Battery Backup

[JoeAyers]

So I've been looking into a battery backup system to run 200 watts for 12 hours. Figure even if I'm out that will give me enough run time to get home and fire the generator.  I looked at UPS systems made by tripp lite and can basically get what I want for <$1500 (1UPS, 3Extra Batteries) if I shop around... But as many of you know I'm a cheap arse so does anyone know where to find plans for a DIY battery backup. The requirements are 1) 200ish watts for 12 hours, 2. automatically kicks on if the power goes out. Or if you have alreayd built something like this and want to teach me how to do it that would be awesome.

Joe

[Viggen]

-Go buy a Bosch relay $5-10

-Go buy a boat bilge pump 12v @ whatever flow you desire

-Then get the appropriate car battery to allow the battery to run the pump for 12 + hrs.  Those sealed spiral cell batteries are cool because they do not vent fumes into your room

-several feet of power cable, connectors & a 2 or 3 prong plug

-Finally, get a trickle charger....

It's been a while since I wired this up but it works!  I will try to find a relay & figure out what goes where, send me a PM if I forget to post how to do it!   

Unless you get a really good battery $100-150 should around what it costs

[verper]

-Go buy a Bosch relay $5-10

-Go buy a boat bilge pump 12v @ whatever flow you desire

-Then get the appropriate car battery to allow the battery to run the pump for 12 + hrs.  Those sealed spiral cell batteries are cool because they do not vent fumes into your room

-several feet of power cable, connectors & a 2 or 3 prong plug

-Finally, get a trickle charger....

It's been a while since I wired this up but it works!  I will try to find a relay & figure out what goes where, send me a PM if I forget to post how to do it!   

Unless you get a really good battery $100-150 should around what it costs

Is this UL listed?      Good idea Gary.  I should do it also.

[ohioreef]

Find the directions and I'll put it on our DIY page.

[aquavista99]

I think it would be easier and maybe even more cost-effective long-term to invest in a VorTech pump with a battery backup pack that will last up to 6 years and can be exchanged years later for a new battery from Ice Cap. At least the VorTech pump will give you 3,000 gph of nice gentle flow everyday, and if the power goes out, the battery backup system will kick-in automatically for up to 30 hours at half power (1500 gph). The battery pack is also sealed, compact and will not leak either.   

If you have lots of corals in your system, the  lack of flow and oxygen caused by a power outage can crash your reef very quickly. The pump is $345 and the battery backup is $150. Your livestock and piece of mind may warrant such an investment (which is not much when you consider how much it would cost you to replace all your fish and corals). 

I am sure the DIY project suggested by Viggen will work as well, but the final costs to put everything together and keep it going will not be cheap either, especially for a larger system like yours. Also, I am not sure you would want to place an ugly boat bilge pump in your reef as a permanent fixture which will only produce excessive direct flow in the core area of the water jet when the power outage occurs ... which is not healthy for the corals but would be fine for a fish only system. And depending on the size of your reef, you may need to find space in your reef for two or more bilge pumps to give you the necessary flow required to keep your livestock healthy during a power outage. 

Also, car batteries are pretty big and bulky, and having them under or behind your stand can present other problems as well (IE, would need to protect the battery from getting wet or leaking, if not sealed and contained, etc).

If you decide to go the DIY route, The Reef Aquarium, Volume 3 by Sprung & Delbeek also devotes an entire chapter to this subject (IE, having backup systems in place when power outages occur, etc.).

Attached pictures of my backup system below, which includes two pumps and two batteries and produces lots of gentle (not direct) flow, which is ideal for any reef system. BTW, you could run two  Vortech pumps on a single battery for up 12 to 15 hours as well.

[JoeAyers]

The bilge pump is not something I am interested in. I know there are DIY UPS systems out there that use marine batteries and power inverters, but I can't find any good plans.

Having the batteries is not an issue for me as they would be in the garage on top  of the sump closet. My goal is to be able to run my return pump (98W), two sea swirls (9W) and two tunzes (47W) that are on the sea swirls for 12 hours, 154W total. I can do this for under 1K with a UPS System. I'm leaning towards that. Then If I want I can add more UPS batteries than the 2 I would need right away and eventually be able to run the entire system (minus the lights)  for 12 hours, or just the flow for a long weekend if I was away... but my cheap side keeps telling me to DIY it since I have the room in the garage.

[aquavista99]

To save on costs and still protect your  reef, you could just have the tunze pumps or sea swirls hooked up to a battery backup system. Your sump will be fine without power for a few hours. It's your corals and fish that need the oxygen and flow during power outages.

If money was not an issue, go with something like this:


http://www.distributedenergy.biz/cart/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=10&cat=Air%20Cooled%20Generators

[Viggen]

the setup I am referring to does not require any ugly pump(s) inside the display tank.  The bilge pump gets installed in the sump thus completely out of site which keeps the tank inhabitants as well as sump inhabitants happy. 

[JoeAyers]

My sump will have to have some type of flow as it has my frags in it as well as macro/snails/etc/etc and I don't want massive die off in there and then have the return pump kick back on and dump that fouled water back into my tank.

Viggen - How does the relay work?

Joe

[Viggen]

The relay is wired in to the pump & also the wall outlet.  When the relay senses that there is no power on the wall it completes the circuit so the the bilge pump sees the current from battery & turns it on.  The instant the wall power comes on it flips the circuit so the pump turns off

hope it helps

[rmstevensiii]

Sweet idea!  Thanks for sharing.

[seand]

Hey guys-

I have a TrippLite APS 512 PowerVerter (up to 500W continuous) and two 90Ah deep cycle batteries.  I run my Sequence Dart and and air bubbler - so roughly 160W.

Anyway, I think the smallest model available now is the APS 750 PowerVerter
http://www.tripplite.com/products/product.cfm?productID=2938
You can find them for around $250 if you look.
http://www.nextag.com/Tripp-Lite-tripp-ups-55284150/prices-html
Or about $350 from Jehmco.
http://www.jehmco.com/PRODUCTS_/HARDWARE_/Battery_Backup_System/battery_backup_system.html

And, you can daisy-chain as many deep cycle batteries as you want.

Somebody tell me if my math is wrong, but I think it's like this...

To calc backup time, you need to convert 12v DC to 120v AC

So with one of my batteries, 90 Ah @ 12v is roughly 9 Ah @ 120v.  There are some losses in the conversion process, so figure about  8 Ah @ 120v.

8Ah @ 120v is about 960 watts for 1 hour - or - 120 watts for 8 hours

So with one 90Ah battery, you could be backed up like this:
960 watts for 1 hour
480 watts for 2 hours
240 watts for 4 hours
160 watts for 6 hours << I run 2 batteries, so I should get 12 hours.
120 watts for 8 hours
60 watts for 16 hours

Note:  these units are robust enough to handle starting a decent sized motor, or even igniting a halide if need be.

[verper]

Yep, your calcs look right.  I have looked at those tripplite units before.  They do all of the charging, inverting, sensing of power loss by themselves, don't they?  All you supply is the batteries.

[JoeAyers]

Sean,

Can you post a pic of how you have the deep cycle hooked up?  I was looking at Tripplite's batteries as well, but if I could use a regular deep cycle marine battery then that is the way to go.

Or maybe I'll just have to stop over and see it for myself.

Joe

[seand]

Verper-

Yep.  My only snafu was that you are supposed to dischage the batteries occasionally, and I never did.  So I think I need to add some H2O to my batteries after 3 years.  The safety on the APS tripped, and tripps again whenever I hook the batteries up right now.


Joe-

Sorry, no pics, but I should be home Wed evening (pre-MACNA tank check).  I only have 2 batteries, so the manual told me to put them in parallel.  I used the heaviest gauge battery cable I could find with a big fuse in it.  The wires are not cheap - especially with a large fuse.  Jehmco does sell a wiring kit, but I just went to tractor supply's auto section...

[verper]

You might have a bad battery if it trips the breaker.  Sounds like a dead short.

[seand]

Sounds about right... 

So the lesson is that if you get a TrippLite APS, follow the instructions and discharge the batteries every now and then...

[verper]

Actually, discharging them would not affect a dead short.  That is where two of the lead plates touch each other inside the battery causing an internal short. Usually happens from poor manufacturing or rough handling/abuse.  The discharging helps with the overall heath of the battery and allows it to hold a charge better.   If you have two batteries, one of them should still work.