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Aquarist Forums => 911 Emergency!!! => Topic started by: NjOyRiD on March 14, 2011, 07:13:42 PM

Title: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: NjOyRiD on March 14, 2011, 07:13:42 PM
So today i got from my wife at work, saying the return pump stopped working and also the left powerbar.
I come back home, i see the breaker of the plug in the wall jumped. reseted it, jumped again!

i tried another pump, it was fine
my mag 9.5 was not running so i cleaned it in vinegar, made it work, put the pump back and make the system run.

I touched the water i get ZAPPED!!

what do i do?, i need a return pump so i dont lose my livestock
i just put a ground probe i nte sump. but I dont feel like putting my fingers i nthe water again lol

anyways, i just bought a water blaster pump ( 33w compared to 93w LOL)

what do i do meanwhile?
Title: Re: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: Saltcreep on March 14, 2011, 07:41:17 PM
I'm not sure what you're asking here, but let me take a shot. The guts of the Mag are sealed in epoxy and are nothing more than an electromagnet. If any electricity is leaking into your tank, it can only be coming from a break in the power cord itself, or from a break where the wire enters the body of the pump. Even if the impeller was clogged solid, the pump would do no more than overheat, and it's thermally protected so would shut itself down. If it's blowing a breaker, on the powerbar or elsewhere, it's because electricity is coming into contact with saltwater. In short, no pun intended, if the thing is causing a breaker to trip, or in this case, giving you a zap, get the thing out of there or you're risking injury to yourself or someone else. You say you've bought another pump - use it. Sorry if I sound blunt, but water and electricity don't mix, something we all know.
Title: Re: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: NjOyRiD on March 14, 2011, 07:52:15 PM
ok thank you
i put my hands in there again, LOL
i saw a frag fell, forgot I got zap earlier hehe
hopefully i will get the pump tomorrow!
Title: Re: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: Saltcreep on March 14, 2011, 08:00:29 PM
Are you sure it's the pump causing the problem? Any other power cords going into the sump - heater, skimmer pump, anything else?
Title: Re: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: NjOyRiD on March 14, 2011, 08:03:28 PM
yeah 2 heaters
I assumed its the pumped, i plugged it by itself and the plug jumped, i tried soemthign else, it didnt
Title: Re: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: lost_at_sea on March 24, 2011, 05:29:32 PM
Before you kill yourself by zappings, go to good old canadiantire and get a cheap multimeter (http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/4/Auto/AutoTools/MultiTesters/PRD~0251060P/Motomaster%252BDigital%252BMultimeter.jsp?locale=en)

Use this to measure the stray voltage in your tank and systematically (one by one) remove everything electric until you figure out what the source is.
Title: Re: my mag 9.5 again
Post by: NjOyRiD on March 24, 2011, 05:32:25 PM
i put a Titanium Grounding Probe, did the job while waiting for the new return pump