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Power outage warning

Bec

By Bec
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Bec Newbie

Bec

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I received a letter in the post today to say they are going to turn the power of in our street for seven hours one day next week :censor: .

Apart from trying to keep the tanks warm (it is a little warmer ATM so should not be so bad), is there anything else I need to do? Will seven hours without power affect the sponge filters and biological balance (release toxins and the like)?

Bec

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louu Newbie

louu

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I wouldn't really know about releasing toxins but considering its all in the tank to begin with I would say you would be fine. I would treat it as an uncycled tank think how long it would take between water changes to build up ammonia.

I would say do a water change before the cut and then again once you can heat the water.

I hope that helps! Goodluck

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TasV Newbie

TasV

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That depends how big the tanks are, how heavily stocked they are, etc. In general no it won't. Losing power in really warm weather can be as bad as losing power in cold weather. As water warms up it holds less oxygen and tanks sitting still with no agitation experience dramatic drops in the dissolved oxygen levels. If you are worried about this you can get battery operated pumps that will power and air-stone for quite a while to ensure more consistent gas exchange. Have a look for them in fishing tackle stores as live-bait pumps etc

Edited by TasV
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fishbites Newbie

fishbites

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Depending on how many tanks and their sizes you could try any/all of the following:

  • Stop feeding the fish 24 hours before to avoid extra wastes going into the tank (give them a treat after power is back on)
  • Use battery operated bait pumps (BCF or most fishing stores sell pretty reliable ones)
  • Have Hydrogen Peroxide on hand and dose at about 1 teaspoon per 100 litres to oxygenate the water (fish gasping at surface will tell you if you need to use it)
  • Have Prime or something on hand incase of ammonia build up (shouldn't be needed for short outages)
  • Clean filters before power outage
  • Do large water change before power outage
  • Open canister filters and put air stone in the bottom to keep oxygen going through filter media if power off more than 2 hours
  • Don't worry too much about heaters unless water temp gets too low for a long period of time
  • Any other filter sponges and media can go in a bucket of tank water with an air stone oxygenating the water and bacteria should be saved
  • Borrow a generator to avoid doing all of the above :)

Hopefully it will only be a short outage for you rather than the whole 7 hours....

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Chuckie Newbie

Chuckie

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you only have bettas, right? the relevance of which is, they can breathe atmospheric O2, do you won't need aeration.

I wouldn't expect any problems at all, provided that you can stop the temp dropping quickly. I turn my sponge filters right down/off in spawning tanks, and there's never an issue.

Maybe if you post some details re tank size and occupants you'll get more directly relevant info?

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Bec Newbie

Bec

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Most of my tanks are ten litre with air pump and sponge or corner filter. I have a six foot with a canister, a four foot with an internal and canister, a three foot with an over the back and a large sponge on power head, a two foot with internal.

All tanks house bettas, snails and bristlenose except the three foot which has angels, gourami, guppies and neons.

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Chuckie Newbie

Chuckie

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The only thing I'd probably worry about would be the canister filter. If you can get a batter operated air stone and put that in the canister (inside a bucket) while the power's off it could help prevent the bacteria dying off. You would need to take the lid off the canister, of course!

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fishbites Newbie

fishbites

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With the Bristlenoses... they have high oxygen needs so just keep an eye out for them sticking their noses above the water line - they can take gulps of atmospheric air but they can't breathe it (more absorb oxygen through their gut).....

The 3ft tank sounds "full" so would probably put an air stone in there just to keep the oxygen levels up....

Out of my original list I'd still do the following for the 6ft and 3ft tanks

  • Stop feeding the fish 24 hours before to avoid extra wastes going into the tank (give them a treat after power is back on)
  • Use battery operated bait pumps to keep oxygen up (BCF or most fishing stores sell pretty reliable ones)
  • Have Hydrogen Peroxide on hand and dose at about 1 teaspoon per 100 litres to oxygenate the water (fish gasping at surface will tell you if you need to use it)
  • Clean filters before power outage
  • Do a normal water change before power outage
  • Open canister filters and put air stone in the bottom to keep oxygen going through filter media if power off more than 2 hours (but put in bucket to avoid spills as Lisa suggested)
  • Any other filter sponges and media can go in a bucket of tank water with an air stone oxygenating the water and bacteria should be saved

Interestingly, there have been occasions where local electricity companies have provided generators to fish keepers here in Qld when they have had to turn off power for long periods of time!

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Bec Newbie

Bec

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Well the power went out for eight hours today :censor: .

I moved all the bristlenose to the community tank for the day and kept a battery air pump on it all day. I also had two battery bubbler's going all day and moved them around between six of the bigger tanks. I put an oxytablet in the canister filters twice during the day and in all the small cycled tanks I added 1 oxytablet. I also stirred each tank every hour with a paddle to keep the water circulating. It was a massive day with water changes for all this afternoon

Tonight I have checked all for ammonia and nitrite and no readings so far. I will test them everyday for the next week as I am worried how well the bacteria survived. Some of the fish look a little stressed and I missed one of the little bristlenose ... found him during the water change and unfortunately he did not survive :sad: . I am hoping the stress does not bring on any disease in any of the tanks. Fortunately it was a warm day in Melbourne today so the temps were all fine

All I can say is a back up plan is a good idea for everyone in case the power goes off for an extended period ... if I had no warning I'd have been up the creek without a paddle :o

Bec

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fishbites Newbie

fishbites

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Sorry to hear about the little BN Bec :(

Good that everything else went well despite the extra workload.... sometimes rather than circulating water - getting a jug and scooping up some tank water and then letting pour back in from a height can help with oxygenation...

also good that your ammonia levels are low/zero... not sure about 'oxy tablets' as I've never seen /used them but the bacteria in filters will survive about 2 hours without oxygenated water circulating through them but if you had the sponges and filter media in with an air stone they should be ok and hopefully ready to work soon as you had the power back...

Your water changes will also help freshen up the water and the fish should be happier with that too... hope you have a good rest watching your fish tonight after all your hard work :)

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Bec Newbie

Bec

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Just an update after the outage.

I now have 17 small tanks that are showing various degrees of ammonia and nitrite :( ... some only a bit and others a reasonable amount. I have moved all the fish from those tanks into jars as I am to worried about what might happen over the next few days. Hopefully it is just a small spike for most and things will settle back down fast. My four foot, which had just finished cycling two days before the outage has gone back to lots of nitrite and my six foot has a mild amount of both ammonia and nitrite (fortunately both these big tanks are yet to be stocked). My three foot, two foot and two 90 litre tanks are all showing nil readings (thank God :goodo: )

So in total I have 30 odd bottles of fish :scared: (I still have my Thai fish in their quarantine tanks). I went to Woollies and bought a mass of 1.5kg spring water bottles ($4 for six) and have two per fish. One has the fish in it, the other has tomorrows water in it. I have all the bottles wedged in the many fish less tanks so heating has not been a problem. was a big job to set up but now all I have to do is change the fish to the new bottle and top up ... fast, no fuss and minimal chemicals!

I cant express enough the need for backup power failure plans, even with pre-warning and prep this is turning in to a massive task. At least I have only had 1 casualty.

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Chuckie Newbie

Chuckie

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I think stocking levels of the tanks can be a factor. Our power went out a few weeks back (we had advance warning) and I did nothing to prepare for it (I have lived through several such events) and there wasn't a blip in the fishroom. My tanks are lightly stocked though, and those that actually have filters run on sponge filters. And I only feed every 2 - 3 days.

So my advice is stock as lightly as you can at all times.

You can add zeolite or similar, and add Stability to help things along.

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Bec Newbie

Bec

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Most of those little tanks only have one fish in them, or one and a BN. There is one that is around 30 litres with three big girls and all have sponges (some have not been cycled for more than a month though). The ones that are heavily stocked (the two foot has 11 girls in it that get fed four times a day) I paid particular attention to with the battery bubblers and so far they seem to be coping (mind you all the remaining tanks are on starvation rations cause there is no way I can relocate all those fish as well :scared: ).

I have added a bacteria additive (stress zyme +) but I am loathe to add purigen or the like (which I have) as I think the reason the ammonia has spiked is some of the good bacteria is dead. My thinking is if I add an ammonia remover it will take longer for the tanks to grow back the right amount of bacteria? In my limited experience it only takes a few days for slight spikes to get back on track (fingers crossed) :notsure: ?

Hey Jo, if you want to pay for the postage I am happy to mail the two battery pumps to you for a loan and can pick them back up at the next meeting

:)

Edited by Bec
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jo oakley Newbie

jo oakley

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Thanks for the offer Becbiggrin.gif

I was thinking I will have to invest in my own,

as this is quite a common thing out here,

or so I have been told,

one tree down and the powers of and we have a lot of tree.

we can have a black out at any time074.gif

Two of my tanks are heavily stocked with young Guppiesohmy.gif

I will reread this thread and put into practice.

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Bec Newbie

Bec

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Here is a link for some http://www.aquariumproducts.com.au/battery_air_pumps.php and the cheapest is $10 each

I have lost one of my original Thai boys (Shitaki) ... a big blue butterfly.

He is not dead (well he probably is), I can not find him :notsure: ! In all my juggling last night I must have accidental tipped him into the slosh bucket and dumped him (I put all the fish I am moving in cups to acclimatise them to their new water and must not have realized there was still a fish in one). I am too scared to have a good look in the veggie patch as I have had him a while now and he is a lovely fish :scared:.

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TasV Newbie

TasV

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I'm a little surprised to hear that it has had any effect at all to be honest. Like Lilli, I have been through things like this (on a real hot stromy day when we lived near Newcastle a tree blew over and took out our power. We had marine tanks at the time and didn't lose anything, inclduing the filters being without power for more than a day.. tree had to be removed and then power reconnected etc). I would be inclined to leave them alone and let them settle by themselves as the changes are likely to be only short-lived. Too many water changes/intervention now might actually set it back. Prime can be added in these cases too.

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Bec Newbie

Bec

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WHOOO HOOOO :woohoo: ! I found Shitake ... he was in one of the 'empty' bottles :rolleyes:

I am starting to think maybe it was the oxytabs. I used these mostly in the small tanks and directly in the canisters and they are the ones I had the problems with. The tanks that had no change were to big to dose economically so they just got stirred and a bubbler. I am to lazy to check them again today and see if they have corrected themselves. It is good to know others have not had this experience as power blackouts do happen and this is a lot of fuss!

Edited by Bec
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jo oakley Newbie

jo oakley

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Bec, I am glad you found your runaway59.gif

Thanks for the link, it was the one I gave you LOL

I found this today,

Power failure info sheet.

if you go to the Ornamental Fish Association of Australia.

click on downloads then info sheets

you get to power failure info sheet.

it would let me link it confused.gif

Edited by jo oakley
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