Anyone use ground probes?
- Thread starter addicted2
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dhughesz28
Member
If you search you will find that there has been a lot of debate, even some heated debate about this subject. Some who claim to be electrical experts or electrical engineers will say that stray current will cause no harm to fish; it’s like a bird sitting on a power line. Others who also claim to be electrical experts/ engineers say that stray current will eventually kill fish, so really all I can offer you is my experience and let you figure it out for yourself.
When I first set up my tank, I had a yellow tang that was doing great, then start to getting sick. Turned out he had HLLE. He was eating well, and I was keeping up on water changes so feeding and water quality was not an issue. I had heard of stray currant and decided to test my tank, turns out I had about 12v in the tank. I started unplugging equipment one piece at a time, half of the volts came from my heater, the other half from a power head. I went out and bought a ground rod for the tank and retested. I could detect any stray currant in the tank. Within one day, the tangs red color had gone away, his bright yellow color returned and within a week his fins were healed.
So, in my experience, yes the ground rod is necessary.
Now you ask a good question, in a tank with a sump I would imagine that you would want to put the ground probe in the sump, seeing is that is where all your equipment is i.e. heater, skimmer and return pump. But it might not be a bad idea to put one in the main tank to catch any strange volts from power heads .
When I first set up my tank, I had a yellow tang that was doing great, then start to getting sick. Turned out he had HLLE. He was eating well, and I was keeping up on water changes so feeding and water quality was not an issue. I had heard of stray currant and decided to test my tank, turns out I had about 12v in the tank. I started unplugging equipment one piece at a time, half of the volts came from my heater, the other half from a power head. I went out and bought a ground rod for the tank and retested. I could detect any stray currant in the tank. Within one day, the tangs red color had gone away, his bright yellow color returned and within a week his fins were healed.
So, in my experience, yes the ground rod is necessary.
Now you ask a good question, in a tank with a sump I would imagine that you would want to put the ground probe in the sump, seeing is that is where all your equipment is i.e. heater, skimmer and return pump. But it might not be a bad idea to put one in the main tank to catch any strange volts from power heads .
peckhead
Active Member
Originally Posted by SCSInet
Every tank that has one should have a GFI on all connected equipment, no excuses.
what is a gfi?
i have all my stuff plugged into a power strip. im sure this is not good but im not sure what i should plug it all into? a surge protector? idk! and where do you get a ground probe and how much do they cost?
Every tank that has one should have a GFI on all connected equipment, no excuses.
what is a gfi?
i have all my stuff plugged into a power strip. im sure this is not good but im not sure what i should plug it all into? a surge protector? idk! and where do you get a ground probe and how much do they cost?
Originally Posted by peckhead
what is a gfi?
i have all my stuff plugged into a power strip. im sure this is not good but im not sure what i should plug it all into? a surge protector? idk! and where do you get a ground probe and how much do they cost?
Its actually GFCI, which stands for Ground Fault Circuit Interupt. Its basically a special type of outlet or power strip that has a circuit breaker built into it. The idea is that if something malfunctions or something (like you) starts drawing too much current it will flip the breaker and cut off the power. This can and does save lives....
what is a gfi?
i have all my stuff plugged into a power strip. im sure this is not good but im not sure what i should plug it all into? a surge protector? idk! and where do you get a ground probe and how much do they cost?
Its actually GFCI, which stands for Ground Fault Circuit Interupt. Its basically a special type of outlet or power strip that has a circuit breaker built into it. The idea is that if something malfunctions or something (like you) starts drawing too much current it will flip the breaker and cut off the power. This can and does save lives....
scsinet
Active Member
Originally Posted by DragonZim
This can and does save lives....
... of you and your fish.
I recommend them for the safety of the aquarist first and foremost. While I have my own ideas as to whether or not HLLE and "stray currents" are related, I won't get into it. What I will tell you is that failed equipment in a saltwater aquarium faulting through your body (which CAN and DOES happen often) is a very, very painful experience, and potentially deadly. It's worth the 25 bucks.
The easiest GFI for an aquarist to implement without opening their breaker panel or replacing wall outlets look like the ones I attached.
You can get them at any home improvement megalabyrinth.
Oh yeah, and the cardinal rule: DO NOT use a GFI without a grounding probe and DO NOT use a grounding probe without a GFI! A GFI is not as effective without a probe and a probe is useless and dangerous without a GFI!
psusocr1
Active Member
i dunno if it was mentioned but if you use a grounding probe withotu a GFCI you will egt hurt very very very badly if you stick your hand anywhere by it..
what it will do is draw all the electric current to the probe and hold it there ( without the gfci the power wont kick off) so what you have is a live battery sitting in the water wating to hurt you badly...
what it will do is draw all the electric current to the probe and hold it there ( without the gfci the power wont kick off) so what you have is a live battery sitting in the water wating to hurt you badly...
scsinet
Active Member
Originally Posted by b bauer
a gfic tests between the hot (black) and neutral (white) a loss of 4milli amps in the system will trip the gfic .a circuit breaker tests between the hot and ground. a ground is not needed for a gfic
This is not true. A ground IS needed for a GFI to function... it's even the first word of it's name... GROUND Fault Interrupter. The loss of 4 milliamps you speak of has to go missing somehow, and the path to ground is how. A GFI measures to make sure that the amount of current traveling over the hot wire and neutral is balanced. If current is missing, that's because it's flowing to a ground. That ground can be through a grounding probe, or through your body, it's your choice. A grounding probe is needed to make the GFI trip in the event of a ground fault, before you put your hand in the water and find another path for it to flow. While I'll agree that a GFI will protect you if you don't have a grounding probe, the idea is for the GFI to trip before you ever stick your hand in while grounded elsewhere and create a ground fault. A grounding probe causes a fault to be produced the moment the equipment failure occurs, rather to wait like a loaded gun for someone to stick their hand in. While even if they do, the GFI will trip at that time, it's far better to trip before it ever happens.
A circuit breaker is what has nothing to do with ground, and a circuit breaker does not test for a "loss" of current, it's an overcurrent protection device.
a gfic tests between the hot (black) and neutral (white) a loss of 4milli amps in the system will trip the gfic .a circuit breaker tests between the hot and ground. a ground is not needed for a gfic
This is not true. A ground IS needed for a GFI to function... it's even the first word of it's name... GROUND Fault Interrupter. The loss of 4 milliamps you speak of has to go missing somehow, and the path to ground is how. A GFI measures to make sure that the amount of current traveling over the hot wire and neutral is balanced. If current is missing, that's because it's flowing to a ground. That ground can be through a grounding probe, or through your body, it's your choice. A grounding probe is needed to make the GFI trip in the event of a ground fault, before you put your hand in the water and find another path for it to flow. While I'll agree that a GFI will protect you if you don't have a grounding probe, the idea is for the GFI to trip before you ever stick your hand in while grounded elsewhere and create a ground fault. A grounding probe causes a fault to be produced the moment the equipment failure occurs, rather to wait like a loaded gun for someone to stick their hand in. While even if they do, the GFI will trip at that time, it's far better to trip before it ever happens.
A circuit breaker is what has nothing to do with ground, and a circuit breaker does not test for a "loss" of current, it's an overcurrent protection device.
b bauer
Member
i apologize i was wrong in discribing the cb it is a over current device.but you do not need a ground with a gfi an example is the one in your bathroom . when you plug in a iron or hair dryer most only have 2 prongs no ground.the only legal way to change a 2 prong to 3 prong is a gfi or gfi breaker.a powerhead that leaks current in your tank will trip a gfi and they have no ground.if 5 amps in on black then 5 amps out on white thats what the internal device checks.if the difference is 4 milli amps it trips..yes a ground is tested but it will work with out it. i am not trying to start an argument or be nasty but by national electric code you do not need a ground wire for a gfi.like i said i apologize about the cb i should have been more clear.