how many electrical plugs for your tanks?

[c_scherer123]

How many electrical plugs do you use for your tanks? Please list tank size and how many plugs.

20g: 5 plugs
90g in planning: 9 plugs

Thank goodness for powerbars!

[banditpowdercoat]

150g 12 plugs used + 2 powerbars.

[xtreme]

Currently I have 23 devices running my 280g spread over 2 circuits.

Thanks goodness for friends that are electricians!

[Parker]

My present count is 21, over three circuits for a 265.

[whatcaneyedo]

lol this is by far one of my most favorite topics. Well... I have two tanks that share the same sump so I guess they count as one. Therefore I've got twenty devices between two powerbars and two circuts for my 270gal system and five devices on one powerbar for my 30gal system. However if you want me to count actual 'plugs' then I have thirty for my 270gal system and seven for my 30gal. I wrap little paper tags on nearly all of the plugs naming what device they go to in order to limit the confusion.

[ALBERTA REEF]

Two 90's
Two power bars each tank.
Just for fun two dual timers for each tank.
Ten plugs for each tank right now.
If not more in the future.

One ten gallon
One power bar.
One timer.
Three plugs.

[fencer]

Think GFI before something happens

[ALBERTA REEF]

fencer no worries all tanks on seperate breakers.

[Pansy-Paws]

I started counting ... and wow, quite a surprise :smile:

I have 37 plugs for my 375 gallon tank (500 gallons water counting sump and refugium) and another 16 plugs for separate support systems (QT tank, salt mixing, feeder shrimp tank), all on 3 dedicated 15 amp circuits.

Lots of revenue for BC Hydro ...

[ALBERTA REEF]

Pansy-Paws nice! Way to keep the economy going! :razz:

[Myka]

90 reef: 9 plugs, one powerbar.

20 planted freshwater: 6 plugs.

[mike31154]

For my 75 I use two 'circuits', that is two dual electrical receptacles with a number of power bars & timers. Installed a GFCI type receptacle for one and use a GFCI power bar on the other 'normal' receptacle. One of the power bars is not GFCI protected, need to get on that. It powers one of my VorTechs (no cord in the water), a heater (unplugged for the heat wave) and a timer hooked up to an air pump running my pressurized ATO carboy.

On the GFCI receptacle I have a Coralife Digital Timer (working well BTW) with the following plugs:

two plugs on timed receptacles - each feeding 2x54 watt T5HO retro lamps, 2 Actinic, 2 10000K;

skimmer air pump, 3.2 watts;

skimmer water pump, 8 watts;

pennplax silentair emergency backup air pump (runs only when power is interrupted & is definitely NOT silent when it does);

1xVorTech MP40W propeller pump;

not on the Coralife Timer power bar, but on the other slot of the GFCI receptacle is a Rena XP3 canister running carbon only;

during the cooler months, I have a Stealth 150w heater plugged in here as well.


On the second circuit (non GFCI receptacle) I have the regular power bar powering the following:

vortech MP40W;

stealth 150w heater;

air pump for ATO on a timer.

On the other slot of the non GFCI receptacle I have a GFCI power bar for 2x250w SE MH lamps which I run for about 3 hours at midday.

All together that makes 13 plugs hooked up to two circuits using 3 power bars. I've been planning on adding another receptacle to a wall adjacent to the tank which has no plug. It's an older home and this was an addition to the dining room. For some reason they failed to add a receptacle on that wall which normally would have been required by code. They were running out of circuits on the dated breaker panel though, so it doesn't surprise me. I've had the breaker panel replaced and am in the process of rewiring the place. Some of the stuff I've found is a little scary, surprised the place hadn't burned down....

An upgrade to a larger tank with basement sump/refugium is in the future. This should make power distribution a little cleaner but will add a power hungry component or two, most notably a return pump that will need to overcome at least 11 feet of head pressure if not more, depending on plumbing.

[Alex350]

90 Reef: 16 plugs (2 powerbars balanced on two seperate breakers)