Hot metal odor coming from my tank.

[dougdstecklein]

For the last 6-12 months I’ve been dealing with an intermittent odor coming from my aquarium that I would describe as hot metal or a hot motor in an electric drill.
The odor is only detectable between early afternoon and late afternoon and it does not happen everyday which has made it very hard to narrow down what is causing it. Since the odor coincides with the time of day that my tank’s lights are at their highest intensities it has lead me to believe that my AI Hydra 52 led fixtures are causing the odor.
I have contacted Aqua Illumination in the past and went through troubleshooting with support and was told that since the cooling fans are functioning there is nothing wrong with the lights and that mailing the lights to them to have them checked would be a waste of my time.
I am lost at this point. The only other thing I suspect could be causing the odor is my Apex controller which I purchased around a year ago. But I only have my powerhead, return pump, and protein skimmer plugged into it which is barely over 100 Watts, so I can’t imagine it would be the problem.

Any ideas???

[Mark Bianco]

I know that smell and unfortunately for me it came from my Apex controller unit. Do you have the controller unit located either above the tank or anywhere close to the sump. or any other components or controllers located in the sump area?

Being as the Apex components are not sealed as water evaporates there is small tiny amounts of salt that can get into the components, and will cause a short on the boards and will eventually burn out.

Not a 100 percent sure in your case but you could unplug everything and bring it out in the open and smell to see if any of the components have this odor. Even if its faint then more then likely that piece is doomed to fail completely sooner then later.

HTH
Mark

[dougdstecklein]

The controller is mounted in my sump cabinet but it’s never gotten direct water on it. The odor never gets stronger when I sniff around different aquarium components, it’s just something that fills the air.

It would make more sense that the Apex is causing the odor because I purchased it shortly before it started. I had the AI led fixtures for a full year before the odor started.

The problem is I don’t know how to find out for sure what is causing the smell. With it being intermittent I can’t just remove a device for a day to see if the odor persists or not.

[DesertReefT4r]

Remove every electrical component from the tank one by one when the smell is at its peak, take them out side and give them a good smell. You will be abke to smell it when you find the scource. Good luck and I hope you figure it out.

[mcgyvr]

If you notice it daily then simply turn the LED off for one day (usually as much as 3 day without lighting is just fine and corals have no issue with it)..
If you smell it then you know its not the light..
If you don't then the next day turn the light back on and just plug the heater into the wall (if possible) and run like that..
If you smell it then its the light..

Personally I would be opening up whatever device I found to be the culprit then and inspecting for visible burn/charring/melting,etc... then take pictures and discuss with manufacturer..

[dougdstecklein]

The odor is so intermittent that it would be nearly impossible to narrow down exactly what is causing it. Sometimes it’s faint, sometimes it’s strong, sometimes it lasts all afternoon, sometimes it lasts a couple hours, and sometimes it doesn’t happen at all for weeks and even months. The odor fills the air but does not smell stronger in certain areas than others like it’s coming from 1 specific piece of equipment.
The only thing consistent is the type of odor and the time of day it occurs.

And unfortunately the 2 pieces of equipment that are most likely causing it are so expensive I can’t just replace them for a few weeks or months to narrow down the source.

[Daddi0]

Have you checked to see if your wall outlet is getting hot?

[mcgyvr]

If you aren't sure then unplug then pop the tops on them and start a visual inspection of each..
It may be very evident as to what the problem is when you take a look...

[n2585722]

Originally Posted by dougdstecklein

The controller is mounted in my sump cabinet but it’s never gotten direct water on it.

That is not a good place for any electronic devices. It is an area of high humidity. That along with the salt is an accident waiting to happen. I have all my electronics seperated from the sump area of the stand. That includes the power bars also.

[dougdstecklein]

Originally Posted by Daddi0

Have you checked to see if your wall outlet is getting hot?

I never thought I was pulling enough wattage(maybe 300) for this to be a problem but Its not a bad idea. I’ll check it out.

[Daddi0]

Originally Posted by dougdstecklein

I never thought I was pulling enough wattage(maybe 300) for this to be a problem but Its not a bad idea. I’ll check it out.

Sometimes the screws holding the wires into the outlet are not tight this can cause some arcing even without high wattage.

[BlueReefMan]

Look for signs of "salt creep" where slimy salt deposits move down along the power cords or air/water lines and short out the outlets or pumps, etc. Drip loops are the prevention.

[dougdstecklein]

I am just going to replace the outlet to rule that out. I really think I need a gfci outlet in that area anyway.

[Daddi0]

Also, are you running any kind of air filters in your home? I only ask 'cause we were running an ionic type in our house and it smelled just as you describe.
Cheers! Mark

[dougdstecklein]

Originally Posted by Mark Bianco

I know that smell and unfortunately for me it came from my Apex controller unit. Do you have the controller unit located either above the tank or anywhere close to the sump. or any other components or controllers located in the sump area?

Being as the Apex components are not sealed as water evaporates there is small tiny amounts of salt that can get into the components, and will cause a short on the boards and will eventually burn out.

Not a 100 percent sure in your case but you could unplug everything and bring it out in the open and smell to see if any of the components have this odor. Even if its faint then more then likely that piece is doomed to fail completely sooner then later.

HTH
Mark

Hey Mark,
Just curious how you knew the odor was coming from the Apex and what you ended up doing.

[dougdstecklein]

Originally Posted by Daddi0

Also, are you running any kind of air filters in your home? I only ask 'cause we were running an ionic type in our house and it smelled just as you describe.
Cheers! Mark

We do have an air filter, but I turned it off for a week and the odor was still present during one of the days. I’m going to turn it off again though just to be sure.

[mcgyvr]

No amount of us guessing over the internet is going to be better than you just doing a visual examination of all your equipment..
yes that may involve shutting off power and popping the top to view inside..
Yes doing that work is better than just ignoring it and having a fire..

[dougdstecklein]

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

No amount of us guessing over the internet is going to be better than you just doing a visual examination of all your equipment..
yes that may involve shutting off power and popping the top to view inside..
Yes doing that work is better than just ignoring it and having a fire..

Gathering other people’s insights and opinions as to what could be causing it has been really helpful. I was lost and completely frustrated before I posted this, but now I at least have some trouble shooting ideas I can take to narrow down the cause. I’ll start with the easy stuff: I’ll replace my wall outlet and power strip. If that doesn’t stop the odor I may put the Apex in another room and connect everything to it with extension cords. This would 100% tell me whether the Apex is causing the odor. I may attempt to take the lights apart, but I am no electrician and I wouldn’t even know what I was looking for.

[HBtank]

Originally Posted by dougdstecklein

I am just going to replace the outlet to rule that out. I really think I need a gfci outlet in that area anyway.

I had two wall outlets start to go that were hot to the touch without anything plugged in (and ultimately found 5 "bad" ones in the house). Tell tale electrical smell when we ultimately found it melting a lamp plug. Once you start to have loose connections in a circuit on the hot, neutral, or ground it can cause resistance in the system that manifests as heat in the devices. Ended up replacing all outlets in the entire house to clean up all the circuits. House was 60's era, so aluminum wiring made connections at the outlets get loose over time due to different metal types (heat and cold expansions).

Just seconding checking outlets for issues (and general awareness).

[dougdstecklein]

I replaced the wall outlet last night and the odor came back today around noon. I turned the lights off at 12:30 and the odor slowly became stronger and lasted until about 2:30.
I can definitely rule out the outlet and possibly the lights.

[Daddi0]

Originally Posted by dougdstecklein

I replaced the wall outlet last night and the odor came back today around noon. I turned the lights off at 12:30 and the odor slowly became stronger and lasted until about 2:30.
I can definitely rule out the outlet and possibly the lights.

[Darryl Hey]

Originally Posted by dougdstecklein

I replaced the wall outlet last night and the odor came back today around noon. I turned the lights off at 12:30 and the odor slowly became stronger and lasted until about 2:30.
I can definitely rule out the outlet and possibly the lights.

its the apex just turn it off and see what happens

[dougdstecklein]

Originally Posted by Darryl Hey

its the apex just turn it off and see what happens

Testing the Apex is my next step, but just turning it off won’t tell me whether it’s the cause or not since the odor can already be nonexistent for months. I am going to try to run the Apex like normal in an adjacent closet by running extension cords to everything. If it starts to smell in the closet I’ll know for sure that it’s the Apex causing the odor.

[d0ughb0y]

does anyone else in your house smell it?

[dougdstecklein]

Originally Posted by d0ughb0y

does anyone else in your house smell it?

My wife usually smells it first. I think sometimes I try to pretend like it’s in my head so I don’t have to deal with it, but it’s there. Sometimes it’s faint but sometimes it burns my eyes it’s so strong.