I wonder if they work like stated? I have never heard anything good about dell

3.3 min at full load of 330 Watt / 550 VA

So you have to figure out the power consumption of what you will run off of it. Say, a filter is 12w/h and it's the only thing on it, then you're looking at a day or more before it stops working. A 300watt heater isn't running for 24hours a day, but if a heater was running through that and turned on, it would drain it in a matter of minutes. (If I remember my math)

komodo182 wrote:

jmartyg wrote:

3.3 min at full load of 330 Watt / 550 VA

So you have to figure out the power consumption of what you will run off of it. Say, a filter is 12w/h and it's the only thing on it, then you're looking at a day or more before it stops working. A 300watt heater isn't running for 24hours a day, but if a heater was running through that and turned on, it would drain it in a matter of minutes. (If I remember my math)

so kinda pointless? if your math is correct.
wouldn't fish die faster from freezing (power out in the winter) compared to a filter not running?

You would also want to keep in mind that the house is also heated and fairly warm when the power goes out. It takes a while for a large body of water to cool too. a 300w heater would be in 40+ gallons. If you're using electric heat rather than a  furnace or wood stove, it starts to become an issue.

I have given up on the landlords. I have bugged them many times about it. There is also a window with water between the panels of glass that I asked them to fix. Drafts on all the windows. It took 3 months for them to fix the dishwasher and 5 months to get a screen built for one of the windows. Thank god I do not pay the heat bill. I do pay for power, just not water or heat, but if my power bill is high again, I am going to bug them yet again. I went home for Christmas and so did the gf, for a whole week. We turned everything off that we could. Only things running were the fridge and freezer (which were not opened while we were gone) and the fish tanks. The bill was the highest one we had yet. So not too happy there.

I am moving in Fall 2011. So, not too worried.

As for the heaters, its only in the front room tanks which are near the door. Never had a problem with the heaters before and the water does stay a constant temperature. Anytime I walk by, the heater light is on (it must turn off sometime since I am not there watching it 24/7\) but the temperature is what i have it set at.

Great point Gary.