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Hawaiian Solar Aquarium
12/24/14 Large System Re-evaluation --
10/19/2009 Re: Large System Re-evaluation --
10/19/2009 Information on Energy Savings?
6/1/09 Electrical Requirements 11/08/08 Greetings! <Hello Joe.> Thanks to all at WWM crew! This is my second question this week so please let me know if I'm hogging too much of the crew's valuable time. <You are...just kidding!> I've been planning and researching as much as possible for my soon to be 75 gallon reef system. I believe that I have the cabinet and weight issues taken care of and am currently researching my electrical needs. My system will have the following electrical requirements: 2x 150 watt halides, 4x 54 watt t5's, 1x 20 watt Vortech Pump, 2x 100 watt heaters, 1x 80 watt Eheim pump, 1x 20 watt pump for skimmer, 1x 32 watt pc on fuge, 100 misc. watts I'm estimating a total of about 1000 watts. I have consulted with my electrician and he has informed me that my house (soon to move in) has a 200 amp breaker box that is equipped with arc faults. The circuit that the aquarium will run off has 20 amps. In your opinion, will these be enough power to safely support the electrical needs of the system? <It will surely support your system as listed. watts/volts=amps. So you have a load of about 9 amps, assuming you are in the US ( it will be even fewer amps at higher voltages). > Thanks for your help! Joe <Welcome, Scott V.> A Quick Question About Power Consumption For A 170g FOWLR - 07/02/08 Hello All, <<Greetings Kevin>> I'm sure this is answered somewhere on the site, but I'm in a bit of a time crunch and I haven't been able to locate it. <<Okay>> Some quick background - I'm in the process of finishing our basement and have framed out a spot for a 170 gallon fowler tank in one of the walls. <<Neat!>> The electricians are doing all the electric today <<Uh-oh, then this is getting to you late…sorry about that. Most queries are answered the following day (sometimes all the Crew/Bob can do to keep up in the limited time available), unless a question is somehow flagged in the title as requiring immediate attention and catches someone's eye>> and they tossed me a curve ball by asking me how much electricity the various components would use. I was not prepared to answer this and I'm not sure where to start. <<Could be calculated from the labels re…assuming all gear is present and you have a basic understanding of electricity>> I'm planning to have a good size sump/fuge under the tank so I'll have two pumps, a light, heater, possibly a cooler and the lights for the display tank. <<I see>> How much electricity do I need to have to run those items and everything else that I'll need to plug in? <<Even without the high energy lights of a reef tank, I would recommend a "minimum" of two "dedicated 20-amp circuits"…each terminated in a double-duplex GFCI setup>> Everything I've read talks about the GFI outlets and drip loops, but nothing I saw talked about how much juice you need - or would want - if you were starting from scratch. <<Not easily "specified" due to the varieties of size and system type…but a pair of 20-amp circuits should give you enough power even if you decide to go later with a reef tank. Unless you think you will also be "upsizing," in which case I would add an extra circuit while it's easiest to do so>> If someone could shoot me back a guess at the anticipated wattage and amperage needs I would be extremely grateful. I'll keep looking in the interim. Best, Kevin <<Apologies again for the delay…and good luck with your new install. EricR>> Re: A Quick Question About Power Consumption For A 170g FOWLR - 07/02/08 EricR, <<Hey Kevin>> Thanks for the response. <<Quite welcome>> I called around to some local fish stores and ended up with the 20 amp circuit answer. I think we mathed-out about 1,500 watts of power in the likely components used. So even though the ship for changing it has sailed, I'm glad to know I got the right thing. <<Ah good>> Thanks again - I'm sure I'll have some more questions for you when I start buying equipment in the coming months. <<Cool, I look forward to conspiring with you>> Right now I'm wrestling with glass vs. acrylic <<Mmm, yes…advantages/disadvantages to both. Having had both (my current setup is composed of a 375g acrylic display…)…if money is not a factor, I would go with a "low-iron" glass display…else, for this size tank…I would likely stick with glass, period>> and what type of sump set-up to run under the tank. <<Do read up and come back with some more specific questions re>> Best, Kevin <<Be chatting. Eric Russell>> Ultimate low power consumption saltwater aquarium Greetings WetWeb crew, I have accepted the challenge of designing my new home to run entirely on solar power at the urging of my wife. <Great! Have seen a marine enthusiast's home here in San Diego that made this investment... some days their electrical meter runs backward! The f/utility pays them back to the extent of their charges!!!> In researching the possibilities I was faced with either giving up my reef-keeping hobby, or finding a way to make it work with a 12 volt DC electric system. I am sharing some of my plans with the hope of getting constructive criticism. <Mmm, there are inverter technologies... to change to 120 V AC> I currently have a 20 in. deep 37.5 gallon soft coral reef set up. I am planning on running 2 pumps with a sumpless set up. One pump will power a custom H.O.T. protein skimmer of my own design, while the other will provide water movement within the aquarium. I am contemplating using small 12 volt boat bilge pumps to accomplish the above tasks. <These pull/use a BUNCH of amps... do more research here> Lighting is a bit more tricky however. I was originally considering using power compact lighting, but it is going to use way too much electricity. Instead I have decided to look into using light emitting diodes (LEDs) to light the aquarium. <A "wave of the future"> I have acquired some extremely bright white LEDs for testing. In some initial tests the LEDs seem to be the perfect solution. They produces a very blue color light somewhat similar to 50/50 lighting. They emit almost no noticeable heat, and when aimed through a rippling surface they produce much desirable reflections similar to metal halide. The "bulb" life is estimated around 100,000 hours. I am beginning to wonder why one would light an aquarium with anything else. <Mainly the current challenges of "quality"... Take a look here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/setup/lighting/index.htm> With that said, I am planning on building a lighting hood with an array of 100 super bright white LEDs. If anyone has attempted this before please advise on results. <There are a few folks, companies working on LED's for aquarium use... their data is not public domain> Based on my initial calculations this array should use around 680ma at 12 volts, perfect for use on a 12 volt DC system. I am estimating the light production of this array to be similar to two 55w power compacts, which is what has been lighting my soft coral tank happily for several years. After I build the lighting system I will test it, and write an article based on my findings. <Maybe get a PAR meter... study up re CRI, incandescence... need intensity AND temperature similar to the wild> With filtration, water movement, and lighting taken care of, I need to focus my attention to temperature control. With recent power outages caused by hurricanes I have been fortunate (or not) to have the opportunity to monitor my aquarium's temperature with no air conditioning or heating running. In the heat of summer for an eight day stretch with no additional heat from lighting, my aquarium maintained a temperature range of 74-78 degrees, coldest at around 4:30 am and hottest around 1:30 pm. <Yes... water is the standard for "heat"...> Normally, I would run a heater to keep it around 78 constant and my central air offsets the heat from my power compacts. My problem is I have not come up with a good method of heating on a 12 volt system. Most aquarium heaters are designed for large amperage high wattage alternating current. I need some suggestions on heating water on 12 volts, safe enough for my aquarium's population. If anyone knows of a good DC submersible water heater please advise. I might just have to have something custom made. <Look into "heat exchangers"... there are means (esp. for large volumes) to "take" heat from/to the air...> That about wraps up my ideas on solar powered aquariums at the moment. If anyone is interested, I will send updates on my progress. If I have overlooked anything important please advise, also know I am only in the early stages of planning this project. Thanks -Randy <Bob Fenner, who has been involved in such challenges in putting up collecting facilities in out of way places... Start looking into deep cycle (marine) batteries... You're soon to be an investor.> Re: Ultimate low power consumption saltwater aquarium -suggestion, LEDs Bob, I was reading about this man trying to light his soft coral tank with LED's. There are a few tanks which use them on the nano-reef.com forums! www.nano-reef.com/forums is the address, a simple search is all that is needed here. So far I think the tanks have been running good. Also, I believe there is a step by step in one of the threads, so.... If he needs help wiring them up, It's all there for him. Hope that helps Daniel Babcock. <LEDs are indeed going to "hit the aquarium market" soon... as you had stated, due to low operating costs (electricity, replacement of fixture). They have the intensity (have seen a million candle power unit in operation), and issues of other aspects of light quality are being worked out. Bob Fenner> Marine system amperage draw estimate About how many amps would it take to run a 90 gallon saltwater fish aquarium? <Likely between 6 and 20... depending on lighting use (low to high... T-5 fluorescents to Metal Halides), heating (acrylic in a well-heated room vs. glass in not), and most importantly pumping mechanisms employed (look for and select better pumps). Bob Fenner> Electricity Consumption Hello All! My wife has noticed that my electric bill has doubled since starting this hobby. I am ok with it but am a little concerned because I have not yet put into service my 2 X 150 MH lights. Here is where my question originates...Can I run my MH for 3 or 4 hours and let two 40 watt actinic lights provide the morning and late afternoon light? Is the photo period sufficient for soft corals (I don't have any yet)? I currently have a button polyp, mushroom anemone, a candy cane coral, and a Trachyphyllia. Can I run one for a shorter period while one runs longer? Or, should I simply use the lights and buck -up about it? <You'll have to buck up and light those metal halides up. Remember, these produce heat, so your heater won't run at all during the day (unless it's REALLY cold where your tank is. I'll bet your heater is 200-300 watts, as are the metal halides. A wash during the day. Your corals need twelve hours of light a day. Lower or higher light levels cannot be equated with shorter or longer photoperiod. Also, should I re-evaluate the pump I am currently using (Aqua-Medic 2500)? Any insight would be appreciated by my wife and by default myself... Scott from Colorado <I don't know Scott, you don't provide tank volume, size, etc. Reefs require anywhere from 10 to 20 times total volume turnover, if your pump is too much for this, then it is possible to downsize. I would compare power usage for any pumps you consider, and figure how long it would take to pay back the replacement cost using any possible power savings. Craig> Aquarium Power Needs Hello Robert, My name is Jim Fischer, and I live in Pa. I have a question about power requirements for a total aquarium setup. My wife and I are going to setup a 55 gal fresh and a 120 gal saltwater (reef) in our basement that I am wiring right now and need to balance the load on the circuits. I'm not going to use anything fancy like metal halides, just C.F. fixtures, but the setups I have in mind will be well equipped. I know this is a vague description, because I'm not sure exactly sure of the hardware I'll be using. I know the 120 gal reef tank will use a considerable amount of watts compared to the 55 gal freshwater tank. Thanks in advance for your advice and keep up the good work. <So...? Watts times amps equal watts... you can divide by 1000 to get kilowatts, multiply this value for all the electrics times your (in California "blended rate") charge for kilowatt hour... and get costs. The ampere rating for the circuits can be had by simply adding up the presumed amp loads as if all the gear were on at the same time... and shoot for a maximum of 60-80 percent of the rating of your breakers... Is this about what you're looking for? There are some other examples of such calculations on WetWebMedia.com, for pond pumps et al... Bob Fenner> Jim Fischer |
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