Chillers

alpha

alpha

Member
So... Due to my move and change of climate my tank has been at around 80 degrees. I decided to buy a chiller.
I bought a "current 1/10th hp" chiller off Craigslist The lady said it worked.. So I bought it.. And brought it home..
My question is: how long should it take to chill a 65 gallon tank?
Things I did before installing chiller.
*. Ran saltwater threw the chiller to flush out any waste inside.
*. Cleaned filter's
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
I hate to say it, but unless you have a coldwater tank, 80F is quite normal. I've had a beautiful reef tank that stayed up to 84 to 86F pretty much year round.
Just run it and see what happens. Test it on 5g of water and test and test and then hook it up to your system.
 
alpha

alpha

Member
I normally wouldn't be concerned however I'm really trying to grow one coralline algae and following the infamous 78 degree recipe and dosing bright well liquid reef every other day. I hate the color of all my new rock.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
lol, coralline can grow at practically any tropical temp. I got red and purple coralline covering my liverock, powerheads, overflow, back glass and bottom glass and my tank currently runs between 82 and 84 degrees. The most important thing is that it is stable at +-1F.
Coralline grows with stable water parameters and clean water...
 
S

saxman

Guest
I dunno...personally, I think 80*F is too hot (we run 77*F max on our warmest setups). We own 6 or 7 Current chillers, and a 1/10 hp will work hard on a 65 gal (will run a lot), but it should cool it down. How long it takes is dependent upon how much you want to pull the water down below room ambient + the intrinsic temp of the tank due to equipment.
You'll also want to be sure the filter in front is clean and has at least 12" of space both front and back. If the chiller is inside a stand, you need to vent the stand. A chiller is actually nothing more than a heat exchanger, so the heat must have someplace to vent to or you'll just keep sucking in hot air, and you'll get no/very little chilling.
HTH
 
alpha

alpha

Member
The chiller is outside the stand plumbed outside of the stand., Ive been running since this post was created and the tank has stayed at 78 degree's without a problem and i barely see or hear the chiller kick on.
So far so good. and it only cost me $50.00
 
alpha

alpha

Member
Sometimes you can find a good deal of people breaking down their tanks. It is also a risk because most of the time peolle will lie say it works and you get it home and its broken or doesnt work correctly. Its a buy or beware...
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Yeah, definitely buyer beware.
I am buying a 55g from the C-list today. I'm excited. Next week I'm ordering a glass drill bit. :)
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Keep in mind that running a chiller is about the same as running a refrigerator so the price is secondary to the operating expense.
In many cases a chiller is needed but try everything else first. Fans, eggcrate, etc.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
It has been done with only moderate success. If it has too small of a motor it will run 24/7 and not last very long.
 
pepito113

pepito113

Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bang Guy http:///t/391567/chillers#post_3473721
Keep in mind that running a chiller is about the same as running a refrigerator so the price is secondary to the operating expense.
In many cases a chiller is needed but try everything else first. Fans, eggcrate, etc.
Bang when you say eggcrate. What do you mean by that. I know the idea behind a fan, but eggcrate???
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
A lot of saltwater fish are carpet surfers (jumpers) so hobbiests put a glass lid on the tank to keep the fish inside. These glass lids reduce evaporation so the tank doesn't cool off as fast. Eggcrate will still allow evaporation and also keep the fish inside the tank (some exceptions like Firefish and Yellow Headed Jawfish).
 
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