What generator / wattage for your R.S.M. tank?

[TheSilverSurfer]

I thought I would set this thread up and find out if anyone has measured the total wattage that a stock tank takes in order to buy a generator from eBay as a backup for my tank.

Spending so much money on a tank like and then losing everything to a power cut would be awful.

I have the following equipment and I think each have the following watts:

VortechMP10 = 8-18 watts
RSM Heater = 150 watts
Tunze 9002 = 10 watts

I am not sure what the total wattage from the hood lights and fans nor am I sure about the wattage from the two pumps but I expect it wouldn't exceed 500w, but I could be wrong.

There are loads of Portable Generators, (850w 2 stroke), selling on eBay for around £70 (US$100 approx) which seems a bargain to safeguard your tank.

Thoughts on this subject would be appreciated ....

 

[xl2000]

I was also looking for the same information yesterday for a stock RSM250 and couldn't find a straight answer anywhere.

I was also looking at the following backup power system as it is a automatic failover when a power outage occurs but I am not sure how long it would last. I guess it's a little difficult to fully figure it out as the heater wouldn't run constantly compared to the pumps and skimmer ?

NOMA Back-up Power System, 1,800W | Canadian Tire

If anybody has more information, I would be interested as well

Thanks

Xavier

 

[BigAl07]

When looking at generators you want to be sure and get one well above what you need. The rated wattage is a short burst not a sustained wattage.

For those in the US (especially South-East) drop me a PM and possibly I can help you locate some 4000w+ systems for relatively cheap.

 

[pocketreef]

Hi Fraser,

Can't you buy a battery for your vortech? I may want to check autonomy.

What annoys about those generators are noise and smoke. Not ok if you live in an apartment or if you have noise restrictions.

I have bought a battery operated air pump. It should be able to keep my animals alive for many hours. I have never experienced any shortage in the 2 years I live here.

In the past I used a computer no-break to keep my fan controllers and 1 pump. No-breaks are not supposed to support motors and the pump worked very strangely. It was ok though to replace a cheap pump from time to time.

 

[Reefmack]

I've got the battery backup for my MP20 - approx. 72 hours running time on my MP20:

VorTech Battery Backup | EcoTech Marine

For a heater I have a 600W battery backup (and separate heater to drop in the tank) - I'm hoping this will run the heater for 6-8 hours depending on what size heater I drop in. With this type of setup the heater in the back of the RSM is useless - with no cirulation pumps running the heater will only be heating the heater chamber! A heater needs to be in the display tank with some type of powerhead to circulate the warmed water.

Not sure if I'll run a spare 150W or a spare 75W heater I have - the 75W will obviously not heat as well, but would hopefully keep the tank temperature above the danger point longer.

Be careful with the battery powered air pumps - great for summer, but in the winter they will cool the tank water more quickly since they will be pulling in cold room air for their air supply.

Not as good as a generator, but for shorter power outages in the winter I'm hoping this will work for me. In the summer I'll have the Vortech backup and frozen water bottles.

 

[pocketreef]

You are ninja Terry!

The solution tends to be unique and dependant on regional disaster scenarios. Whatever you choose make sure to test regularly. There are good methodologies for Business Continuity (BCM) and Disaster Recovery (DRP) that you can adapt