what can i really be evaporating that much.

grubsnaek

grubsnaek

Active Member
i have a newly drilled tank, and newly designed sump, less powerheads (went from 5 to 2), new sump pump, have a fan pointing towards the water on the DT, AC on during the hot days.
so heres the problem. say i turn off the sump pump to add water. the DT drains to a curtain point. then i add top off water to fill the 55g sump. ok lets plug back in the sump return and all is done. no everythings good. until i get home from work and i have millions millions millions micro bubbles in my DT. so i check the return chamber in the sump. sure enough its low. so water pouring in is causing bubbles. now with less heat from powerheads, and all the stuff i mentioned in the begining, when i notice this i turn sump pump off to add top off. before adding water my water level in the sump is down and inch or better. can i really be evaporating that much water.
i mean i know thats whats happening cause im not leaking water anywhere, but thats alot. is it normal. its really starting to bother me, but if i know thats what it is then ill be fine. just wondering where the water is going.
 
turningtim

turningtim

Active Member
YUP! I lose about a gallon plus a day. With a fan blowing across the tank it just makes it worse. Is the fan needed for heat issues?
 
rlanders67

rlanders67

Member
Same here. I have to use anywhere from 1/2 to 3/4 a gallon for my 65 gallon. I do have a fan blowing on my tank for heat issues. However, I don't shut the pump off when I add water. Should I?
 
trippkid

trippkid

Active Member
I lose about 2 to 2.5 gallons/day depends on ambient temp and humidity. I use an DIY auto-topoff set-up, top it off once or twice a week.
 
grubsnaek

grubsnaek

Active Member
no space for an auto top off, i did put the fan in there cause i am running 760w of VHO. i topped off last nite before i went to bed and today was only 78 degrees outside. and i lost alot of water. should i remove the fan, point it across the length of tank, i dont know
 
trippkid

trippkid

Active Member
I guess you are just going to have to play around with the fan(s) and see what works best, I do find that I lose more water in the winter than the summer, sure it is because of the humidity(usually drier in the winter months).
Less humid=more evaporation. I don't know what to tell you, other than you'll have to experiment a little. Sorry
How is everything going with the new set-up other than too much evap for you?
Matt
 
azfishgal

azfishgal

Active Member
I was losing about 1.5 gallons a day, then I had to add fans to my canopy because of my MHs. I'm now losing at least 2.5 gallons. I know it's the fans because I only use them when the MHs are on (except my sump, it's on all the time), and I lose more water during those 8 hours than I do over night. My water bill has now doubled, so I will have to see about figuring things out to see if it's more expensive in water, or if getting a chiller would make it cheaper in the long run.
 
grubsnaek

grubsnaek

Active Member
thanx for the info cause i really didnt know. i went from a setup to a much better set up and i started to lose alot more water. however since this is normal it like turned a switch in my head not to worry about it now. thanx everyone. i did reposition my fan so its not blowing on the water.
 
_ou_snr_fn_

_ou_snr_fn_

New Member
im not sure im understanding you right.. first of all im a newbie but when ya turn off your sump to refill your fuge is the return line still in your tank?? if so it will cyphen right down to your fuge and the fuge will look like it has more water than it does under normal runnin conditions so you arent adding as much water as you can to the fuge.... just a thought.... some ppl put in a one way valve so if the power goes out this sort of thing wont happen me i just drilled a tiny hole in my return line just below the water line.... try pullin your return line out of your tank when ya turn off the pump then fill thew fuge....
 
grubsnaek

grubsnaek

Active Member
i only turned it off to see how much water was actually gone. there are plexiglass peices seperating each chamber. water only goes to top of each piece when pump is on. you dont want to add to much for the fact of an actual power outage. check valve can get dirty and clog. i did do the siphon break holes. i really wasnt sure if i could be evaporating that much water. but apparently i can and do.
 
azfishgal

azfishgal

Active Member
I have put a sticker on my sump at the water level when it's full. That way when I go to top off I know when to stop. My water evap never shows up in my DT, only in my sump. One of these days I'll have an ATO.
 
grubsnaek

grubsnaek

Active Member
mine also shows up in the sump. i know the line cause the whole water level in the sump is at the same hieght when on. so when the return chamber starts to lower then i know i have to top off. just makin sure that this was normal.
 
grubsnaek

grubsnaek

Active Member
top off means adding fresh RO water to the tank. only the freshwater evaporates. so thats why you need to add fresh water.
so when you start to evap water you need to TOP OFF the water. like topping off your fluids in your car.
 
azfishgal

azfishgal

Active Member
Originally Posted by grubsnaek
mine also shows up in the sump. i know the line cause the whole water level in the sump is at the same hieght when on. so when the return chamber starts to lower then i know i have to top off. just makin sure that this was normal.
It's normal for my sump. See picture below. The two chambers on the left stay the same, the two on the right go down. You can see the orange sticker and the water is below that (time to top off).

This is an old picture, my sump is not that clean anymore.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top