Hurricane Ian (Sep 2022) - suggestions or recommendations ?

[Marcelo]

Hi Everyone,

Hurricane Ian is coming to Florida and as I am in Tampa, I am looking for what to do with my canister and I found this article on Facebook and with all respect for Mr. David Estes (I trust you but it is always better to check) I would like to double check his recommendation.
 

He says on lost power:

 

Canister filters can go anaerobic quickly when the power goes off. I know a few local hobbiest who got their fish through three days after the storm only to lose them within a hour of the power coming back on. When the power goes off, unplug your canister filters. You are going to need to clean them prior to using again. If you must evacuate, you will need to make the decision on if to unplug them prior to leaving. If the power is off a few days and comes back on before you get home, it could be disastrous to your tank.
Buy a bottle of 3% strength hydrogen peroxide. You want the kind you buy in any pharmacy. If you stay home and your power goes out, add a teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide per 20 gallons of tank water once a day. It will help keep up the oxygen levels in your tank. 
The important thing during a long power outage is to agitate your water every few hours. If you have a battery powered air pump. It should definitely help with this. You will not need to run it all the time. A half hour at a time every two to four hours should work. If you don’t have a battery powered air pump, a large glass, the bigger the better, will also work. Just scoop up glass fulls of your aquarium water and pour back into the tank 20-50 times every few hours. Try to agitate the surface as much as possible when you do this. 

For my Floridian colleagues, stay safe.

 

 

Edited September 26, 2022 by Marcelo

[Bev C]

i always read do not feed or over feed the fish  best wishes hoping for the best 

[Flumpweesel]

My thoughts though  are not based on dealing with power outs but a combo of keeping no filter tanks and randomly forgetting to plug things back in.

I suffered no side effects after turning my canister on after about 36 hours of standing, if it goes longer maybe play it safe and rinse those sponges before turning back on.

Feed lightly or not at all until this has passed, less pressure on the water if filtration does stop and you if things get busy the last thing you'll need to be thinking about is water changes. 

Gas exchange happens at the surface no matter what agitation increases it, take the lid off (unless you need to keep heat in) so that drafts can cause ripples . Maybe a wind up bath toy could be deployed to assist.

Make sure there are drop loops or check valves on any airhoses in case of back flow.

Most importantly keep yourself and your loved ones safe. It's not a perfect scenario but fish can be replaced you can not.

Take care.

 

[Colu]

I would also so get some battery powered air pumps for when your Powers goes outs 

Edited September 27, 2022 by Colu

[TOtrees]

With the storm being imminent, I guess what you’re asking about is what can you do in the next 12 to 36 hours (I haven’t checked the actual tracks, but I assume that’s what kind of timeline we’re looking at). 

Yes to cutting back on feeding starting now.

Recommend cleaning filter media ASAP, so in the event of power out/low flow etc., there’s less organic matter in there to die and decay. Another option is to remove filter media from the filter, give it a rinse in safe water, and place it in the tank. I’ve done that in the past when the power first goes out (if you don’t expect it to return for sometime) and it’s worked really well for me. A little bit of cloudiness in the tank there’s nothing to worry about.

If you can find one, get an inverter that will convert your vehicles battery power to AC current that can power the filter. I’ve used inverters rated as low as 150 watts for this. Extension cords will be your friend. Similar to the site you referenced above, you can power the filter for say 20 minutes out of every hour, or one hour out of every three, and that should keep you in the safe zone. You can recharge your cars battery by simply running the engine. 

If all else fails take a pitcher of aquarium water and pour it back in from a height to make lots of bubbles and water movement. Do this 5 or 10 times, as often as you’re able.

Stay safe. 

Edited September 27, 2022 by TOtrees

[Marcelo]

@Bev C @TOtrees @Colu and @Flumpweesel thank you Very much !! Many good ideas

 

[rockfisher]

I have been through many storms. I’m a little south of @Marcelo. I haven’t had issue. With filters but I toss hobs on the back before I leave. I am ridding this out here. I do have a solar panel that will run sponge filters. It works well but it only works with sun. But a little is better than nothing. I do have several that I can change that will run on batteries. I was without power for 10 days. I had no losses. I do keep my tanks at a lower maintenance level than many people. I think that helps some during these events. I would say that take care of yourself and try to leave the area if you can. I love my fish and have invested a lot and have many long term projects that would hate to lose. In the end storms are no joke. Most deaths from hurricanes happens after the storm. Clean up, trimming trees, heat, and down power lines. Please be careful. I should be ok unless the forward movement slows down. Thee storm could turn. Then I could be in trouble. Wishing everyone the best.

Edited September 27, 2022 by rockfisher

[Bev C]

@Marcelo and @rockfisher prayers  are with you   all … yes we love our fish but yourselves and family safety  are more  important  

I lived in NC for 22 years when i was married and went through  2 hurricane one was Fran  stage 3 hurricane and we was out of electric 2-3 weeks,and we lived in town .. , it did allot of damage in our area  I did not have  any  have fish then only dachshunds to worry over

 ,, After the storm will be rough and hard to find stuff like  food , water, batteries    make sure you have a old fashion can opener and matches and lots of can food

After Hurricane Fran we learn if they mentioned hurricane to leave go to relatives in another state and come back home  afterwards  and hope for the best 

 please stay safe and keep us posted best wishes and prayers 

Edited September 27, 2022 by Bev C

[Guppysnail]

Posted to wrong thread deleted. 

Edited September 30, 2022 by Guppysnail

[Gannon]

On 9/26/2022 at 5:04 PM, Flumpweesel said:

My thoughts though  are not based on dealing with power outs but a combo of keeping no filter tanks and randomly forgetting to plug things back in.

I suffered no side effects after turning my canister on after about 36 hours of standing, if it goes longer maybe play it safe and rinse those sponges before turning back on.

Feed lightly or not at all until this has passed, less pressure on the water if filtration does stop and you if things get busy the last thing you'll need to be thinking about is water changes. 

Gas exchange happens at the surface no matter what agitation increases it, take the lid off (unless you need to keep heat in) so that drafts can cause ripples . Maybe a wind up bath toy could be deployed to assist.

Make sure there are drop loops or check valves on any airhoses in case of back flow.

Most importantly keep yourself and your loved ones safe. It's not a perfect scenario but fish can be replaced you can not.

Take care.

 

The bath toy is a clever idea for power outages in general. There should be some kind of wind-up wavemaker device.