No power

[Ram419]

I use APC battery backups for air pumps and water flow filters only. Lights and heaters will drain them quickly. We have power outages during bad weather so they are a life saver. During extended power outages I can recharge the UPS batteries with my generator and when resting the gen I use the batteries again.

 

[MaloK]

I have a Big Strong Generator now, but it messes up electronics badly, So I have to put a small computer ups on every tank to prevent problems with my led lights also heaters. And that also means networking gear, computers and TV's...

These run a long time... That gives me a lot of time to just think that I might have to think to start the generator. And my network is on line all the time.

Once started. It last's weeks on a gas tank. I can run almost all appliances... Heat the house. With the last test it should hold all tanks too...

But I had 5 aquariums in the depth of of the 1998 ice crisis in Quebec and with adequate insulation and forcing water movement in the filters. All made it trough except the plants.

 

[jaylach]

By any chance are the tanks planted? If so I wouldn't much worry about the oxygen as the plants will supply while removing CO2.

My main concern would be water temperature and, this time of year even in Wisconsin, it should be a major issue.

 

[Colin_T]

By any chance are the tanks planted? If so I wouldn't much worry about the oxygen as the plants will supply while removing CO2.

My main concern would be water temperature and, this time of year even in Wisconsin, it should be a major issue.

If the lights aren't on due to the power being off, the plants won't photosynthesise and won't produce oxygen. Plants only produce oxygen and take up carbon dioxide when they get sufficient light.

 

[BigBurgassio]

My tanks are in an garden shed/cabin, great place to have them, downside is i don't heat it at the moment so the temp will reduce in winter which would have a big impact in the event of a power cut.

 

[Colin_T]

My tanks are in an garden shed/cabin, great place to have them, downside is i don't heat it at the moment so the temp will reduce in winter which would have a big impact in the event of a power cut.

Is your shed insulated?
If not, you should line the walls and ceiling with 4-6 inch thick polystyrene foam sheets to trap heat and keep the cold out.

You can get rubber mats to go on the floor. They are made from used car tyres and come in 1/2 inch and 1 inch thick sheets that are 1 meter square or on a 3 meter wide roll. The 1 meter squares are easier to handle. If you get some, place them on the floor for 24 hours before cutting them. They are kept in piles at the shops and get squashed out a bit. If you lay them and cut them straight away, they shrink overnight and you get gaps between them. Leaving them laid out without anything on them for 24 hours allows them to shrink back to their normal size so when you do cut them, you don't get gaps.

Sheds can also have skylights put in them and a lot of people have alternating tin and clear Laserlite sheeting. This lets lots of light in during the day but you can lose heat in winter and double glazing can help.

 

[Tyler777]

I use APC battery backups for air pumps and water flow filters only. Lights and heaters will drain them quickly. We have power outages during bad weather so they are a life saver. During extended power outages I can recharge the UPS batteries with my generator and when resting the gen I use the batteries again.

Thank you

 

[BigBurgassio]

Is your shed insulated?

All the external walls and roof are insulated with Kingspan boards, problem is the door isn't very tight so the drafts flow through, i plan to erect a stud wall in one end insulate that and fit a door to that area, then ill have my own area just with the tanks, which i can heat for less cost, will have to revamp the main door also to keeps the drafts down, its a work in progress

 

[Magnum Man]

I woke this morning… my lights just started coming on… went upstairs and got some caffeine, and while I was in the kitchen, the power did enough of a flicker to trip everything… we get a lot more reliable power, since they buried the power line to the house… I didn’t even know it was raining, but a small intense storm was rolling over… went down to my main group of tanks and had to reset all my early morning light routine… I use some plant LED strips above my plants, and behind my tanks to back light them, before I turn the main lights on… these all have built in timers, and all of those 8 - 10 are effected by power interruptions… so today, just an inconvenience, and no generator required

 

[jaylach]

If the lights aren't on due to the power being off, the plants won't photosynthesise and won't produce oxygen. Plants only produce oxygen and take up carbon dioxide when they get sufficient light.

I just figured that ambient light would be enough unless the tanks are in a low light area which it now seems to be the case...

 

[Gary_W]

I went for a small battery backup/UPS device (like you can get for home offices).
I just attach the heater and the air pump to it so it lasts as long as possible.

 

[Magnum Man]

Not sure if you’ve seen these new USB rechargeable batteries, in common sizes, like AA, and D, and C ( most common sizes used for battery powered air pumps ) they are what I bought for my battery powered air pumps for back up…

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=usb+rechargeable+batteries&crid=3H1GYWXN8Q7SF&sprefix=usb+recharge+batteries%2Caps%2C222&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_2_22

And if you drive to get your fish from a not so local fish store… ( I used to 25 years ago ) I had a new styrofoam bait bucket, with an air stone, and a battery powered air pump, that I used to keep, for transporting fish, that worked great, rather than the store putting the fish in bags… I had a couple of these bait buckets dedicated for transporting fish

 

[Guest5431]

Small amounts of hydrogen peroxide. It breaks down into water with an extra oxygen molecule released. H2O2 becomes H2O with an O released for the fish. One of my first experiences was walking in a local Walmart after a hurricane outage to see all their tanks in disaster and full of dead fish while 5 feet away was an entire pallet of Hydrogen Peroxide on sale for 49 cent a bottle.

 

[Tyler777]

Small amounts of hydrogen peroxide. It breaks down into water with an extra oxygen molecule released. H2O2 becomes H2O with an O released for the fish. One of my first experiences was walking in a local Walmart after a hurricane outage to see all their tanks in disaster and full of dead fish while 5 feet away was an entire pallet of Hydrogen Peroxide on sale for 49 cent a bottle.

Did not know that. Thank you