Should You Use a Battery Backup for your Aquarium?

[@droeksonfishkeeping]

Great vid! I am in South Africa where we experienced rotating power cuts of between 2.5 to 4.5 hours, 3 times in a 24 hour cycle almost every day (we had a 4 month break but it will probably soon return). So we have peen put through the meat grinder in this aspect of the hobby. What is absolutely invaluable is to have a acdc battery backup airpump (we have Chinese models over here, same as the Aquarium Coop airpump) permanently running on all my tanks connected to a sponge filter (any air driven filter will do) so when the power goes out, there is always circulation and some biological filtration going. That is the main thing: maintaining some biological filtration and circulation/aeration and it is the most affordable option. As you have said, the heat does not drop significantly in these time amounts. I once had an outage of just over 24 hours, then the heat became an issue after about 12 hours. Did a big water change with water left over in the boiler mixed with cold water and water conditioner to save the day! If I know it is going to be that long, then I use a gas heater to heat the room. I have since gotten a lithium battery inverter backup on a trolley that runs the lights on all the tanks and some of the power filters and household stuff as well so life can go on, but that is expensive. If you love the hobby, problems can be overcome. Thanks for your great content, always watch your stuff late at night.

[@BentleyPascoe]

@@droeksonfishkeeping thank you so much for sharing your experience

[@droeksonfishkeeping]

@@BentleyPascoe you're welcome!

[@darlenesluder3038]

Friday evening, Memorial Day weekend 2023, our breaker box died. The only electrician we heard back from couldn't get to us until Tuesday am. Borrowed a couple of small battery backups from a friend, dropped an airstone attached to an AC USB pump (not currently on the website; hope they haven't dropped this product) in each tank and had no aquarium issues from the power loss. I did prioritize getting a couple of portable power supplies after that so I have all the parts in-house for the next power outage. Simple items helped make this a non-stress event for the tanks. Thanks, Bentley, for the guidelines/reminders about prioritizing aquarium functions (air, light, etc) for the times we have to choose what to get/keep in place when our infrastructure isn't ideal.

[@BentleyPascoe]

@@darlenesluder3038 Great story of where battery backups matter. Unfortunately I believe the co-op has dropped the USB air pump. I think it had a similar failure rate to some of the other items that have been dropped. So they pulled it because it's failing too often for what they prefer.

[@mattbrown4504]

Good topic. I live in Eastern Massachusetts and last winter we had a storm that knocked out our power for about 60 hours. I have a 14 gallon tank with lots of plants and a healthy population of fish, all of which survived that power outage when the temperature in the house got down to about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. I attribute their survival to the fact that the tank temperature dropped slowly and the animals metabolisms slowed as the temperature dropped. I didn't have any way to run air in the tank when this happened but I think having a backup air pump would have been a smart move to help ensure their survival. I'm going to look into this for this coming winter. Thanks for all the great videos!

[@RogueAquariums]

A good topic Bentley. When we have power outages in the PNW, I use them on my return pumps in my sump since it is the life line on my mixed reef. I’ll also use them to supplement power to a couple of my Powerheads as well.

[@peanut2343]

I’m converting all my air pumps to the battery back up kind. Plug into usb type. Keep it plugged in. Have a dedicated surge protector for all the filters hob and sponges.

[@SierraPrecursora]

Love this video! SO important to keep the water oxygenated, and many never grasp WHY they need an airpump! I have a UPS unit for my Aquaclear 30 - because the HOB will not self-prime after even a short power outage. In a long outage, the battery backup ran the 7 watt HOB for 3 hours. I use lithium-ion battery backup air pumps on EVERY tank. In a 17 hour power outage, on the intermittent setting they all kept running the entire time, AND sill had a strong battery charge when power was restored. (IF I lived in the rurals of Cali where they turn off the power every time there was fire danger I'd get a good generator setup!)

[@vampgaia]

I have several types of back ups. I have the ones you put 9 volt batteries (I think that’s the size in) and I have a large one that could run my computer that I use for my tanks. Great advice.

[@dusk1947]

I adore having a battery backup, money well spent. Granted I have only one major aquarium, but having a single pump or powerhead to circulate water is invaluable for oxygenating a tank without power. Had I not gone with a pump back up, I'd absolutely have an airstone on a battery backup, and I still may implement that one day for redundancy. For now, I personally enjoy the EcoTech battery that pairs with their DC power heads and return pumps. Simply because I have the powerhead already, and it's plug and play. And that 'DC' component is the key for pumps, as you can throttle them to minimal power use to extend those critical hours on battery. The MP10 will go for two full days on battery because of it, and the MP40's get close to that (which are designed specifically to offer this feature, and have internal setting to optimize it). I'm close to a main road that is prioritized by our local power company, because of that I typically only need battery for 2-12 hours in the event of a 'typical' outage for us. Knowing I have 36-48 hours of backup is comforting given the value of the fish and inverts in my tank.

[@kosys5338]

I have battery backup air pumps in case I need them. I will let you in on a little secret though, I've never needed them and I've been in this hobby a long time. It would have to be an extreme case for me to need to use my backup to support my tanks. They can go easily 5-6 hrs with no power, mind you now they are large tanks 90+ gallons and they are heavily planted. I know backup power is one of the areas I over spent in when getting into this hobby. Just one of those things you learn along the way. Now tank setup matters what works for me may not work for other situations for sure. Nothing wrong with planning, just try not to over plan.

[@LakeMissoulaAquaticsandPlants]

Three days ago a lightning storm took out most of Missoula's power. I got mine restored yesterday. 48 hours without power. Posted a video this morning showing the aftermath. Wish I had some type of backup.

[@BeOurBee]

I'm setting up a 56-gallon tank with a UGF that normally runs on a small "170gph" powerhead (it's still cycling at the moment). But I did think about this, because there are a lot of trees that cause power outages for us throughout the year. So I bought a cheap 2xD-cell air pump, like the kind used on bait buckets. My thinking was that I'll keep the normal outflow that came with the UGF (removed it to put my powerhead on it) with a small airstone, and that will still pull SOME water through the gravel in addition to agitating the water surface. I just have to be able to swap it in while it's likely to be dark. I have 3 real UPSes for my computers (desktop, NAS) and my router. The next time I upgrade, I was thinking of swapping the smallest one out to run a regular-sized air pump.

[@aarondavis8224]

I'd love it if battery backup airpump technology would progress to have more batteries possibly user replaceable and higher quality components. I'd invest in one of those before a UPS.

[@zoradavinci3]

I bought a large one after a recent power outage that lasted 3 days. I will always have a couple of them around for just in case moments.

[@audrameyer9558]

I am first to comment??? Whhhhaaattt?? LOL 😁 I have so many of these....and a giant one that will run most of my fishroom. Love em!!

[@chefkda]

I have several UPS's, backup batteries, and a generator, for my 400 gallon tank system. During outages, with my old set-up I'd run my 4 FX6's, for just 1 minute, for every 30 minutes, to keep them cycled. I'd keep my 6 watt air pump running the entire time. With my updated system, I just run a DC pump, from my sump, that uses just 12 watts, along with the 6 watt air pump. Put the bio media, from my FX6's, in the sump. I'd use the UPS's at night or short outages. Use the generator, during daytime hours. For longer outages, I'll run the genny about every hour, for about 5 minutes.

[@brendanstan]

I live in Australia, and after owning reef tanks for years, i got sick of trying to combat power outs and buy / building backup systems. I now roll similarly to LRB now 😂 and have for quite a while! I have 3 1ft cube planted tanks with 3" deep of aquasoil, 13 different ludwigia species and other plants (not joking the tanks are packed 😅 ), no filters, 3 small 200lph dc pumps to circulating water, and a 120 chohiros b series with bluetooth, lighting all 3. I have 3 schools of 10 blue daisy rice fish, 10 cloud minnows, and 10 black rice fish. I also have the tanks right in front of a window that get 4 hrs of morning sunlight (with blinds, of course) if the plants need light during an outage. just keep it simple !

[@Mattcc3]

I thought a lot about this. I said I will just have a back up for the air pump. What I did was it’s cheaper just to buy a couple portable pawfly air pump. With the two big batteries they take the pump can last 24 hours. So I can power my sponge filters incase of an outage but for the heater I don’t have a backup.

[@mikegilmer3938]

The nice thing about air driven filtration is that you can keep a $25 battery operated minnow bucket aerator on hand. They typically use a couple of "D" batteries and can run for around 72 hours before replacing the batteries. Just unhook the air hose and connect it to the battery aerator. A cheap solution . . . 👍👍👍

[@BentleyPascoe]

@@mikegilmer3938 I keep a number of similar air pumps on hand just in case.

[@brianholdridge1860]

I was without power for 31 hours last summer after a bad storm knocked down power poles all over town. My Aquarium Coop air pumps and two portable battery power stations kept the water moving in four tanks the whole time.

[@yellowninja19]

We recently had a planned power outage for my neighborhood and what I ended up doing is using a jackery battery meant for camping for run an air pump. I plugged it in before I left for work and after I came home it was only down 3% power.

[@libbyrust]

If you live in a place like Oklahoma, you should definitely consider using a battery backup, especially if you have delicate fish.

[@jeremymoore450]

Bentley, On all my aquariums I have the battery backup air pumps. They are the hygger brand. They are all attached to either a sponge filter or the box filters. I bought these because I live in California and there are times the power will go out either due to a fire or maintenance or whatever else. I didn’t have any battery backups on my tanks and I lost power a few years ago. I started freaking out because of the tanks and no oxygen. That is when I invested in the battery backup air pumps. They have come in handy and work great when my power went out last week actually for a couple hours and the air pumps kept the oxygen going the entire time. Great peace of mind to have to know you can at least put oxygen in the tank during the power outage.

[@alisterg3582]

I’m using a SOBO SB218 which are around 15 bucks on the china sites. It’s USB with a18650 battery inside, you can run it continuous or have it in Emergency Start Mode so it turns on if the power goes off. It lasts around 24 hours but unfortunately doesn’t turn back off when the power gets restored (I suppose at least you can see that it went off). On the topic of APC type UPSes of which I have a few, things like my internet router are “protected” from the USB sockets on the USP and not from the power socket - I believe at low power draw most of the UPSes inefficiencies will be coming from the inverter converting the DC (inside the UPS) to AC.

[@tropicaltanktv]

I keep a sponge filter cycled in each of my tanks for this very reason. I can run my air pump for a long time to keep the tank going, and even move my HOB filter media into the tank to keep it cycled. It's cheap and easy redundancy.

[@brena4856]

Hey Bentley, Bren from London Ont Canada. Love the info and the way you explain it. Have you touched on water chillers for the aquarium. Keep on being fabulous

[@BentleyPascoe]

@@brena4856 I haven't talked about chillers yet just because I don't have very much experience with them.

[@CatFish107]

​@@BentleyPascoe gotta get on that arctic char train, dooooood. 😊

[@UncleSmileys.Aquariums]

I like the The PondForce Quiet AC/DC Aquarium Air Pump. There are two models on Amazon. They are fully adjustable and have a feed button. I have 4 of them, and mine are strong and super quiet. I use them to run my UGFs.

[@williamleidy6713]

My emergency plan involves a D cell powered air pump hooked to a sponge filter. That gives me about 16 hours of air and filtration. Long term power outages are rare were i live . Even so i can react with an extended plan by using a marine deep cycle battery to run a only air pump supply for 24 hours. In a zombie apocalypse senerio with no end in sight the glass box of water would be at the bottom of the list of worries.

[@brucetrathen8011]

Just went through a 6 day outage in Houston…nothing but misery.

[@Mattcc3]

Especially like your saying you don’t get much time or hours of battery usage out of those back ups

[@Mattcc3]

And they are pricey to

[@Raf.Gallin]

Hi Bentley. Can I ask you what your favorite filter is?

[@WeipoMingpo]

It's nice to have it because it's better to have than not. That can be the difference of keeping your fish alive or a massive death

[@Glandular6841]

Hey, it's unrelated to the video, but since I know how much you hate the Tidal skimmer I figured I'd let you know I designed a skimmer prefilter cage that resolves some of the pain points with it. Let me know if you want to try it out.

[@BentleyPascoe]

@@Glandular6841 would love to

[@NutritionFacts101]

Sorry off the topic but badly need ur help.. I just loved the way you have explained everything.. my problem is liitle different and im not getting the right solution. Actually my anglefish eggs hatch they become wrigglers but they die as wrigglers.. is it M blue thats killing them? Eggs are hatching after just 24 hours and what prople say is to start changing water on day 2.. thats 48 hours since the eggs are in methylene blue. Is M blue killing my wrigglers? Can it kill.. when should i start changing half wafter of the egg container?? Hope ur advice safe many lives😊 .. i have tried hatching eggs 3 times so far.

[@BentleyPascoe]

@@NutritionFacts101 just responded to your comment on my hatching eggs video. Hopefully that will help you. If not, feel free to email me: [e-mail]

[@NutritionFacts101]

​@@BentleyPascoeThank you so much Bentley, its 2:00 am here and you can see my concern for my angelfish.. Noted your email shall write you when required. Big THANKS ❤😊

[@CatFish107]

If you're only getting 600W out of 1000VA, you really, reallyy should be looking at what is skewing your power factor so heavily! Yikes