Rough notes. Article needs completion.

This is why I kept killifish. As long as they don't freeze they're ok. I played with solar and batteries and invertors (that convert 12V DC from a battery to 110 or 220 AC that you can plug things into) for a while. First, as soon as you say "heat" that's an utter battery killer. They're good for things like charging cell phones or running small LED lights, but a 100W heater? Your batteries won't last long. Having said that, here's the best you can do for the least amout of money. Go into ebay and get a UPC2200 backup power supply. A dead one. They were like, $3000 new but can be had for $100 used with dead batteries. They are heavy. I mean REALLY heavy. Shipping will kill you unless you can find one close. Now replace the batteries. The have a clip on connector and are easy to replace. They're about $75 from ebay or $180 if you buy them locally. These will run one 100w heater full tilt for maybe 12 hours. Maybe. Now, I used a pair of 6V deep cycle batteries with about 4 times the capacity. You can use the same electornics in the UPC, just run some 0 gauge (welding) wire to them and it'll all work. The more 6V deep cycle batteries you add ($100 ea, and they literally haven't changed since WWII) the longer you have. Keep in mind though, these things vent hydrogen and you have to keep on top of the specific gravity by testing it and adding distiller water from time to time. A better battery is the "Royce" sealed gel-cel. They don't vent hydrogen, need maintenance and last twice as long (about 10 years min). But that's "Royce" as in "Rolls Royce" - they aint cheap. But they're safer and the thicker lead plates make them last much longer. You could always go the generator route, for $700 you get one that will run a fishroom for a few hours then need refuelling. Good luck getting it started in the cold. A whole house generator is $7000 and works in demand with propane or diesel.

jan 2011