Chiller for the summer or A/C?

[allsmilze]

So here's a stupid question guys. I have friends that tell me that it is hard to have a chiller in an apartment for numerous reasons. One reason is the heat that it gives off, second (major reason) because of it's energy consumption. Ideally, it is necessary because of course, you water temp must me kept at a stable level for all the obvious reasons right? okay, here is my question. If I purchase an energy star A/C with a thermostat control that will keep the room at a stable temperature all the time, wouldn't it mimic a chiller? This way I can kill two birds with one stone. I'm cooling both my tank and the room with only one unit instead of two saving on energy costs. your opinion please.
Thanx.

 

[smoq]

I would say chiller is necessary for larger tanks and helpful for smaller ones. I live in apartment that gets very hot during the summer days and I'm doing the exact thing you're thinking of- I set my A/C to energy saver 79F and leave it 24/7. It works for me, the only thing I needed to do was installing the door in my living room (where the tanks are) to save energy.

 

[Jkedra]

Im in the same situation. I have a Friedrich A/C...and it has built in timers, and its no problem at all. If you have an A/C you wouldnt need a chiller (I also live in an apt.)

 

[allsmilze]

Cool! so the idea is valid I assume; because I was thinking about doing the same thing as smoq! A/C running 24/7 on energy saver! There is absolutely no way I can do a chiller for the aquarium and an A/C for the apartment, but I'm afraid because I now have coral and everyone knows how much each piece can cost. I don't want anything to die so I guess I'm trying to plan ahead... I'm trying to explore the different avenues.
Thanx guys!

 

[Jkedra]

Also, what size is your tank? There is a good option if you have 55 gallons or less

 

[JonnyJ]

good advise above. Fans are also a good option. They run with very little electricity and do a great job cooling down the tank. There will be a lot of added evaporation.

still works for me and my room is HOT.

 

[BILBO913]

i agree if you can keep the whole room cool with an a/c unit no need to purchase a chiller

 

[KathyC]

My tanks are in my basement office and for quite a while I ran 2 chillers that vented into another room (due to the heat they produce).

Eventually I took the chillers off line and added a portable A/C that sits in the room, but vents out the window (I did not want to lose the only window I have in this room by stuffing it with an A/C).

The A/C keep both me and the tanks quite happy and runs 24/7 for months on end.

However, I still DO run fans over my 120 (8- T5's) and MH/T5 lighting on the 45g due to the heat produced when the lighting is on, especially on very humid days.

 

[Zuska]

I have my tank in the corner of my room, right next to the window. Im not home usually during the day so no point of running a ac. so i invested into a chiller and let it run only when it reaches over 80F.

 

[jf2381]

Like most above when I lived in an apartment I ran the AC unit 24/7 on energy saver mode and fan over the sump. When I had a chiller running I had to relocated to another room because of the heat it produced.
Now I have central AC and it runs 24/7 I don't even need to use fans.

 

[noobzy]

Totally depends on the size of your room, the size of your tank, how long you're home... etc.

The thing to keep in mind is that we do not have efficient chilling technology; any A/C or chiller you get will produce MORE heat than it will cool. If you aren't venting your chiller elsewhere, it's actually making the room hotter, in turn requiring more chilling power.

I keep my tank in a very small room (welcome to NYC ), so it never made any sense to keep a chiller in there. A tiny little A/C unit on energy saver keeps my room below 80.

Oh, and fans are ALWAYS a good option. Water evaporation is the best and simplest way to lower the temperature of your tank, and all you need to do is top off a bit more each day. There is a reason mammals have sweat glands, y'know

 

[allsmilze]

Jkedra, I am running a 92 gallon corner aquarium...

 

[allsmilze]

After reading everyones replies I think I'm going to stick with running the A/C 24/7 for the corals @ summer time. It makes no sense to have two units running if one is going to do both functions.. Thank you guys!

 

[Anthony.Luciano710]

someone said this above i think but a clip on fan to the tank pointing at the water will result in evaporative cooling which is how an air conditioner works so if you put a fan or 2 you should be good and it also saves you a lot of money on the electric. the only bad thing about that is that it is evaporative cooling which means its working by evaporating water at a faster rate to keep a cool temperature but if you have and ato you should be good.

After reading everyones replies I think I'm going to stick with running the A/C 24/7 for the corals @ summer time. It makes no sense to have two units running if one is going to do both functions.. Thank you guys!

 

[NYreefNoob]

room temp doesnt always equal tank temp, my house gets super hot during the summer and even with 2 120 cfm fans blowing across top of tank and another on sump it couldnt keep my temps under 80 i invested in a chiller long time ago and chiller sits next to a window so i have a fan in window sucker heat exhuast out

 

[Anthony.Luciano710]

what type of lights do you have?

room temp doesnt always equal tank temp, my house gets super hot during the summer and even with 2 120 cfm fans blowing across top of tank and another on sump it couldnt keep my temps under 80 i invested in a chiller long time ago and chiller sits next to a window so i have a fan in window sucker heat exhuast out

 

[dotc0m]

He has an ATI PM 8 bulb T5.

 

[NYreefNoob]

and t5's dont really put off alot less heat then mh as people think, unless you do have a splash shield and proper active cooling, why i love the ati's once you factor pumps heat and power heads ect these all will bring temps up, not alot but from 1-5 degree's not including lighting

 

[Anthony.Luciano710]

ohhh.. now im getting scared like i need a heater because you live like an hour up north and it gets hot like that in your house. im using led and they dont put off heat but now that t-5s dont put off heat either i might need a chiller but its not problem getting but ill have to worry about this problem in the summer if i see i cant control the temp.

and t5's dont really put off alot less heat then mh as people think, unless you do have a splash shield and proper active cooling, why i love the ati's once you factor pumps heat and power heads ect these all will bring temps up, not alot but from 1-5 degree's not including lighting

 

[Anthony.Luciano710]

oh never mind i read it wrong

and t5's dont really put off alot less heat then mh as people think, unless you do have a splash shield and proper active cooling, why i love the ati's once you factor pumps heat and power heads ect these all will bring temps up, not alot but from 1-5 degree's not including lighting