CHILLERS????????

badboy822

badboy822

Member
Well does anyone have a problem with the temp of thier tank? I have to fight with mine to keep it at 80 degrees. I float bottles of frozen water in my sump and tank to keep it down. It has hit a high of 83.9 and the lowest I have reached is 78.3. I know this is high. Any suggestions why? I have a 125 gallon w/ wet/dry and a Little Giant pump. I have not even been using my protien skimmer. Is my only option to get a chiller and if so what are the better ones as far as flow thru or probe? Look forward to hearing from you on this problem. Thanx in advance.
Craig
[This message has been edited by BADBOY822 (edited 09-14-2000).]
 
mr . salty

mr . salty

Active Member
First off Craig,83 is not a problem. As long as the temp changes slowly the fish will be OK up to 85 or slightly more. Mine has gotten as high as 86 this summer and all is fine. Chillers are so expencive,you would be better off getting a good room a/c. Then evryone in the house would be happy.STEVE
 
badboy822

badboy822

Member
Thanks Steve. I had read that you should keep the tank between 74 and78 degrees. Would that just be opinion? Will 80 degrees on a regular basis be o.k. for less hardy/more delicate fish? By the way The info you handout is very helpful. Ihave learned quitea bit from just reading this board alone (which you are very active with responses).
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
Well, first off, if you have corals, etc, you need to aim for the 74-76 range. If you have LR with FO, then the 80 range is fine. My tank is always at 80 even though I keep my house pretty darn cool!
In addition to the pump[strike] causing extra heat, lighting will also do this. What is your light source? MH? VHO? Wattage?? Type? Florescents obviously run the coolest, and if you are having heat problems then you will have to use Florescents.
Funny isn't that a chiller costs more than ac! LOL Costs more to air condition your fish than yourself![/strike]
 
purplepuffer

purplepuffer

Member
My tank always stays at 80-82, I like that because it reduces the chance for parasites such as ICK, and my fish don't really seem to care. And the only time I ever lost a fish to heat was when one of my cats had yanked a heat and the knob got turned some how, and I got home from school and the tank was at 90. That would be too high, but 83 is just fine.
~~Megan
 
badboy822

badboy822

Member
Well that puts my mind at ease a little. I currently have a 10k and and actinic (NO). I plan to add a 20k and another actinic (NO). My tank stays at the same temp even through out the night with no lights on. Going by everyones helpful information I will not begin to worry again unless I get upto 85 or so.
 
corky

corky

Member
Hey Craig, I've struggled all summer too. I use 1 gallon (freezer) Ziploc bags filled with ice and keep my ac set on the power saver mode to 75 deg. during the day to make sure room doesn't get too hot. Have you tried using a fan? I have a 9" fan set to blow on my wet/dry and this definately helps lowering the temp. by a couple of degrees.
 
jcb

jcb

Member
Getting back on the subject, though. I know that chillers are quite expensive. How energy efficient are they? For their cost, they should be a lot cheeper to run than an air conditioner. Does anyone know?
 
B

bots44

Guest

Originally posted by BADBOY822:
Well does anyone have a problem with the temp of thier tank? I have to fight with mine to keep it at 80 degrees. I float bottles of frozen water in my sump and tank to keep it down. It has hit a high of 83.9 and the lowest I have reached is 78.3. I know this is high. Any suggestions why? I have a 125 gallon w/ wet/dry and a Little Giant pump. I have not even been using my protien skimmer. Is my only option to get a chiller and if so what are the better ones as far as flow thru or probe? Look forward to hearing from you on this problem. Thanx in advance.
Craig
[This message has been edited by BADBOY822 (edited 09-14-2000).]
 
B

bots44

Guest

Originally posted by BADBOY822:
Well does anyone have a problem with the temp of thier tank? I have to fight with mine to keep it at 80 degrees. I float bottles of frozen water in my sump and tank to keep it down. It has hit a high of 83.9 and the lowest I have reached is 78.3. I know this is high. Any suggestions why? I have a 125 gallon w/ wet/dry and a Little Giant pump. I have not even been using my protien skimmer. Is my only option to get a chiller and if so what are the better ones as far as flow thru or probe? Look forward to hearing from you on this problem. Thanx in advance.
Craig
[This message has been edited by BADBOY822 (edited 09-14-2000).]
in the long run its better to get a chiller. i have a 120 gallon tank and use a 1/4 hp chiller. i tried to just use the air conditioner but it had to be on all the time. i know its expensive but u wont have to mess with ice cubes in the tank everyday. look over the internet to get the best deal. i shopped extensively and found that aqaulogics have the best chillers.
 
kb

kb

Member
I had a big problem with my 150FO tank being over 80 degrees in the beginning of the summer. What I finally came up with was to open both lids on my tank and leave open all the time and to also open the lid on the sump below and put a little fan on it(and if you need it to be even cooler open up the cabinet where the sump is) this has kept mine at 78 degrees continuously- and I had a real hard time before keeping it near 80! This works great!
 
corky

corky

Member
If you are still interested in buying a "new" chiller you might want to try www.thatpetplace.com. They have good competitive prices on all their fish goods (realistically you probably will not be able to find a chiller under $600. hence the cheaper alternative suggestions stated above. For a cheaper chiller you can try the want ads (this site, local papers, etc.) or even try ----. But remember, you usually get what you pay for.
 
mr . salty

mr . salty

Active Member
If you are convinced you need one but cringe at the price,Ive seen some nice ideas for do it yourself chillers. Make a long story short,you get one of those tiny fridges' and put a bucket of water in it. Run a line in and out through the side or top. Put a long coil of flexable tubing coiled up into the water in the bucket.Attach a low gph pump and presto,DIY chiller. Maybe 200bucks total. STEVE
 
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