Power

[Mawade1984]

How long do you think fish could last without a heater? I'm worried... They still don't have my power turned back on and it could be till morning before I get it. Any idea how long they can last? It's supposed to get down in the lower 40s tonight. The tank has already dropped from 78 to 72 and still falling. Since my husband works at an respiratory clinic we got a bottle of oxygen so they won't suffacate so now I'm worried about freezing!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Wrap the tank in a blanket to help it preserve warmth. If you have a gas stove or another option to heat water (campfire?), you can also heat water and then float it in there to add warmth that way.

I think they are okay until about 60F (depending on species / type) but I'm not positive. Aeration is more important more quickly, and you've got that covered. When you do get power back, heat it up relatively slowly - over a few hours or more if it has gotten a lot cooler than where it's at now.

 

[exhumed07]

i remember years ago we had a bad ice storm and i was out for about a week. my fish lasted about 4 days. tank got down to the upper 50's when the fish started to act odd and all the fish were dead by the time the tank got down to 50 degrees.

 

[Mawade1984]

Thanks guys for the advice! I went and bought a small power inverter and ran a drop cord from the truck to the heater! oxygen tank is about out but hopefully they are about done! Don't know what the deal is... Anyways everyone is still alive and healthy!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

You have a long tank rather than high, so that will help with oxygen exchange if the power stays out. You can do really basic things like taking a bowl or pitcher of tank water and just pouring it into the tank from a height, several times every couple of hours, and that will help keep everything aerated.

 

[Mawade1984]

The power finally came back on about 10 this morning. I am happy to announce no one is worse for wear... And since I had nothing better to do this morning in the dark, I collected all my new babies with a turkey baster haha.