Battery backup

[Dave C]

Now that my tank is running the next issue is keeping it running during a power failure. I know we don't get them that often in Winnipeg & when we do they don't last long. But when they happen I sit there worried waiting for the power to kick in. It's then that I curse myself for not getting something to at least keep the water moving. I know a heater would kill any UPS too fast and water holds heat for a long time so I'm not concerned with that. All I want to be able to do is keep my return pumps running for at least a couple of hours.

I started by looking at computer backup systems but they don't provide much power for very long and are really meant to give you enough time to shut down your system after the power dies. Canadian Tire has many different options so I checked them out today. I ended up getting a Motomaster Eliminator PowerBox 600. This thing is a 400w inverter mounted on a 20AH (amp/hour) battery. It will provide me with about 200w for a half hour. They were selling those for $99 today. I also got a Nautilus deep cycle battery. That will connect to the PowerBox and give me another 103AH which should boost the overall power to about 200w for another 2.5 hours so I'll have 3 hours of 200w power. My two return pumps should last about 2.5 hours with this setup.

I'll need a recharger for the Nautilus since the PowerBox only charges its own battery. And this isn't an automatic power source, it won't kick in when the power goes out. But someone is always around and I'll just need to plug the pumps in when the power dies. That's the only disadvantage but the advantages outweigh that in my situation. I'll only be concerned when the power is toast for more then an hour and odds are I'll be around during that time. A comparable APC UPS (which will kick in if the power dies) runs for $99 and can provide 200w for 22 minutes. And it doesn't have the ability to have an additional battery hooked up to lengthen that time. I also could have considered a larger PowerBox, they make a 1200 model. But then I'm paying another $100-$150 for another two 20AH batteries whereas the Nautilus is a 103AH battery and costs only $120 (plus the cost of the recharger, $50 or so).

So my total cost is $100 + $120 + $50 = $270 for something that should power my return pumps in both tanks for 2.5 hours. An additional bonus is that the Powerbox also has a built in air compressor so I can fill the tires on my car. It can also give my car a boost if I need it. I'm not sure how I'll use emergency flashing lights in the fishroom...

So whattya think? Any better options out there? Don't say gas generator. I know that for a bit more cash I could have one that would power my goodies for much longer but I don't want to wire a generator from the garage into my house nor do I want the noise of running one.

[niloc16]

i recently just bought the battery backup for the vortech pumps. it powers 1 vortech pump at half power for 30 + hours and will run 2 vortech at half power for 15 hours. it costs $200. you also have the ability to connect two of these batteries together and double the run time. the pumps are $400 but if you do some research you maybe be able to mod the cable to run tunzes or other powerheads. ecotech will also replace the batteries at the end of life cylce for about $65. life cycle is 5 - 7 years depending on usage. the battery is always plugged into the wall to be trickle charged and automatically kicks in when senses power outages and the vortech pump recognizes the new power signal and reduces its power to half to conserve power. just an idea.

[Johnny Reefer]

A comparable APC UPS (which will kick in if the power dies) runs for $99 and can provide 200w for 22 minutes. ....
I want to do the power back-up thing too, but would prefer the automatic UPS as me not being there at the time may be an issue. Having said that....so if one were to run just one 20W MaxiJet 1200 powerhead off a UPS, am I correct to assume that that powerhead would run for .... 200W / 20W = 10. 10 x 22 minutes = 220 minutes, or 3 Hours and 40 minutes?

Thanx much,

[Dave C]

Yup, that's right. I could cut the time required for my setup too if I just hooked a couple Tunze 6100s in. They only burn 45w each and if I ran them at 1/2 power I could run two on each tank at a total draw of about 90w and have power for over half the day.

[Johnny Reefer]

Yup, that's right. .....
Cheers. Thanx. I'll be going the UPS route then, with a MaxiJet 1200 pointed to the surface. Outages here in Victoria proper don't last much and if one were to last as long as 3H 20M, well....I tried.

EDIT: Which 200W comparable APC UPS unit is it that you sussed out?

Thanx again,

[mark]

So my total cost is $100 + $120 + $50 = $270 for something that should power my return pumps in both tanks for 2.5 hours.

Really think your tanks will suffer any affects for the pumps being off 2.5 hours? $270 seems quite a bit for something that's probably a non-issue. I've done maintenance that lasted close to that with no problems.

Might want to consider something that would last longer such as Niloc suggests.

BTW my backup plan is an inverter I can plug into a socket in the car. Run a extension cord into the house and start the car when necessary. Will be picking up a small genset this spring for the travel trailer so would then have that available. Realize any of this would only work if someone was home.

[Dave C]

Well that's 2.5 hours at a 250w draw. To be comparable to the Vortech example, I could run a single Tunze 6100 at 1/2 power (22.5 watts) and extend this to about 28 hours. I assumed that running a return pump from my 100g sump would help oxygenate the water better then a powerhead would, and increase the volume of water and thereby conserve more heat longer.

This box can be powered by my car as well so I could get an extension cord and do the same as you. I can also purchase another deep cycle battery for another $120 and almost double that time, much like you could do with your inverter.

I agree that 2.5 hours is a short time to be out of power and if I knew that it would never exceed that length of time I'd go without a backup. But if I assume that 5 hours is the max for my part of the country then I've cut that in half and now I've only got 2.5 hours of 0 power, which as you said isn't much. Basically I was using 250w as a maximum power draw when I was choosing options for a backup.

[Dave C]

Here's a good LINK (http://www.solarsense.com/Spec_Your_System/Run_Times.html) to determine the estimated time you'll get from your backup system. You enter the amp-hours of the batteries, planned depth of discharge, operating temperature and the wattage you'll be drawing and it tells you how many hours you'll have power. If I run the return pumps I'll get 4.9 hours. If instead I run 2 Tunze in my big tank at the fluctuating 30-100% and the return pump in the other tank I'll have 7.5 hours.