Scheduled power outage and pumps
When it’s planned a scheduled power outage we couldn’t be at home. In this case is extremely important that all the pumps start again when the current power comes back. So that’s important to clean all the rotors. There shouldn’t be any filth or scales that can cause friction and prevent the pump from restarting.
You don’t need to do a specific maintenance or to clean the grids, but it’s enough to pull out the rotor, clean it even with a bit of muriatic acid and put it again in its place, maybe cleaned with a toothbrush. Easy and quick. Obviously you have to do this for every pump.
Scheduled power outage and dosometrics (balling, calcium reactor, etc.)
In the remote eventually of a scheduled power outage, another advice is to disconnect all the dosometrics and close the CO2 cylinder for the calcium reactor if you have one. And of course turn them up just when you come back so that everything can be directly supervised.
In fact, it could happen that the dosometrics are interrupted during the administration, and this would cause a reactivation with an open dosage. Or it could be that the CO2 is inserted in a calcium reactor that maybe is blocked due the lack of prolonged power outage.
To avoid these potential problems it would be better disconnect all these systems. There are no consequences for a day or two.
Power generator
The power generator could be a solution in order to avoid the previous precautions. But be sure to have a very powerful one and to be at home when it’s needed, with enough gasoline. It sure isn’t a pratical solution.
Conclusions
Let’s summarise the essential points to follow if you are in the unlucky circumstance of a scheduled power outage.
- Decreasing the power of the return pump, if connected with an UPS, allowing it to last longer;
- Don’t feed the fish, the corals and the aquarium in general at least during the 24 hours before. 48 hours could be even wiser;
- Cleaning preventively all the rotors of the pumps, in order to have an higher probability that they will restart when the electric power returns;
- Stop the CO2 dosage in the calcium reactor and switch off the dosometric pumps.
With these simple advice you will have higher possibilites that your aquarium could come out unharmed from an emergency situation like a programmed current breakdown.
Hoping that shouldn’t happen.
If you have advices to share please use our comments.
