YHSublime March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 I recently have started taking a look at how I'm powering everything underneath my tank, so close to water... So I'd like to see what others are using. Pics or links are a plus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 I like to use electricity to power my tank. seriously though- all of your electrical connections should not be anywhere under the cabinet unless they are in a waterproof NEMA enclosure. There have been numerous tank fires in recent months due to power strips coming into contact with saltwater. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pizzaguy March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 That's awesome Rob because everything I have is under my tank. Sh!%#?t! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 Dj powerstrip in a cabinet next to my 2 tanks...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 I agree with Rob... This is one of those serious safety things that we really need to pay attention to as hobbyists. It can put our lives and homes in danger if we get it wrong. Put a drip loop in place. And if you can, have a dry cabinet and a wet cabinet and put all your electrical outlets in the dry cabinet (or at the very least on the outside of your wet cabinet). Salt creep and moist salty air are REALLY BAD for anything with a plug. In my current setup, there isn't anything that gets power from below the level where there is water in the highest tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 I like to use electricity to power my tank. seriously though- all of your electrical connections should not be anywhere under the cabinet unless they are in a waterproof NEMA enclosure. There have been numerous tank fires in recent months due to power strips coming into contact with saltwater. Haha. I've had enough run in's in the past couple of days to make me wary. Having never dealt with a sump has caused me to be a bit reckless underneath. I think I'm going to have to run everything outside to my switchbox. I'd rather have a slight mess of wires than a fire or a fried tank. Dj powerstrip in a cabinet next to my 2 tanks...... For me it's going to have to be behind. I've got it in a really clean spot, no room. It would be awesome if I could turn the pantry into fish room, although I'm sure 1.)My fiance would probably kill me 2.) If she didn't get me, the leasing office would bleed me dry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 I agree with Rob... This is one of those serious safety things that we really need to pay attention to as hobbyists. It can put our lives and homes in danger if we get it wrong. Put a drip loop in place. And if you can, have a dry cabinet and a wet cabinet and put all your electrical outlets in the dry cabinet (or at the very least on the outside of your cabinet). Salt creep and moist salty air are REALLY BAD for anything with a plug. In my current setup, there isn't anything that gets power from below the level where there is water. I agree with both of you. I'm currently running a heater, my return pump, (now off) skimmer pump, 3 powerheads, and my entire light system all underneath the tank. After getting some stray voltage, it really dawned on me how stupid I'm being, or really like I said above, reckless. I've since moved everything out to the side of the tank this evening, but will have to find some way to clean it up before I put it behind. Until I get it done right/safe, it will sit blocking my hallway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 A nightstand or side table could work well to hide electronics and keep it safe. You can always go up too and put a shelf above the tank. Remember to keep drip loops on everything so water doesn't accidentally infiltrate your dry cabinets as it did mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 A nightstand or side table could work well to hide electronics and keep it safe. You can always go up too and put a shelf above the tank. Remember to keep drip loops on everything so water doesn't accidentally infiltrate your dry cabinets as it did mine. Thanks for sharing this. It's easy to skip the real basics (like power sources separate from the tank) and think the basics are things like adding water, sand, or rock. I'm really going to have to to be smart with my space here. FWIW, I've seen a lot of setups that are similar to mine, so I hope this thread will cause others to evaluate their setups as well. I have been lucky, thus far, but it seems like it's the same thing when I bought my motorcycle: The guy said kick it over in the lot and get it over with, cause' if you haven't dropped yet, you will. Of course not saying if you haven't started a fire or burnt something out on your tank that you will, but there are certainly preventative measures that can be taken that I'm not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 You could also mount the powerstrips behind your tank with waterproof covers if you don't have room for a cabinet..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decadence March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 (edited) My new 150 has an electrical cabinet under it on the left side. I'm going to seal this cabinet and then cut out a piece of acrylic to put under the ceiling of the whole stand with about 4" walls hanging down it. This area will have all of my accessory plugs. I wanted the new set up to be as safe as possible and as easy as possible to work on so every piece of equipment will have an outlet directly above it specifically for it so that there are no loose wires. All of the plugs will run through pvc conduit into the dry cabinet where they will have heads plugged into my PC4s and battery back-ups. Doing it this way will make it so that I can easily remove any piece of equipment without have to cut any zip ties or trace down any wires. Edited March 20, 2013 by Decadence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtsusc83 March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 I have my Apex setup (including two EB8s) velcroed in the back of my cabinet. I am averaging about a 1 gallon of water evaporation a day and some of that is in my sump area so I agree that the electrical should stay out of the cabinet. I like the idea of covering the electrical outlets and cords with waterproof material. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Integral9 March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 my electronics are mounted to the back of my stand, outside the cabinet. Between the tank and stand I have a 1/8" plywood sheet that extends out behind the tank several inches. That provides a shelf to put things on as well as a water shield for the electronics under it. I have a DJ switch panel as a master switch, which all my pumps, powerheads, controllers, etc are plugged into. The DJ switch panel is plugged into a dedicated 15A GFI circuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 After hearing a few ideas from everybody, I might run a dj switch panel off my side wall. It won't look the cleanest, but it'll be considerably safer than what I'm running now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cliff Puckstable March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 Get the Binford, it has more power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 Get the Binford, it has more power. I don't know what that is, can you elaborate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 (edited) whats a binford?? cant find anything about it is it like a henweigh? Edited March 20, 2013 by Der ABT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 whats a binford?? cant find anything about it is it like a henweigh? Ditto, I did find this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 is it like a henweigh? And there's about 3-4 pounds difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 oh wait is this from Home improvement...Tim the tool man?? thats a big hen... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 oh wait is this from Home improvement...Tim the tool man?? thats a big hen... Got it. I'm looking to add one of these into the corner of the wall, and run a switch off that. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 Look on amazon. American DJ panel pc100 well here http://www.amazon.com/American-Pc-100A-Mount-Power-Switcher/dp/B0002GL50Q or go to guitar center or try to find it local Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Integral9 March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 The advantage of the DJ switch panel is you have a toggle switch to control each outlet on the back. So if there is an emergency, you can quickly shut off circuits without having to yank plugs out and risk grabbing a wet (possibly electrically hot) wire. The disadvantage is that you have to plug in your controller to it, so you have controlable power strips plugged into the back of your DJ panel, and those controllable strips might have surge suppressors after them. Gets a little messy, but with some zip ties or velcro strapping you can clean up the cables nicely. The hard part is remembering what's plugged into where. So labeling the switches with a label maker is a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 20, 2013 Author Share March 20, 2013 Look on amazon. American DJ panel pc100well here http://www.amazon.com/American-Pc-100A-Mount-Power-Switcher/dp/B0002GL50Q or go to guitar center or try to find it local Have one! Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT March 20, 2013 Share March 20, 2013 Also Label cords....slowly do this as i need to plug or unplug things that i didnt prior. makes telling someone how to fix/turn something off when out of town much easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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