Tank overheating

kingsman39

kingsman39

Member
I am new to the hobby and I’m having a blast. Other than loosing 4 fish and 2 anemones to hurricane Isabel (power loss for 8 days), I've been able to stay on top of things. One thing that troubles me is my water temperature. It usually runs 82F. In an attempt to cool things down, I installed fans on my light hoods. No change. I'm afraid I've got too many pumps and power heads running. Here's my setup:
100 gal
2 Magnum 350 canister filters
1 Filstar canister xp3
2 power heads
1 Prizm protein skimmer
1 300 watt heater (I know I should have a couple of smaller units)
The heater is currently unplugged. Any suggestions? Thanks!
 
thankgod4fish

thankgod4fish

Member
There's nothing wrong with 82...
on another note, anemonies are considered for expert aquarists so if you're new to the hobby you may want to wait a bit before you get anymore... (and believe me, I mean this in the best way possible... chat / msg boards can be a bit impersonal :) )
Welcome to the boards!
 
thankgod4fish

thankgod4fish

Member
Just read my own post and I'm thinkin, "I hope he doesnt take offense to that.."
I was told more or less the same thing about the anemonies when I first came to the boards... at the member recommendations, I did a lot of reading on them and came to find out that anemonies really don't fare very well in new aquariums and really need pristine water... I hope you don't think I was biting your head off :D
 
kingsman39

kingsman39

Member
I sort of inherited the anemones. I purchased the aquarium from a friend who was moving and couldn't take the tank with him. What is a safe temperature range?
 
thankgod4fish

thankgod4fish

Member
I believe 79 - 82 is the range of preference... of course there are fish that have special requirements and may need a chiller if they come from cooler waters, but for the most part, I believe that's more or less the range most hobbyists keep it in (from what I've seen).
I understand with the inheritance.. sometimes there's not a whole lot you could do when it comes to having to learn REALLY fast :D
If you haven't gone through it already, might I suggest a book for you to read? The Conscientious Marine Aquarist is an excellent book that will cover just about all the bases for beginners
 
kingsman39

kingsman39

Member
Thanks for the help! I became concerned today when I noticed the temp at 84. This may have been the wrong thing to do but... I filled a large Ziploc bag with ice and placed it in the tank. After about an hour and 3 refills, it was back down to 82.
 
thankgod4fish

thankgod4fish

Member
on a 100 gal tank, I can't imagine that could've hurt it but I would just shut the heater off for a bit next time... 84, is a bit higher than I would keep it, but it's not so critical that just shutting the heater off and letting the tank slowly cool is gonna put the fish in danger.. you dont want to drastic a change either, you know? It could make the fish really sick.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
A fan pointed at the water surface will efficiently cool the water.
IMO 82 - 84 is ideal for most coral. The biggest danger for the deeper water coral we keep is a temperature fluctuation of more than a couple of degrees a day.
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
I've got two hoods each with 16" fluorescent bulbs..
thats a problem with anemones as a heads up they dont do well under a low light and on a 100 gallon that extremly low for them .
as far as heat I have a hundred and had a heat issue with for a bit. a canopy and takeing the glass sheilds off helps a lot in letting the heat exscape the problem is there is more evaporation than with them. the fan adds a little more to lower the temp.
BTW welcome to the board!!!!
and what are your current plans for the tank that will dictate what actions you will need to take in the long run?
Mike
 
kingsman39

kingsman39

Member
Sorry to hear about your loss as well. I'm a fellow Hampton Roader, I live in Newport News. What airport do you work at? I'm sure we've spoken on the radio.
I use a submersible conventional thermometer. For a while I had two in the tank to compare readings.
 
gypsie32

gypsie32

Member
I have a 90gal tank at my temp hovers around 84 with the lights on, do you all think the little 4" fans really work? I have 4 110w vho's. I considered removing my glass tops, but do not want snails crawling out and when I add my fish don't want them jumping out. My tank is going to be a reef, I might just have to add things that like warmer temps.....
 
kingsman39

kingsman39

Member
They can teach monkeys to fly, most pilots like to keep everyone thinking it's tough. Job security I suppose. ;) Never heard of that store, I'll have to check it out. I actually do most of my business in VA Beach at Fish Safari. Well worth the drive. Hope this is kosher: http://www.fishsafari.com/index.shtml
 
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