Equipment Failures - Don’t get caught with your reefing pants down

[WheresTheReef]

Let’s just say I’ve had a bad run of equipment failures the last 3 months.

 

On May 4th I had a powerhead go out. No big deal. A little loss of flow in the tank. I upgraded the cheap pumps with a couple Octo Pulse 4s. Flow is much better overall even with them turned all the way down. I kept the cheap working powerhead as an emergency backup.

 

On June 14th my return pump went out. Now this was a big one. I drive 2 tanks and all the support equipment off this pump. Luckily I’ve made some reefing friends in the club. Special thanks to @flooddc for lending me a pump while I ordered a replacement. I took this time to upgrade to an Octo Varios-8. I also purchased a Syncra ADV Advanced 7.0 as a backup. I also verified that my backup has the appropriate connectors should I ever need to use it.

Yesterday, July 11th my maxspect razor 160w led (from tank 2) had the blue channel go out. Looking online this is a known problem. This is an older light I bought used here. Fortunately, I’ve been collecting equipment for a future build and have an AI Hydra 26 HD on hand. I ran out to HD today and threw together a quick diy mount for it. I ordered a couple AI Primes today and should get them in this week.

 

So as you see, sometimes when it rains it pours. Having major equipment go out can be an issue if you’re not prepared. Let this be a sort of PSA to others. It is worth buying some backup equipment so when it does happen to you, you will be prepared. Backups don’t have to be the best, or even new. There are lots of equipment sold on here. It also doesn’t hurt to make some reefing buddies .

 

 

[Cris]

Yikes-I am so sorry.  Great advice!  Cris

[flooddc]

Great advice and reminder Eric. Yup! It’s always best to prepare and have a backup plan in place. I’ve been through several ordeals including a 5 days power outage during the summer month and came out unscratched. Since then, I tried to keep a backup equipment (portable gen, return pump, heater, powerhead, t5 light) just to buy time until I can get a replacement. A little investment will prevent tank crash and more importantly stress and anxiety. 

[YHSublime]

Great reminder!

[thakki]

Good reminder and advice! I always worry about the power outage...I have no backup for that. 

[treesprite]

I've had bouts where multiple failures occurred close together. I think sometimes it happens at least once to every hobbyist a certain number of years after starting up, because all the initial equipment was bought around the same time (if bought new). It also happens if all the equipment is from the same manufacturer this having the same quality and longevity. Some of us are just unlucky.

[Origami]

I keep a lot of spare stuff around just for this reason. Probably way more than I need or should. But I've encountered situations where I've needed to pull my main pump (external) and plumb in a spare when a bearing goes or the pump just needs periodic maintenance. In those situations, it pays to have unions and valves built in and a pre-plumbed spare ready to go so you can swap pumps out reasonably easily and quickly.