Concerned about power outages...

A couple people have told me where you have the holes drilled in the tank is important because in case of a power outage you don't want the water going into the floor. 2 days ago the lfs said that isn't what determines whether the water goes into the floor or not. shrugs shoulders. ....and of course he didn't want to explain it to me because he never wants to explain things to me. What are the other things that will prevent the water from going into the floor in case of a power outage. Also, I know there is a piece of equipment that cost betwen $30-75 (can't remember which) that keeps the tank going in case of power failure. Does anyone know the name or the link where I can see this? How powerful does it have to be? Which one do you suggest? The cheapest best one for a 120 gallon? Thanks.

 

If you add another "0" to those numbers you could get a small generator to run all the equipment. But you can get small battery powered air pumps to keep oxygen in the tank during a power outage.
As far as the holes in the bottom of the tank.... I'm not following you on that one. Can you post some pics?

 

Your water drainage really depends on your plumbing setup. Is you tank currently drilled? If you can post a picture of your setup we can be much more helpful.

 

You can also plumb one of these after the return pump to stop the "back flow" when a power outage occurs. If your going to get your tank drilled, I really dont see the problem with the power outage. As long as you dont keep your sump or wet/dry full to the top with water, you'll be fine. And another thing, if your LFS doesnt like to take the time to explain to you what you need or try to help you understand something, to hell with him!! Find someone else. What an A-hole!! Pardon my french



Check Valves

 

in a power outtage the water will back drain from the tank into the sump.it will drain till it lowers to the 1st whole in the sumps returns.so you should have some of your return from the sump up high.for instance,if you run your return to your display and its at water level then there will be very little water flowing back to your sump,but if you run it into your display and point the nozzle deep into the water then the water will drain until the nozzle sucks in air.if you want it to return to your tank but deep,that is ok but then you will need to fix the return so that it will suck in air at a higher point if power goes out or you can loose all your water.most importantly shut your power off from time to time just to see what happens.maybe someone else can explain this in a better way or with pictures.

 

I have alot of experience here as we just had a huge ice storm not long ago and i was without power for quite some time. this is where you want to have a GFCI which you should have no matter what, if the sump overflows or anything gets wet, this will shutoff power keeping it from burning down your house. Also invest in a small generator, i was lucky enough to have a spare tank at my mother in laws that was about 3 weeks old and was empty so i just packed up my fish and coral and moved it there since she had power, now i have a 5k watt generator that can run my tank and fridge + a fan or small heater and some other things, if you watch the sales ads i got my genny at home depot on sale for 400 bucks

 

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I don't have the tank yet. I'm ordering it and I want to make sure I don't get ripped off and I get what I really need so I don't have to spend money to compensate for lack of knowledge after the purchase ...and I know absolutly nothing about plumbing. They told me 2 holes would be drilled in the bottom with internal overflow. Do I need to ask for anything specific involving the plumbing?

120 gallon
48x24x24

What do you mean when you say "plumb one of these after the return pump? How full would you keep the sump? I was told to buy a 30 gallon but on another site it suggested 38 gallon and I want to be real safe so I'm thinking about getting 38 gallon. I feel the same way about my lfs. ha ha.

Man, you people give some great info ! Thank you.

 

You are going to have 2 tubes coming up from the bottom of your tank they are attached to the holes being made . One will be the overflow water out one will be connected to the return pump. In the event of a power failure both tubes will be draining water into your sump because the pump will shut down and you will get ( back flow )on that pipe thus the need for a back flow preventer. You need to have enough capacity in your sump that the water will drain down so far it will break siphon on both tubes and stop draining water without overflowing the sump onto the floor. I think you should have the biggest sump you can fit for that reason and many other good reasons,.