I think this is a very good assumption.

Any possibility that it might be linked to electrical outlet? I run everything through a power outlet.

I'm not electrician but are you running everything through a dollar store powerbar or smething or without a surge protector? Maybe you're getting some weird power surges through your power bar.

But I may have to side with Brad as with buying stuff used especially in this hobby you never know what you are getting so expect the worst.

Side note maybe go build up some karma points or something ...

The fact that they're second hand my play a part in this but myself i am thinking that there maybe an issue with the power

Nop I am using a powerbar bought from "source" which has surge protection. Despite being an electrical engineer, I am still confused whether or not it has anything to do with the power bar since (I maybe wrong) the "second hand" stuffs with low watt (20w) pumps got burnt.

If I may be so bold as to borrow from another thread:



You were obviously looking at your tank, that's a no-no.

Sorry, I had to :D

Confused, why? Something like a pump that runs 24/7/365 is going to fail at some point, usually randomly if there are no issues with your source power & everything is hooked up safely. In your case you had them fail within a rather short time frame, while you were home (which is a good thing, rejoice).

We tend to plug stuff in & trust that it will be fine for years without taking a bit of time to check the components out periodically by shutting them down & having a look at their condition. Since you have the electrical expertise, why not get a meter or power monitor (kill-a-watt) & compare the wattage measured to the wattage rating of your pumps. If there's a significant variance between measured & rated values, might be time to investigate further. Even without extensive electrical training, monitors such as the kill-a-watt are available from most reno/hardware stores for $25 or so. These allow you to monitor the voltage, current or wattage of an electrical device plugged into it. Most of them will also allow you to input your kw/hr cost & tell you approximately what the device hooked up to it is costing you. It's not going to solve all your problems & troubleshoot for you, but it's a worthwhile gadget to have around your home, not just for your fish tank. With the installation of smart meters in most areas of the country, power usage & quality monitoring becomes simpler & more devices are now available to take advantage of the new technology.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kill_A_Watt

& you can take things a step further with something like this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_energy_monitor

or go all out with one of these..
http://electroind.calls.net/?url=htt...ID=DrivenLocal

Alas, despite routine monitoring & scheduled maintenance, there will always be those rogue components that decide to fail at the most inopportune time. That's how it goes with sealed dynamic components that you can't see inside. Again, be happy you were home when the items decided to cook, so you did catch a break!

When you say wiz and burnt you mean the actual pump itself made this noise while in the water? That's loud if you could hear it. Did it send up smoke? Could you smell it? Or did it just simply stop working?

At any rate, as others have said, it was second hand so for all you know it could have been running for 10 years previously and possibly even abused (ie, run dry, etc). The bottom line is, you just don't know its history. I also like the theory of bad power go through your power bar. Perhaps swap it out for another one?

Yah I definitely consider myself lucky. Don't wanna imagine what you have happened if I wasn't at home.

This tank is proving to be more challenging to me than my 20 gallon (ironic? don't think so!) Maybe I am not ready for the expenses and maintenance of big tank. I am moving back to my old 20 gallon :)

I felt the same as you, going from my 55 gl to my 180 gl tank. The 180 threw everything at me except equipment crapping out on me. You had huge success with your small tank which I think surprised many of us as we watched your progress (well me anyway, shouldn't speak for anyone else :biggrin:). I shut my 55 down, then started it back up and it thrived once again, while I continued to struggle with the 180. Now my 180 is doing really well, not amazing, but is ticking along. It just takes time. The only used equipment I have on it is the return pump and a couple of koralias. Everything else was new.

I meant to pick up one of those meters a while ago, this thread is a good reminder to grab one. I also know what would happen to the tank if the return pump failed after I'd left for work, worst case, the DT would get a bit cool (winter) and my skimmer would go nuts (from high water level).

Anyway, give it some time.