Question for the masters about Pumps! Need help!
- Thread starter deepfathom
- Start date
I will keep you posted, Im just now recovering from Xmas. and expect to be spending more in that direction this coming month. I just wish I could find all of the information I had accumalated previously. I would be able to offer more logistic wise.
My big push behind this topic was attempting to save my tank in the event of a powerloss, I live in a high risk area for hurricanes and with that comes power outages for weeks so my thoughts were if I could maintain a constant water flow via a pumping system that uses the power of the falling water to return the water to the main tank then I would in short protect my tank from nuking its self in the event of a loss in power. Yes i already have a battery back up on my system but that's only going to go so far. Plus i thought it would be BA if my tank could some how put back some of what it takes out. My entire filtration system is bio based with the exception of a protein skimmer and It works so well Ive negated my need to do water changes down to once every 2 months. Yes to those about to freak out about that statement, i am insane but everything reads zero and Ive never lost live stock due to it, further testing is underway but I'm happy with the results so far.
This unit requires a minimum head pressure of about 16' and produces about one watt of electricity.
like mentioned earlier if run with conjunction of a battery, solar panel, alternator. Then a partial charge can be created. This Is the first one that I found so I posted it. There are other models that produce more wattage. The goal of the ts is to be able to run a pump without plugging it into the wall. Either you believe it can be done or you don't. Im not posting in this thread to try to convince you. I am posting because it can be done. And if allowed to discuss it, enough info can be compiled to do so.
@aquaponicpaw
I certainly don't want to make it seem like I am not allowing this to be discussed - quite to the contrary, I was just trying to join in!
My only point is that a few gallons per minute of water at a 6' head just does not have enough potential energy to generate more than a infinitesimal amount of electricity. Every microhydrogenerator I have seen requires some fairly high pressures to work - if you can find one that will work at 2-3 PSI then you might be able to do something with it.
Solar power is a proven technology and certainly could power your pump.
Lol! I've been told that I'm a horrible fish keeper for my "sustainability project".
There's a lot of info out there. I saw where someone asked the same question on instructables a couple of days ago. was that you?
http://www.instructables.com/answers/Can-you-use-hydroelectric-power-for-a-water-filter/
There is a post also where a Guy built a nice little contraption that can "possibly" be utilised in a sump. he's using a nozzle to create pressure to power the turbine. Output isn't mentioned. but it does kind of make you think...
http://www.instructables.com/id/Home-made-Hydro-Power-System/
And finally there is this:
http://www.nooutage.com/dcpat.htm
here is a qoute from the description: Which kind of makes reference to the amount of head and pressure needed to do such a thing. But then again it was mentioned elsewhere in this thread.
I would recommend a very cheap self sustaining solar powered ammonia, nitrite and nitrate filter! Hang a few Pothos clippings over the rim of your aquarium. They will keep sucking nitrogen compounds out of the aquarium with the power off if there is a mid grade light source available. Though they do work better with moving water.
You are going to have a much harder time getting a realized bang for buck with your perpetual motion machine.
You are going to have a much harder time getting a realized bang for buck with your perpetual motion machine.
I also live in a hurricane strike zone. We were without power for 2 weeks after Katrina and a week after Ivan. I think the best countermeasure for extended power loss would be a drip/overflow system.
If you are on well water than you just plumb water supply strait to the tank with a valve so you can regulate water flow.
City water with chlorine, you can use a charcoal canister filter, to get the chlorine out of the water.
Chlorimate (SP?) you need to rig a dechlor dosing, the easiest would be a 55 gal drum that you just drip into the tank with gravity.
I have used a drip for years on my tanks, and they go a long way to maintaining consent water quality. For example. About a year ago I was looking at my 75 gal tank, it has a 8" warmouth, a 8" catfish and 3" bluegill. I noticed that the filter was turned off!!, i checked the water quality and I did notice some nitrates (i usually don't read any) I do have a few walmart bulbs in pots in the tank and a small pump for water movement other than the main filter. The filter had to be completely cleaned out and the BB thrown away (it smelled like rotten eggs). There was really no problem with the tank though.
Probably the best emergency filter would be Water Hyacinths and sunlight. I would think that they would be found growing in lots of ponds in the Houston area.
