Battery Backup

[Layton]

Any use a battery backup for their tank? I am not finding anything designed specifically for this, outside of individual power head backups.  Thinking about just using the same as I use for my network gear, an APC UPS. Just putting feelers out to see if anyone has had experience or a good solution. I have access to generators for longer term outages, mostly looking for something that will run a DC return pump for a couple days. 

[John Vinson]

I went with this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FBK3QK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

With everything plugged into it (heater, pumps, lights, etc), it lasts 1-2 hours (can probably get it to last longer if just the pumps and heater are going).  Anything longer than that I switch to the generator for the whole house.

[Layton]

7 minutes ago, John Vinson said:

I went with this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FBK3QK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

With everything plugged into it (heater, pumps, lights, etc), it lasts 1-2 hours (can probably get it to last longer if just the pumps and heater are going).  Anything longer than that I switch to the generator for the whole house.

I will likely do the same as I’m just not finding anything designed for the hobby. 

[SuncrestReef]

If you have an Apex, it can be integrated with a UPS battery to detect when there’s a power failure and turn off high-powered devices to preserve the battery life for water movement.  It can also send you an alert about the power.

I explained how to do this in my tutorial on Apex Power Monitoring:

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/neptune-apex-programming-tutorials-part-4-power-monitoring.698/

(scroll down about half way to the section on UPS)

[Layton]

4 minutes ago, SuncrestReef said:

If you have an Apex, it can be integrated with a UPS battery to detect when there’s a power failure and turn off high-powered devices to preserve the battery life for water movement.  It can also send you an alert about the power.

I explained how to do this in my tutorial on Apex Power Monitoring:

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/neptune-apex-programming-tutorials-part-4-power-monitoring.698/

(scroll down about half way to the section on UPS)

Awesome I will check it out for sure!   I did order an Apex for this build this go around.  Exciting to see how far monitoring and automation have come in the last 12 years since I took a break from the hobby.  I am a total tech nerd, so all very appealing.

[SuncrestReef]

14 minutes ago, Layton said:

Awesome I will check it out for sure!   I did order an Apex for this build this go around.  Exciting to see how far monitoring and automation have come in the last 12 years since I took a break from the hobby.  I am a total tech nerd, so all very appealing.

Be sure to check out all the other tutorial topics in my Apex series:  https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/authors/suncrestreef.93940/

[Layton]

I will for sure!

[Blue Z Reef]

I have the icecap one plugged into my dual gyres. Works great and the newer gyres recognize the power out and switch the pumps into only running a single to conserve. Overall happy with the piece of mind. Haven’t had to put it to much test aside from a maybe 3 hour outage.

 

https://www.saltwateraquarium.com/icecap-battery-backup-v3-0-for-aquarium-pumps/?gclid=CjwKCAjwj42UBhAAEiwACIhADplImD9J3jlw2h2usuWtBb3h85_Djknq9nzhUdWxZsBu0ZEm5KDMUxoCwY4QAvD_BwE

[Layton]

2 hours ago, Blue Z Reef said:

I have the icecap one plugged into my dual gyres. Works great and the newer gyres recognize the power out and switch the pumps into only running a single to conserve. Overall happy with the piece of mind. Haven’t had to put it to much test aside from a maybe 3 hour outage.

 

https://www.saltwateraquarium.com/icecap-battery-backup-v3-0-for-aquarium-pumps/?gclid=CjwKCAjwj42UBhAAEiwACIhADplImD9J3jlw2h2usuWtBb3h85_Djknq9nzhUdWxZsBu0ZEm5KDMUxoCwY4QAvD_BwE

I was looking into those, but they don't have enough power as I want to keep the Apex up and running too. 

[Blue Z Reef]

6 minutes ago, Layton said:

I was looking into those, but they don't have enough power as I want to keep the Apex up and running too. 

Do you frequently lose power? Because running the apex on a UPS isn’t going to last very long and doesn’t have a ton of point IMO. Apex will already contact you with the heartbeat if it disconnects for more than 30 mins so if it’s just for notification sake it doesn’t really matter.

 

I have seen people buy a used UPS and wire it to a deep cycle battery for some real significant run time, if you feel up to that, it would probably be the most ideal route.

[Layton]

I would think the power used by the controller itself is not massive, minimal at best. Maybe @SuncrestReef has a ballpark?  Otherwise I’ll just test it when it arrives. I often work an hour away from home, so the idea of having control in a power outage is enticing, plus automation when the power goes out. With a DC return pump, the ability to dial that back for maximum runtime seems like a good idea in theory.  
 

I run all ubiquiti gear in a rack with an APC 1500, and I get a couple hours out of it during an outage(more if I start turning down cameras and AP’s) That’s a UDM Pro, 16 port POE switch, modem, and anything fed via POE switch. We just moved out here in August, no power outages yet, but I’m a firm believer in plan for the worst and hope for the best.  When we lived in SE PDX we lost power a few times every winter or wind storm. I have an extra APC 1500 that’s not being used for anything important, so I’ll just move it over. 
 

I’ll just have to send it through a test run when the tank is cycling to get an idea. Trust but verify. 

[John Vinson]

22 hours ago, SuncrestReef said:

If you have an Apex, it can be integrated with a UPS battery to detect when there’s a power failure and turn off high-powered devices to preserve the battery life for water movement.  It can also send you an alert about the power.

I explained how to do this in my tutorial on Apex Power Monitoring:

https://www.reef2reef.com/ams/neptune-apex-programming-tutorials-part-4-power-monitoring.698/

(scroll down about half way to the section on UPS)

Hi John,

I was looking at your diagram on this tutorial and noticed you have the Apex plugged into a wall outlet using the Auxiliary Power Adapter - wouldn't it be powered off in the event of a power outage (since it's not plugged into the UPS)?  Or will it still get power from the Aquabus line from the EB832?  Thanks!

[SuncrestReef]

8 minutes ago, John Vinson said:

Hi John,

I was looking at your diagram on this tutorial and noticed you have the Apex plugged into a wall outlet using the Auxiliary Power Adapter - wouldn't it be powered off in the event of a power outage (since it's not plugged into the UPS)?  Or will it still get power from the Aquabus line from the EB832?  Thanks!

If you read the tutorial carefully, I explain that the aux power adapter is how the Apex detects when the power fails.  The aux adapter is an optional component purchased separately because the Apex is normally powered through the AquaBus cable plugged into the EnergyBar.  In this configuration, the EnergyBar is plugged into the UPS battery, so when the power goes out the EnergyBar still has power, but the Aux power adapter goes dead, so the Apex knows there’s a power outage.

Think of it this way:  the aux power adapter is not being used to power the Apex, but instead acting as a sensor.

[SuncrestReef]

One more note about the Aux power adapter: It can be used to power the Apex base unit if you don’t own an EnergyBar.  In this configuration the Apex would only be used to monitor an aquarium, but not actually control any devices.

[Webbed Feet]

Hello Layton,

I know it has been a bit since you posted your question.  However, if you've not made a choice already this may help, or others might find this worthy.   I did extensive research into battery backups for your same reason.   I was asking what is something less than an entire house automatically kicked in generator system?  I found a backup by APC.

Pro 1500 with Accessory Battery Pack

The reason I feel anyone interested in going the UPS route for hobby power confidence / security reasons is this model is capable of having pretty much an unlimited number of accessory battery packs cabled into it.  The accessory pack is model BR24BPG from APC., is hard to find so I ordered one directly from APC themselves. 

• With a single Pro 1500 and only one additional battery pack, I have kept a 70 gallon tank (circulating pumps and heaters) going for a solid five hours minimum.   
• The Pro 1500 will predict run time end of life based upon power draw taking place.  I have found it to be very accurate.  This allows you to simply setup the desired equipment on it, unplug the Pro 1500 from the house outlet and just look at the control panel report of how long it will run.  Very helpful when deciding what pumps to use for emergency circulation during a power outage.
• My home location has a history of all power outages being resolved within three hours so far.  So this has been a solution I have had confidence in. 
• During one power outage I connected an additional 30 gallon tank into the backup with an extension cord, it kept the 70 and 30 pumps and heaters going over three hours.
• The quality of APC has been very good for me. 
  • I got around four and a half years out of the first set of batteries (such batteries expected life normally is around three years) and my Pro 1500 with accessory pack is now on a second set of batteries that I was able to easily find at very competitive pricing.   
• And, it also acts to protect all hobby electronics connected to it from poor incoming power fluctuations as well.   
• I located it a couple of feet from the tank elevated on a small stand to create a drip loop.  I have had no problems with salt creep entering the unit so far and it has been five years at least.   
• APC is still making these and have done so for many years, for me that says something.  

With shopping around, I was able to put the 1500 with one additional battery pack together for about $330 (at that time).    Versus a generator that provides dirty power (not an inverter) and cannot come on automatically upon power outage, I found the price point to be acceptable for the purpose.

Webbed.

 

 

Edited September 11, 2022 by Webbed Feet

[Cobalt]

I rolled my own, might have been a little more work that Webbed Feet's suggestion but likely costs less. Using a Renogy 2000W True sine wave inverter / charger with built in transfer switch. You plug the inverter charger into the wall and your tank into the inverter. When the power is on it passes through the inverter and it keeps your batteries charged. When the power goes out it kicks on the inverter and supplies power from your battery bank. I used two 100aH lithium ion batteries. The inverter charger was $650 new and two batteries were $300 each. I still have this whole rig and I'm tearing down my tank. I'll be posting it up for sale here shorly.