Need advice on chiller!

[Ocyurus]

Any inexpensive ideas? The reef was very happy until spring

! Temp reaches 85 F. Formerly happy xenias are not pulsing. Ammonia little too high but not unusual. Lamp VHO produces heat but it escapes through the top back. Would an air conditioning blowing on it help? or any other DIY chiller ideas? Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[danmhippo]

Try a couple of fans blowing across water surface. Usually this alone can bring down the temp by a couple degrees.

 

[Anonymous]

hi.
As Dan says, muffin fan will help by evaporative cooling. Blowing cold air on the water is going to be a waste of energy, but if the tank is in a ACed room anyway, it going to help a little. More efficient to use chiller that cool it directly.

 

[djh]

Spend the money and fix it right. You'll try many cheap ways which may or may not work and you'll end up spending the money for a chiller any way. My tank is always 79.6 it never changes. I'm running 2 400 watt MH 6" off the water.

 

[Colin]

For many species, 85F is too warm, especially if other crucial levels, like ammonia, are too high. Inverts that may tolerate warm waters will only do worse if ammonia is high also.

Although there is a small chiller on the market for about $150, it will only cool a typical 55-gallon tank just one or two degrees.

A muffin fan or two in the hood can make a lot of difference, both in the water temperature and in the noise level. A single 4" fan will cool a 55-gallon tank heated by four PC bulbs down about three degrees. This is a lot of cooling. The fan can be on a timer to coincide with the hot light.

Icecap has a temperature controlled fan. While it is a pricey $50, it is cheap compared to what a chiller costs. A second fan (one on each end?) may be all you need to cool the tank another two degrees.

It also helps to give the air some place to escape to. I drill holes into my full hoods above the reflector to let some air out. My fans push air over the bulbs.

I had a tank located under the A/C vent. It was a great set-up! The incoming air kept the tank quite cool; room temperatures of 74F or less were common most of the time.

 

[Anonymous]

I tried to do withough a chiller and eventually gave in and got one. I feel much better about the impending hot weather now...

It's not just the water getting too warm in the day that's harmful, it's the fluctuation between the day and night temperature.

 

[Tangy1]

If you decide to get a chiller do plenty of homework. Make sure that you research not only the pulldown temps. and the hp you need but also the design of the chiller. I have an Aqua Logic 1/4 hp Cyclone (drop in coil) chiller. It works like a charm on my tank. Steady temp all the time.

However since my tank is built into the wall and is enclosed in a small closet type fish room exhaust was a problem. Chillers put out considerable heat. I have a vent in the fish room but the design of the chiller makes it impossible to place the exhaust directly on the vent. Therefore some heat that is being exhausted from the chiller during operation stays in the room.If I could do it all over again I would look for a chiller that could suit my needs better.

That said, if you decide on a chiller plan on its location and conpensate for exhaust and noise.

 

[danmhippo]

Tangy hit it right on the nail. I used to have a 1/4HP in line chiller for a 55Gal. The flaw with the chiller placement is there were no consideration for exhaust planned ahead. The chiller and its heat output end up in the same room the tank is in. The longer the chiller is on, the hotter the tank will get. Eventually, I have to build a shack outside, run hoses through ugly holes in the wall.