Shutdown of electricity supply

[koolman]

Hi all

Today, my block was having a temporary shutdown of electricity supply for 2 hours.
If the shutdown is not 2 hours but 24 hours, what will happen to our aquariums?
Is there anybody have an idea of a backup system to prevent this kind of situation when it occur?


Thanks and regards,

Koolman

[Aquaculture]

You may consider a Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS). Those normally used for computers/servers.

How long our fishes would survive would depend on the volume of water and amount of fish we have... other than that, pray hard that the electricity comes back on.

[koolman]

Hi

May I know where can I get Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS).
Did you adapt one on your aquariums?
Could you guide me how to tap it on our aquariums?
Perhaps, we should get a generator as a backeup system.


Thanks and regards

Koolman

[bossteck]

UPS won't last you 24 hrs either. Especially if you expect it to power your lights, chiller etc. UPS are designed for you to have enough time to backup your data in the event of power failure, not for you to continue to run business as usual.

Your concern should be for your livestock, if so, i think a battery operated air pump should serve you well, provide you're around to turn it on. Else, my advice is try not to push the limit of you tank to livestock ratio.

[Goondoo]

Your next alternative would probably be a potable power generator, cost less than $300 last heard....










but I won't want to activate it in my house

[koolman]

Hi bossteck,

What are the maximum livestock that can be put inside a 4ft tank in order to survive a electricity breakdown for 24 hours?


Thanks and regards,


Koolman

[bossteck]

A general rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish for every gallon of water - this is assuming your tank is powered.

If you expects your tank to be unpowered for long periods of time, then perhaps take 60% of that, meaning 0.6 inch of fish for every gallon.

Please note that the rule of thumb is applicable for small fishes.

Perhaps you can share with others here on what type of fishes you're keeping in your 4ft tank so that they can give you better advise.

My guests are always commenting that my 5ft tank looks under populated... I have 10 angelfishes, 30 Xray tetras, 5 corys and 2 small plecos in it. Yes, I do agree, but we can be away from home for close to 10 hours each day, i rather give my fishes some allowance.

Cheers!

[koolman]

Hi

Thanks for providing me with so many information.
I will take note of the rule of thumb for fishes.
I kept a pig nose turtle, 2 siamese tiger, 1 gurami, 4 birchir, 1 batfish, 1 silver dollar, 1 pearlscale goldfish, 3 pleco, 1 golden monk, 1 tiger stripe catfish and 3-4 fishes whic I dont know their name. Only 1 of my siamese tiger and my batfish is large, the rest of the fish are between small and medium.
All of the fishes and my aquatic turtle are in a 4ft tank.


Cheers

Koolman

[bossteck]

Wow... no wonder you are worried

I would say that with time, most of your fishes will get quite large. So I hope you plan to expand your setup.

BTW, do you happen to know the scientific name for the 'golden monk' you mentioned?

[David Moses Heng]

I kept a pig nose turtle, 2 siamese tiger, 1 gurami, 4 birchir, 1 batfish, 1 silver dollar, 1 pearlscale goldfish, 3 pleco, 1 golden monk, 1 tiger stripe catfish and 3-4 fishes whic I dont know their name.

wow... won't they fight especially the goldfish?

[koolman]

Hi

I really dont know the scientific name of the golden monk. It look like a earth eater to me.
I have intetion to upgrade a 6ft tank in a few years time.
The funniest thing is that no fish bully my goldfish.


Thanks and regards

Koolman

[kaym]

Would the beneficial bacteria(BB) in the filters die out in the event of a power cut off? Does it mean have to start all over again cultivating BB?

[koolman]

Hi Kaym

I dont think that the BB will be lost as along as you still keep the sponge that are in your filter.
Most of the BB are stuck in the sponge.
When you start to run the filter, the BB will be back into the tank.


Thanks and regards


Koolman

[bossteck]

Hi kaym and koolman,

From what I know, beneficial bacteria also requires oxygen to survive. In the event of power failure, if the BB are stuck in an enclosed area of small volume of water (say a cannister filter) for too long, the BB will eventually die off. Don't ask me how long is too long though, I suppose anything more than than 2-3 hours should be harmful to the little guys.

[koolman]

Hi bossteck

Pardon my ignorance. If the BB eventually die off, how could we bulit the BB in the quickest way?


Thanks and regards

Koolman

[illumnae]

The funniest thing is that no fish bully my goldfish.

haha, didn't you just mention in another thread that your tankmates keep bullying your goldfish? =)

[bossteck]

You can use those commercially available BB seeders (bottled BB).
Or you can just throw in some filter media from your other matured tank into your filter. E.g. you can take a small piece of filter wool from your matured filter and reuse it in your current filter. (However, in the event of power shut down, I suppose it will affect all your tanks, so stick to bottled BB)

These are the most commonly cited ways to build up a thriving beneficial bacteria colony quickly.

[David Moses Heng]

haha, didn't you just mention in another thread that your tankmates keep bullying your goldfish? =)

[LoneRider]

I've experienced a power outage before lasting approximately 6hrs due to MCLB failure. As I'm also an avid angler I used a portable pump (type to keep bait prawn alive). Thankfully I have a few on hand. It runs on 2x D size batteries. Some models only use 1 battery. Having used this pump before I know its capable of running at least 24hrs non stop on fresh cells. Costs about 12bucks. I recommend one from "Seahawk", its cheap and good. Runs on single cell and has hi and lo output modes.

I've thought of UPS systems but i doubt 3-4hrs of power supply is worth spending $100+. Despite the prolonged power outage i suffered zero casualties. I believe its not only because of the auxiliary aeration but also due to size of tank (bigger volume has bigger O2 retention capability) and amount of bioload.

As for the canister filter, I closed the valves as I know help was a long time away and the dying BBs in the filter will only foul the water and reduce amount of O2 in the water. IMHO the fauna is more at risk, plants will probably make it through a few days without power unscathed.

Regards

[koolman]

haha, didn't you just mention in another thread that your tankmates keep bullying your goldfish? =)

Hi illumnae

You are absolutely right. They were fine at first till I saw the goldfish fin was bitten off. Do you want to adopt it? Keke


Thanks and regards


Koolman