eletricity flowing through my tank?>?
- Thread starter coralman05
- Start date
2quills
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank#post_3418305
I set the dial for the lowest AC setting, put the black wire on a grounded recepticle and put the red clamp /wire in the tank. I don't exactly know what method that is, because I got it off of YouTube. lol! If I'm doing it wrong, by all means , tell me! This is the way to check for current, yes. However, depending on your meter...I would start with the highest setting and work my way down. If there's a big leak and you set your meter on the lowest setting which could be well below what is being leaked or passed through the tank then you could potentially blow your meter. Or the fuse in the meter if it has one. But if you have a ground probe and GFCI's and you're detecting current then you probably have a faulty GFI.
You're right, it doesn't remove potential voltage if you ground it, it just provides a path out of the aquarium. Agreed. Infact I think this is where a lot of folks have a problem with ground probes. Voltage alone is harmless. It's only once it has a path to ground is when you give induced voltages a way to pass current through the tank. As minimal as they may be, some folks think this could actually cause to be a stressor for your fish. Maybe, maybe not...depends on the situation I suppose.
Here is an article I partially understood the other day: http://www.reefs.org/library/aquarium_net/1298/1298_3.html
Here's a quote from the conclusion:
"Regardless of the method by which the energy is being coupled into the tank (and we can debate this further) the voltages are quite real, and quite high for a sufficiently isolated tank. The currents, however, are so small that they very nearly defy measurement with laboratory grade equipment. In all cases tested for this paper, no voltage was detectable in the tank when the titanium ground probe was properly connected to (earth)." Think of it like this...If you have a tank full of algae and you test for nitrates and the test comes up negative would you believe that there were no nitrates in the tank? Probably not picking up voltage at the surface anymore because it's being passed as current through the ground probe.
To the O.P.
To test for stray voltage is simple. It's the same method described above for checking current. However you set your meter to check for a.c. voltage. Connect your black or red probe (doesn't matter in this case because we're checking for voltage and not current) to a known ground source. And stick the lead of your other probe in the water. Then please come back and let us know what you see.
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank#post_3418305
I set the dial for the lowest AC setting, put the black wire on a grounded recepticle and put the red clamp /wire in the tank. I don't exactly know what method that is, because I got it off of YouTube. lol! If I'm doing it wrong, by all means , tell me! This is the way to check for current, yes. However, depending on your meter...I would start with the highest setting and work my way down. If there's a big leak and you set your meter on the lowest setting which could be well below what is being leaked or passed through the tank then you could potentially blow your meter. Or the fuse in the meter if it has one. But if you have a ground probe and GFCI's and you're detecting current then you probably have a faulty GFI.
You're right, it doesn't remove potential voltage if you ground it, it just provides a path out of the aquarium. Agreed. Infact I think this is where a lot of folks have a problem with ground probes. Voltage alone is harmless. It's only once it has a path to ground is when you give induced voltages a way to pass current through the tank. As minimal as they may be, some folks think this could actually cause to be a stressor for your fish. Maybe, maybe not...depends on the situation I suppose.
Here is an article I partially understood the other day: http://www.reefs.org/library/aquarium_net/1298/1298_3.html
Here's a quote from the conclusion:
"Regardless of the method by which the energy is being coupled into the tank (and we can debate this further) the voltages are quite real, and quite high for a sufficiently isolated tank. The currents, however, are so small that they very nearly defy measurement with laboratory grade equipment. In all cases tested for this paper, no voltage was detectable in the tank when the titanium ground probe was properly connected to (earth)." Think of it like this...If you have a tank full of algae and you test for nitrates and the test comes up negative would you believe that there were no nitrates in the tank? Probably not picking up voltage at the surface anymore because it's being passed as current through the ground probe.
To the O.P.
To test for stray voltage is simple. It's the same method described above for checking current. However you set your meter to check for a.c. voltage. Connect your black or red probe (doesn't matter in this case because we're checking for voltage and not current) to a known ground source. And stick the lead of your other probe in the water. Then please come back and let us know what you see.
2quills
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by meowzer http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank/20#post_3418308
HEYYYYY....can we run tests on the water with the new multimeters we just bought????? (Corey you know what we got)
Yes!
Originally Posted by meowzer http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank/20#post_3418308
HEYYYYY....can we run tests on the water with the new multimeters we just bought????? (Corey you know what we got)
Yes!
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
2Quills, I'm glad we're on the same page. 
Thank you for clarifying what I could not put into words.
Thank you for clarifying what I could not put into words.
2quills
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank/20#post_3418318
2Quills, I'm glad we're on the same page. Thank you for clarifying what I could not put into words.
I don't know if I clarified anything but I sure through some words out there anyways.
Heaters are usually public enemy #1 in aquariums. So it very well could be the heater. But I think we all agree that whatever it is, then the o.p. needs to deal with it before someone actually gets hurt. Because one day it may turn into more than a little tingle. I don't necessarily advocate the use of a ground probe because of the theoretical negatives that they may or may not have on livestock. Unfortunately no serious testing has been done that I've seen to say one way or another at what point would it be an issue. By nature there is current flowing at different potentials in the ocean and in aquariums regaurdless. However they are typically below the threashold of perception. But at the very least, I'd always recommend a GFI device. Because they can and do save lives when they're functioning as they should.
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank/20#post_3418318
2Quills, I'm glad we're on the same page.
Thank you for clarifying what I could not put into words.
I don't know if I clarified anything but I sure through some words out there anyways.
Heaters are usually public enemy #1 in aquariums. So it very well could be the heater. But I think we all agree that whatever it is, then the o.p. needs to deal with it before someone actually gets hurt. Because one day it may turn into more than a little tingle. I don't necessarily advocate the use of a ground probe because of the theoretical negatives that they may or may not have on livestock. Unfortunately no serious testing has been done that I've seen to say one way or another at what point would it be an issue. By nature there is current flowing at different potentials in the ocean and in aquariums regaurdless. However they are typically below the threashold of perception. But at the very least, I'd always recommend a GFI device. Because they can and do save lives when they're functioning as they should.
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
Any updates?
coralman05
Member
yeah so my setting at DCV and it was at -17?? and without the heater on it was just 17 (giver take)..
coralman05
Member
wait.. i dont really know what i'm doing.. do i ground (the black one) then put the red one in the water or both in the water
2quills
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by coralman05 http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank/20#post_3418916
wait.. i dont really know what i'm doing.. do i ground (the black one) then put the red one in the water or both in the water
When testing voltage it doesn't mater which you use to ground and which goes in the tank since a/c (alternating current) is transient voltage But one has to be grounded and one goes in the tank.
When testing current you HAVE TO test with the proper polarity in mind. Current flowing/coming into the positive (red lead) first and going out through the common (black lead) out.
Originally Posted by coralman05 http:///t/387978/eletricity-flowing-through-my-tank/20#post_3418916
wait.. i dont really know what i'm doing.. do i ground (the black one) then put the red one in the water or both in the water
When testing voltage it doesn't mater which you use to ground and which goes in the tank since a/c (alternating current) is transient voltage But one has to be grounded and one goes in the tank.
When testing current you HAVE TO test with the proper polarity in mind. Current flowing/coming into the positive (red lead) first and going out through the common (black lead) out.
coralman05
Member
ok i figured it out..ACV 750 setting
so here I'm taking one thing out at a time
everything plugged in was 11
but heater in 4
protein skimming missing as well as heater was 3
power head unplugged as well as everything above was 5
so now everything is unplugged(besides filters) and I'm going to start adding everything back
so heater back in was 5
heater + power head was 7
then protein skimmer( plus everything else) back to 11
so here I'm taking one thing out at a time
everything plugged in was 11
but heater in 4
protein skimming missing as well as heater was 3
power head unplugged as well as everything above was 5
so now everything is unplugged(besides filters) and I'm going to start adding everything back
so heater back in was 5
heater + power head was 7
then protein skimmer( plus everything else) back to 11
coralman05
Member
so to me this mean everything leaking into my tank; but 7 of it is my heater?
2quills
Well-Known Member
Could you tell me the numerical voltage values on your meter? You said you have it set at 750 for a/c voltage but you should be using a setting much lower than that. If you have a setting at for 200 volts then start there and work your way down in voltages till you get to the closest number above 11. Better yet, could you show me a picture of your meter?
Voltage readings may vary depending on how close you have your probe in relation to a piece of equipment. So if you want a more accurate reading, if your heater is on the left side of the tank then stick your probe in the water on the left side of the tank and so on and so forth for your other equipment as well.
Voltage readings may vary depending on how close you have your probe in relation to a piece of equipment. So if you want a more accurate reading, if your heater is on the left side of the tank then stick your probe in the water on the left side of the tank and so on and so forth for your other equipment as well.
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
awaiting test results....
coralman05
Member
posted ^^ but above 11? ( is it bad if its above)