The best investment that I've ever made in the aquarium hobby...

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C

Chicxulub

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MFK Member
Aug 29, 2009
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Is a generator.

Today we had a rolling blackout in town that lasted for about eight hours. After about fifteen minutes when it became apparent that the power wasn't coming back on anytime soon, instead of panicking, I just walked out to the garage, hooked up my extension cords, fired up the generator, plugged in the three F's (fridge, freezer, fishtank) and went inside and watched movies on my laptop. Eight hours without power would have been, at best, risky to my fish.

I paid $300 for my 8000 watt portable generator and I have no regrets. This is the first time I've had to actually use it since I bought it last December, but if I had lost even one of my bigger fish, it would have cost me more than that.

If you really care about your fish, buy a generator. It saved my butt today!
 
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Great forethought. We lost power for nearly 2 weeks when Katrina hit. I had installed a Generac 14.5KW generator with automatic switch. My pumps that require priming were placed on UPS. When power failed, the system came up within 7 seconds. It runs on natural gas service so, I didn't have to worry about a tank running low. The unit powered the hatchery and the house (including central A/C). Lost power with over $40K of fish and didn't lose anyone. Also didn't lose any of the food in the 3 fridges and 2 freezers.
 
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Oddball said:
Great forethought. We lost power for nearly 2 weeks when Katrina hit. I had installed a Generac 14.5KW generator with automatic switch. My pumps that require priming were placed on UPS. When power failed, the system came up within 7 seconds. It runs on natural gas service so, I didn't have to worry about a tank running low. The unit powered the hatchery and the house (including central A/C). Lost power with over $40K of fish and didn't lose anyone. Also didn't lose any of the food in the 3 fridges and 2 freezers.
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Yes sir! I'm glad I chose to do it. When I build my forever home (lol) when I get out of the Army, I'm going to put in one of the permanent generators like you have.

I was actually seriously considering selling the generator to get funds to get more fish. I am infinitely thankful right now for my procrastination in this matter. :)
 
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It is something I've often thought about, and I probably should invest in one given that I now have a big tank full (haha!) of impossible-to-replace fish, and live down long driveway off a little road with the powerlines still up on poles (haven't been put underground) and plenty of big trees around. I think we would be fairly low down the priority list for restoring power to in the event of a big storm.
 
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What's funny was back in the 90's when I had 26 fish tanks. I was getting about 10 blackouts per year for 4-8 hours each but since I've been down to 1-2 tanks (2003-present), I've only had 1 that lasted 2 hours. Everything else is just flickers(enough to have to reset the filters at most).
 
E.C. said:
Have someone tried solar panels??
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When I build my house in a next few years, they are very much in my plans. I expect that they'll help to mitigate the cost of running an enormous tank and they will also help to keep one running if the power goes out.
 
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I've honestly found that running my 300 on a sump has been cheaper than running my 125 with 2 canisters. The pump on the 300 has kept the tank at 78-82 without the heater ever turning on. That alone is 500 watts saved right off the bat. My led's only use about 20 watts and my powerheads only use about 30


Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
 
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Hi gang
After moving my classroom out of the school I worked at - my fish tanks are now in my plant house and I would like some advice on what to get for a generator? Nothing too expensive - low budget here - $300 sounds great - but what does it run on? I do not want the hassle of a gas hookup - so what are the options ?
Thanks!
 
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