Ira

Yeah, I was thinking that. Could grab a cheap extension cord and power strip, bit of soldering and it'll be done. I have some jumper cables to connect it to the car battery and enough extension cords around to reach the filters.

It's not just the government. Most people will stop trying to help(If they can get away with it) the instant you turn into an %%%hole.

Yes! The filters seem to work fine on my UPS! Didn't think they would since it doesn't produce a sine wave. Now, just need to find some IEC connectors...Dick Smith has them...For $14 each.

There aren't really 3 foot, 4 foot etc starters. They're usually just rated at a wattage range like 4-80 watts. The starters you should have already will work fine. And even if you needed new starters they're only a couple bucks. Place I bought some tubes from once had a basket full of them next to the till and would give you a handful for free.

You probably won't need to change the ballasts or anything. Just cut it down to size and move the fittings. The 3 foot tubes will be overdriven a bit, the 4 foot ballasts usually put out a bit over 100 volts, 3 foots will be less. Just means the tubes may need replaced more often but will be brighter. Of course, 3 foot ballasts should be cheap and easy to replace.

Heh, wait, you're right, what am I thinking? 404s valves come completely off them. Guess I haven't cleaned my 404 recently enough, it's only been about 4-5 months.

You're doing something wrong if it takes two of you to pull the 404s apart. Seriously, they shouldn't take much force at all. Unless you leave the valves closed then it'll take heaps of force because of the vacuum.

Yeah, better to replace the whole brace. Not really going to cost much more.

No losses is always good. At least you were around when it happened.

Assuming you have enough extra flow capacity going from the tank to the sump, put some Ts in the hose from the tank and scatter the outlets around the tank. That way you you have the flow scattered around instead of in one concentrated blast. And aim them towards the sides of the tank.

I found they went nuts on boiled spinach too.

Air pumps? What are those? Are those those things you use to make annoying noisy bubbles in place airating and filtering simultaneously with a properly placed filter?

Yeah, like I'd said earlier, if I was going to be around during the time I wouldn't care at all, just an excuse to clean the filters once the power comes back on.

Temp is not a concern. What good is setting up the cannisters on a spare tank and leaving them plugged in going to do me? Someone would still need to put them back on the tanks.

Yeah, well, reconnecting the filters really. I don't like to just let them start back up on their own and dump possibly toxic water back into the tank. I usually unplug them if the power has been out for more than an hour and give them a quick rinse after it comes back on.

How much power in that little motor? 1-2 horsepower? Easy to find an electric motor that will put out that much power. About $100 or so for the motor itself.

Probably far too late by then. But thanks.

What country do you live in? In our country, New Zealand, since you're not familiar with it. They're *ALWAYS* longer than claimed. :lol:

Supposed to be 9am-3pm. (Or about there) I just remembered I do have a UPS that doesn't work because the battery is dead. I might be able to plug it into a car battery that might run the filters long enough. But since it doesn't put out a sine wave it might not work.

"Network maintenance"

On the 29th Genesis is disconnecting our power for about 5 hours. Normally I wouldn't care, just give the filters a quick clean after the power comes back on and everything would be fine. Unfortunately, we leave for the south island on the morning of the 29th. A: I don't know anyone I'm sure I trust to do it. B: It's a bit much to ask them to sit around my house for 5+hours. C: They all work anyway so can't.

Yup.

Yeah, can't imagine why a heat exchanger would cost much, it's just a bit of ducting and some thin dividers. I could make one up with some tubing, plastic sheeting and MDF.

My tank is concrete too. But the PH has been 7 every time I've tested it.(Which hasn't been in years see no need to) I do use bird grit in my filters though to keep the PH from dropping too low.

Doesn't matter if it was, unless he was busy poking something toxic with it. Only reasons people don't cut branches off trees are A: Because branches are generally boring and B: Because you'd want to let it dry and clean it really well, get rid of sap and gunk. (Hence why hardwoods are preferred I think. Most softwoods tend to be a lot sappier) There's no reason it has to be driftwood other than it comes pre cleaned and comes in more interesting shapes.