lost power. what to do now?

[rhdc2itr]

When I went to work yesterday afternoon everything was fine and running. I got home at around 11 pm and found that the power was off in our complex. Supposedly the power has been off since 1 pm. Around 10 am today the power finally came back on. Everything in my tank looks ****ed of now, water temp is at 53 when the power was off, but now the temp is back at 78 after three hours. My corals are all ****ed of, half of my frogspawns and torches are still closed and the one that are open are small and shrivel. Fishes seem to be ok. Should I be worried? What should I do now to save a potential problem from happening? Anything I can do to add with the stress of the tank?

[sniper2be]

give it time don't give up. battery backup and or generator.. i know it all cost money... but is best advice i can offer

[bertoni]

I would measure the ammonia level, and dose some Amquel or Prime, if there's any measurable level. I'd also do some small water changes (15% or so) and add some fresh GAC. Other than that, about all you can do is wait. Good luck! I'm sorry to hear about your troubles! :(

[bobt2]

i,ve had this happen a few times till i bought a generator. the 1st thing i loose any xenia and shrimp. the rock will come back, use lots of flow and be ready to make water changes/remove any corals that don't look good to a quarintine tank

[rhdc2itr]

Thanks for the advise guys. since this was a major crashed 3 of my trachyphilia is dying ( sliming and melting ), 4 of my torches has melted away too. Hopefully everything else is going to make it, but only time will tell.

Now my tank is very cloudy. So what should I do now? Already did a 15 percent water change, changed my carbon and gfo. Anything else I need to do?

[origreefer]

I lost most of my tank after a 7-day power outage in dead winter.. Tanks got to 54 degrees even with the fireplace going and a small propane heater on it. Almost all the fish survived, because they don't get stressed as much when the temp drops slowly. I would get the fish out of that tank ASAP in a QT tank. Then just hope what's left of the reef survives. You are going to go thru a cycle for sure, even with big water changes.

The following year, I got a small generator just big enough to run the tanks. I ran that one 96 hours straight and when I shut it down, it seized. Now, I have a solar system with large battery back-up. It can run the tanks for weeks without power. Plus, it's silent and I can use it when I'm at work without worrying about thieves stealing the generator. Where I live I lose power many times a year, wind, snow, rain, sun, you name it.

[Skynyrd Fish]

I think the temp swing may have been a little fast on the way up. Not that it really would have made a difference. That totaly sucks that your temp tanked that much. +1 on move the fish to a quarantine.

[Michigan Mike]

One of my cichlid tanks lost power last night for 12 hours before I noticed it. Lost 3 fish and many where on the way out if much more time had passed.
Just a reminder how sensitive our tanks can be.
Generators & back ups for power outage is something every serious reefer should have.

[rhdc2itr]

what kind of generators do you guys recommend?

[bertoni]

I'll keep harping about watching the ammonia. That's the primary worry, at this point. I'd probably remove dying animals as soon as possible, too, in case they're about to release toxins.

[rhdc2itr]

yeah i been watching the ammonia leaves and they are fine, i have just been throwing any corals away that have been reeding or melting. Woke up today and found all 8 of my chalices have died, two more trachy melting away. I just chucked them and the water is still very cloudy. Also added some purigen today.

[bertoni]

Well, that's depressing. :( I hope the situation stabilizes soon. The Purigen sounds like a good idea to me.

[rhdc2itr]

everything else seems to be doing ok. zoa are starting ti open back up, no more die off so far. But the tank still hasnt really cleared up yet.

[bertoni]

Okay, hopefully the worst is over. I'd keep up with the fresh carbon and ammonia testing.

[rhdc2itr]

thanks bertoni and everybody that helped me out. The tank has been stable now. No more die off, parameter is good now. Water is finally clear.

[Tennyson98]

It all depends on how often you power goes out. Do you live in the country or get lots of bad weather and its a common thing? Where I live power goes doesnt go out for often. So i have a APC1500 Battery backup on my system. When the power goes out the battery backup runs my heater, pump and blowers. I let everything else go out, you need the very basics going in a time like this and the less you have running the longer the battery will last. I have ran on battery for over 15 hours. I feel it would go for 24+ hours if needed. I highly recommend and battery backup for any system. It costs money but if you have spend $5-10k+ into your tank, whats 500 bucks on a battery backup.

[Rognin]

I bought a UPS before I bought my reef pack or my Live rock. All I had was 20lbs of live sand, a powerhead, heater and a fluval C4 HOB filter. The next purchase was a UPS (900w). It runs everything but the heater for 24+ hours, I've not tested it with the heater yet, which I will do in March.

The solar panel thing is a great idea, I'm gonna have to shop around for that!

[hllywd]

A 1 kW generator will run a lot of equipment for around a couple hundred bucks. I have a little 2 cycle that will run 8 - 10 hours on a gallon of gas. It's a backup now that I have one to run most of the house. Your complex may not allow a generator so check first.