[mike31154]

I have a small inexpensive battery powered air pump that automatically switches on if the outlet it is plugged into loses power. This is a barebones solution that will provide some aeration in the event of power loss and should run for quite some time on the two D cell batteries. It is plugged in to my GFCI protected circuit so if there's even a nuisance trip, the pump will kick in immediately. The other bonus is you don't have to be there for it to work, which buys some time. I'm thinking of adding another one of these for added security.

I've also used my car battery with a small inverter to run critical items during a 5 hour power outage. Haven't had many of those here, but I'm thinking of getting something a little more robust just in case. I'm thinking a larger deep cycle marine battery and a slightly larger inverter. Don't have a sump, so no return pump, but when I do in the future, I don't think I'd try to run the return pump for any length of time during an outage, they tend to be power hogs and would run down any UPs or battery backup rather quickly. Besides, most of the more affordable inverters do not produce a pure sine wave which is hard on anything with a motor. All you should need is a powerhead or two for water movement (and the battery powered air pump mentioned earlier), possibly a small heater and that should keep the tank alive for 12 to 24 hours. After that, you may want to get a generator to run more equipment, such as your return pump if so equipped, a larger heater and some lighting. If your skimmer doesn't use a lot of power, that may be a good thing to run as well during a power outage.

As far as power bars, provided you buy reasonable quality ones and keep them a good distance from your tank with drip loops, they should be as safe as any other electrical equipment. Most of the good ones are rated for the same wattage as any standard electrical outlet on a 15 amp circuit. Don't overload any single bar with too much gear and you should be fine. If you do need to mount them closer to the tank, mount them upside down if possible to prevent water ingress. I see plenty of photos with people mounting a maze of electrical gear under their stands and directly above their sumps. This is a recipe for trouble unless the stuff is specifically rated for a humid environment. It doesn't matter whether a receptacle is PVC or not, power bar or otherwise without proper protection and isolation from water, the metal connections in any electrical device are prone to corrosion/salt creep over time if not sealed from humidity or located a safe distance from water to prevent ingress.