electrical question

reefinquisitive · 10/24/2011, 05:09 AM

im thinking about setting up a 180g tank will i need to run a dedicated breaker for this tank or not.....will have a fuge skimmer ato apex controller
3 mp40s and was thinking about going with the ecotech leds as well. This tank will be in the living room and it appears that everything in there is on the same circuit. I will be switching the outlets to gfci for the tank.

any input will be greatly appreciated

wood0691 · 10/24/2011, 05:22 AM

most likely its aleady on a 20ammp breaker, but if you want to have the tank dedicated to only one breaker so you can just kill it when needed then yes but if not i would try to add up what all ison the breaker you are useing and see if it can handle the load.
im going to set mine up on a seperate breaker for just the tank that way i dant have to lose power on everyting in my living room if and when i need to kill the power.
also may help when the power goes out you can put the tank on a small generator if needed.

Lorenz725 · 10/24/2011, 05:23 AM

I cant tell you if you have to or not but I am running a dedicated breaker today for my tank. I am setting up at 150 and I dont want to have to worry about over loading a breaker. A lot of the tank stuff we run does not take a lot of power the one thing I would worry about is the lighting. Good luck.

fishgate · 10/24/2011, 05:25 AM

You really need to add up all the watts of all the devices on this circuit and divide that by 120. That will give you total amps. Your circuit is either 15 or a 20 amps (1800-2400 watts). Also keep in mind that motors draw more power when they start up, so if you are close to the max available power, that could pop the circuit.

Dedicated circuits are always nice, but if you can't do the work yourself, this could be expensive.

If you do decide to run a new line, I'd put at least 2 new lines and of course all should be 20 amp.

billdogg · 10/24/2011, 06:32 AM

I have my tanks on dedicated circuits - 2 x 20A per tank, all GFCI protected. I like the 2 seperate circuits so that I can seperate my pumps and heaters between the two - if one trips, it does not take the whole tank with it.

As mentioned above - if you know what you are doing, running a couple new circuits is easy stuff - if you don't, you run the risk of hurting yourself badly or worse. When in doubt, call an electrician!

haftafish · 10/24/2011, 10:02 AM

Running two circuits is a great idea. The money you would pay an electrician would be less than most of the stuff you are going to need in equipment and supplies. When you do your calculations for total amps figure on not more then 80% of the rated breaker.

T Diddy · 10/24/2011, 10:13 AM

If you are able, a dedicated circuit is a great idea. As mentioned, 2 are better than one. I have a dedicated circuit for my fish room, with 2 outlets spliced off from my office. The sump pump and skimmer run on the office circuit...lighting and powerheads are on the dedicated fish room circuit.

thegrun · 10/24/2011, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haftafish

Running two circuits is a great idea. The money you would pay an electrician would be less than most of the stuff you are going to need in equipment and supplies. When you do your calculations for total amps figure on not more then 80% of the rated breaker.

While you most likely do not need to add an additional line, it is nice to have the security of having a dedicated line. If you are running one new line, it will cost very little to add a second line and splitting pumps to two separate circuits could help you avoid a major problem.

HowieB · 10/24/2011, 01:59 PM

I have a chart I keep updated every time I add something. I have 2 dedicated 15 Amp outlets. Seems to be plenty.

reefinquisitive · 10/24/2011, 10:52 PM

thank you for the responses im just at the research point at the moment and im trying to cover all my bases once again thank you i appreciate it

Jocko · 10/25/2011, 07:14 AM

At the very least, have multiple GFCI outlets. Then you can sort of strategically choose which items go on which outlet. The idea being if one trips, the equipment on the other can keep going. So you can use that to manage how your tank would limp along if either of the outlet were to trip.

jerpa · 10/25/2011, 08:44 AM

I would have an additional circuit run even if its not absolutely necessary. Even with led lighting you will still be pulling a large chunk of power when you add everything up. You will have additional load from everything else in your living room so you are going to be close to maxing out the breaker. You don't want someone to blow the breaker whenever they try to vacuum. Even worse the tank runs fine until the day it gets cold and all 3 150W heaters kick on at the same time. Your not home, the breaker is tripped, and your fish are freezing.

willy7499 · 10/25/2011, 08:55 AM

Have at least one powerhead/pump on a different circuit in case the breaker trips. Water movement is critical to the survival of your livestock.

I agree a heater would be nice but I imagine that you are running your heaters through your Apex, which if Apex goes down without power you don't have heat. I personally don't trust a heater without some sort of separate controller managing it. I had a self managed one malfunction and stay on. That will kill livestock faster than your tank cooling off to room temperature which would take hours typically.

10/24/2011, 05:09 AM	#1
reefinquisitive Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Posts: 25	electrical question im thinking about setting up a 180g tank will i need to run a dedicated breaker for this tank or not.....will have a fuge skimmer ato apex controller 3 mp40s and was thinking about going with the ecotech leds as well. This tank will be in the living room and it appears that everything in there is on the same circuit. I will be switching the outlets to gfci for the tank. any input will be greatly appreciated

10/24/2011, 06:32 AM	#5
billdogg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Grove City, Ohio Posts: 10,806	I have my tanks on dedicated circuits - 2 x 20A per tank, all GFCI protected. I like the 2 seperate circuits so that I can seperate my pumps and heaters between the two - if one trips, it does not take the whole tank with it. As mentioned above - if you know what you are doing, running a couple new circuits is easy stuff - if you don't, you run the risk of hurting yourself badly or worse. When in doubt, call an electrician! __________________ I'll try to be nice if you try to be smarter! I can't help that I grow older, but you can't make me grow up! Current Tank Info: 120 mixed reef with 40b sump, RO 150 skimmer, AI Sol Blue x 2, and a 60g Frag Tank with 100g rubbermaid sump. 2 x Kessil A360w lights, BM curve 5 skimmer

10/24/2011, 10:13 AM	#7
T Diddy Slayer of Mice Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Augusta, Ga Posts: 1,338	If you are able, a dedicated circuit is a great idea. As mentioned, 2 are better than one. I have a dedicated circuit for my fish room, with 2 outlets spliced off from my office. The sump pump and skimmer run on the office circuit...lighting and powerheads are on the dedicated fish room circuit. __________________ America's best are not in America. Current Tank Info: 140 Gallon DSA in-wall, foam/rock wall, DIY LED, 40g sump, Precision Marine Skimmer, 100 gallon refugium, NO3, PO4,NH3/4 undetectable, Mg, Ca, KH...eeehhhhhh?

10/25/2011, 08:55 AM	#13
willy7499 Registered Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 63	Have at least one powerhead/pump on a different circuit in case the breaker trips. Water movement is critical to the survival of your livestock. I agree a heater would be nice but I imagine that you are running your heaters through your Apex, which if Apex goes down without power you don't have heat. I personally don't trust a heater without some sort of separate controller managing it. I had a self managed one malfunction and stay on. That will kill livestock faster than your tank cooling off to room temperature which would take hours typically. __________________ Current Tank Info: 120RR Main, ADHI sump, 2-Radion LED. ATB 840 V2.0 Skimmer, Eheim 1262 Return, 2-MP40esw, Neptune Apex Controller, Homemade Calcium Reactor with AquariumPlants Carbon Doser Regulat

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10/24/2011, 05:22 AM	#2
wood0691 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Birmingham Alabama Posts: 329	most likely its aleady on a 20ammp breaker, but if you want to have the tank dedicated to only one breaker so you can just kill it when needed then yes but if not i would try to add up what all ison the breaker you are useing and see if it can handle the load. im going to set mine up on a seperate breaker for just the tank that way i dant have to lose power on everyting in my living room if and when i need to kill the power. also may help when the power goes out you can put the tank on a small generator if needed.

10/24/2011, 05:23 AM	#3
Lorenz725 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Ohio Posts: 942	I cant tell you if you have to or not but I am running a dedicated breaker today for my tank. I am setting up at 150 and I dont want to have to worry about over loading a breaker. A lot of the tank stuff we run does not take a lot of power the one thing I would worry about is the lighting. Good luck.

10/24/2011, 05:25 AM	#4
fishgate Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Damascus, MD Posts: 3,340	You really need to add up all the watts of all the devices on this circuit and divide that by 120. That will give you total amps. Your circuit is either 15 or a 20 amps (1800-2400 watts). Also keep in mind that motors draw more power when they start up, so if you are close to the max available power, that could pop the circuit. Dedicated circuits are always nice, but if you can't do the work yourself, this could be expensive. If you do decide to run a new line, I'd put at least 2 new lines and of course all should be 20 amp.

10/24/2011, 10:02 AM	#6
haftafish Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Hardwick NJ Posts: 191	Running two circuits is a great idea. The money you would pay an electrician would be less than most of the stuff you are going to need in equipment and supplies. When you do your calculations for total amps figure on not more then 80% of the rated breaker.

10/24/2011, 10:52 PM	#10
reefinquisitive Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Posts: 25	thank you for the responses im just at the research point at the moment and im trying to cover all my bases once again thank you i appreciate it

10/25/2011, 07:14 AM	#11
Jocko Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Boston Posts: 595	At the very least, have multiple GFCI outlets. Then you can sort of strategically choose which items go on which outlet. The idea being if one trips, the equipment on the other can keep going. So you can use that to manage how your tank would limp along if either of the outlet were to trip.

10/25/2011, 08:44 AM	#12
jerpa Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 2,174	I would have an additional circuit run even if its not absolutely necessary. Even with led lighting you will still be pulling a large chunk of power when you add everything up. You will have additional load from everything else in your living room so you are going to be close to maxing out the breaker. You don't want someone to blow the breaker whenever they try to vacuum. Even worse the tank runs fine until the day it gets cold and all 3 150W heaters kick on at the same time. Your not home, the breaker is tripped, and your fish are freezing.