back up. As soon as the power goes out the back up sends out a very loud alarm. It woke me up. Do you have any recommendations for type of battery backups or specifications? Thanks Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discretekarma December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 Mine is hooked up exactly how Sikryd's is hooked up. The only diffference is that mine allows more breakers to be hooked up. I'll take a picture soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sikryd December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I forgot to add - I had a box put in on the outside of my house with the 20amp plug so I can pull the generator around, plug the "jumper" cable from the generator to the box on the outside of my house. I had them hardwire the box to the transfer switch, so the plug in the reliance box is now dead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan December 9, 2009 Share December 9, 2009 I do not. I chose the ones within my budget with the most wattage. The new 900 watt one cost us $150.00. the 600 cost me $80.00 on sale. I would not buy these used because many times the battery is drained and wont hold a charge. The only things I have plugged in are 1 powerhead and in the winter 1 150 watt heater. I've got the heater and the HOB plugged in for the pico. I have the HOB plugged into the back up because I don't have a power head small enough to fit into the pico. The wattage is very low on the HOB. We also have a check off/cut off (I don't know what it's called) that we got at BRK which closes off the pipe going into the sump when the power is shut off. This prevents the water from continuing to flow into the sump. it's works with the pull from the return pump. I'm sorry but I'm not very good with electrical and plumbing lingo. Folks may want to test their nanos and picos if using a HOB filter by shutting off the power on the HOB to test the level of the water in the tank when the power is shut off. Most of the water in the HOB backs up into the tank and raises the water level. If the level in the tank is high the addition of the water from the HOB may cause overflow/flood. Do you have any recommendations for type of battery backups or specifications? Thanks Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donmarco December 10, 2009 Author Share December 10, 2009 I had a long conversation with a Lowes home improvement customer care representative. He suggested a generator with a regulator, saying that the fluctuations in power coming from a portable gas powered (non-compliant) generator could actually destroy a television, computer, and possibly the expensive electronic controllers and metal halide lamps on my two tanks. I'm in a rented home and so hard writing a transfer switch is not an option. I had such a device hardwired in the house I previously rented (installed before I lived there by the owner) and that was a godsend, but I cannot do that here. I added up the peak wattage and amperage consumption of all my lights, chillers, pumps, etc. on both tanks and decided I'll need a 3,000 watt generator. Of course, I'm not certain if I can run the main cords from my controllers to multiple plug/single cord extensions from the generator, and I don't know if amperage is a consideration with the generator. Of course, the representative from Lowes suggested I check to see if using a portable generator, even with a regulator, would cause difficulties with some of the electronic and electrical components on my tanks. That's one of the reasons I posted on this forum, just to check what others are doing. Nope, running a number of extension cords through the window and house isn't my preferred method, but I'll take that over losing all the coral and fish in my tanks any time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sikryd December 10, 2009 Share December 10, 2009 Do you have a link to a whole house surge protector? I asked at Lowe's and they said they didn't have one. I thought about installing one to protect the whole house, but haven't been able to find a local retailer that sells them. I guess I could ask my electrician too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discretekarma December 10, 2009 Share December 10, 2009 (edited) Here are some. http://www.costco.com/Common/Category.aspx...&lang=en-US I thought you said generator. Sorry. Do you have a link to a whole house surge protector? I asked at Lowe's and they said they didn't have one. I thought about installing one to protect the whole house, but haven't been able to find a local retailer that sells them. I guess I could ask my electrician too. Edited December 10, 2009 by discretekarma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind December 10, 2009 Share December 10, 2009 Do you have a link to a whole house surge protector? I asked at Lowe's and they said they didn't have one. I thought about installing one to protect the whole house, but haven't been able to find a local retailer that sells them. I guess I could ask my electrician too. Home Depot online has a whole house TVSS for $80. They are very simple to install to your house panel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sikryd December 10, 2009 Share December 10, 2009 Home Depot online has a whole house TVSS for $80. They are very simple to install to your house panel. Done deal - I'll be picking that up. Gotta love the help on the forums!!! Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnetic1 December 10, 2009 Share December 10, 2009 (edited) Im planning on putting in a Transfer Switch soon. I already bought a Onan 3200W Peak Inverter Generator earlier in the year for other activities The Inverter Generators are WAY quieter and supposedly generate "clean" power? On that note... do we have any WAMAS electricians in the house? Edited December 10, 2009 by magnetic1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spykey December 11, 2009 Share December 11, 2009 I've had a simular question for a while. This is what I am going to try (Just for water circulation). http://paulsreef.blogspot.com/2009/12/power-backup.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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