Tank getting really warm from the heat

[nick76]

Ok so its about 90 Degress today and the tank temperature is about 87 degrees... Im gonna cut the lights early until this heat wave passes. Is there anything else I can do to lower the temp? A/C is not an option right now.
What about a small bag of ice in a zip lock bag? Not enough to drastically change anything but maybe enough to keep the temp from rising any higher?

 

[nissan577]

ive tried that but the ice melted fast. idk try it.

 

[flower]

Originally Posted by Nick76
http:///forum/post/3113574
Ok so its about 90 Degress today and the tank temperature is about 87 degrees... Im gonna cut the lights early until this heat wave passes. Is there anything else I can do to lower the temp? A/C is not an option right now.
What about a small bag of ice in a zip lock bag? Not enough to drastically change anything but maybe enough to keep the temp from rising any higher?

I have heard of people doing that, but everything should be alright. As long as it doesn’t hit 90 for more than a day or two. How about a big fan blowing over the top, can you do that?
Also, I have a flow bar…if I remove enough water it creates a waterfall with no bubbles…I found this little trick during a water change. Even without the fan blowing on the water it falls cools it off and the temp in the tank drops a few degrees, I bet with a fan it would drop even more. It makes a splash and salt creep but I think it is safer than trying ice.

 

[d-dzel]

I just had the same problem over here. The temp in my tank went from a normal 78-80 to a 84-86. What I did was place two small fans on the surface of the tank($5 each) and have them blow the surface and part of where the light goes by. Also I added a fan aiming at the inside of the sump. This actually help a bit since now my temp goes from 80-82 at the most. I tried using the ice but in bags it melts really fast. I even tried using gallon jugs of ice while monitoring the temp and they melted waaay too fast and didn't help at all. Try the fans, that worked for me for now. AC is not an option for me either right now

 

[nick76]

Thanks for the ideas everyone, ill give it a try.

 

[bang guy]

Mathematically Ice will not work, don't bother.
Fans blowing air across the surface of the water WILL cool the water. Just don't lower the water temp too rapidly.

 

[big]

Yes a fan to cause evaporative cooling.......

At my old house before I had my current set up with a basement sump system, on extreme days I would float a capped 16 oz. water bottle filled with frozen water in the tank.....
I kept several in the freezer all the time for extreme days....
As close as I can remember two 16 oz bottles floated till melted in my 72 would lower the temp around 1 1/2 degree....... Just be careful to not change the temperature too quickly......

 

[zman1]

Reverse your light cycle, too. If the nights are cooler, run the lights then and leave them off during the heat of the day... That is besides just a fan, since AC isn't an option. Be prepared for evap cooling by fan, to make the human creature comforts even more unpleasent for you and the family in the house -- Higher Relative Humidity...

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by big
http:///forum/post/3114159
Yes a fan to cause evaporative cooling.......

At my old house before I had my current set up with a basement sump system, on extreme days I would float a capped 16 oz. water bottle filled with frozen water in the tank.....
I kept several in the freezer all the time for extreme days....
As close as I can remember two 16 oz bottles floated till melted in my 72 would lower the temp around 1 1/2 degree....... Just be careful to not change the temperature too quickly......
I get closer to 0.1 degrees with one quart of ice and 65 gallons of water in the system but that's assuming that whatever is heating up the tank isn't reversing the cooling as fast as the ice can cool it down. Or, maybe I have a misplaced decimal point somewhere.

 

[big]

Originally Posted by Bang Guy
http:///forum/post/3114393
I get closer to 0.1 degrees with one quart of ice and 65 gallons of water in the system but that's assuming that whatever is heating up the tank isn't reversing the cooling as fast as the ice can cool it down. Or, maybe I have a misplaced decimal point somewhere.
That does seem low Guy.... Also I think you have a point in what is heating the water up.. Some power-heads etc. are as much to blame as lighting........These source points may have an effect on how well the frozen bottles may work too..
Of course using the frozen bottle method is only a temporary reprieve is there is an internal heat source like power-heads skimmer motors etc. are heating it right back up...It is just that on the extreme days anything that helps is good to have.......Still I agree that evaporative cooling from fans seems to work as well as anything.
I have truly enjoyed now having the large basement sump-fuge working as a heat sink. Now days when looking at the temperature on extreme days and seeing it say 79 in the display tank all the work was worthwhile building it......

 

[dani]

we have A/C, but the office is on the 10th floor of a building with floor to ceiling windows all around = HOT!
I started having to run a fan on my water surface in June and expect to have to do so until November. I have to add approx. 1/2 - 3/4 gal topoff per day.
It keeps the tank at 80-81 and once in a while it gets to 83
The $5 fan has been my best resource so far

 

[bang guy]

Originally Posted by big
http:///forum/post/3114477
That does seem low Guy.... ..

It might be low but when I just think about it logically instead of mathematically - we have 260 quarts of water being cooled by 1 quart of ice. If the ice is at 0F and it thaws to 40F that's a difference of 40F being dissipated from 1 quart to 260 quarts. I see no way it's going to lower 260 quarts a single degree, that doesn't make any sense to me. I know that ice absorbs a LOT of energy when it changes from solid to liquid but I don't think it's anywhere near that dramatic.

 

[big]

Originally Posted by Bang Guy
http:///forum/post/3114503
It might be low but when I just think about it logically instead of mathematically - we have 260 quarts of water being cooled by 1 quart of ice. If the ice is at 0F and it thaws to 40F that's a difference of 40F being dissipated from 1 quart to 260 quarts. I see no way it's going to lower 260 quarts a single degree, that doesn't make any sense to me. I know that ice absorbs a LOT of energy when it changes from solid to liquid but I don't think it's anywhere near that dramatic.
I see the issue here and so I some time soon will be doing some testing.I did leave the bottles in till they where at tank temperature. So that would be for two bottles approximately a change from zero Fahrenheit to 77 or 78 degrees. Now I need to go find my handbooks on calorie-BTU stuff .
...Yet I remember the results in my old system.?? Maybe my brain is just getting too old...........Can't do it today, too busy getting the spot ready on the front deck for the wife-boss's new Hot-Tub...

.
But back to the original issue here....... Buy a Fan