HEAT PROBLEM!

[Conski]

My tank is usually at 79 deg. and today its 85 in buffalo.. ITS HOT. anyways my tank is now 85 and im worried about this problem because buffalo has the craziest weather in NY without a doubt and i really dont want my tank dieing. what should i do? put some ice bottles in there? add a fan over the water? turn the light off? or buy a chiller?!

[lanimret]

I've got the exact same issue at the moment. I have had it in the past, and skimmed by without a chiller, and I really cannot afford one at the moment.

Here is what I'm trying:

1) Turn the lights down. i turned off one bank of t5's completely (I have two banks of four) and left my hood cooling fans on at all time. The tank now sits next to a window with evening sun so I think it probably doesn't need as much artificial light anyway.

2) Took off my glass lids. Still have the canopy of course, and I'll have to deal with more evaporation.

3) Turned the heater down 3-4 degrees. I figure if i start the day at a lower temperature it won't get as hot later in the day. That's a balancing act, but I hope I can get it down to 78ish in the morning it won't go over 82 later in the day. It went down to 81.5 this morning, going to give it till tomorrow and see if it goes any lower.


If these are ineffective, I am going to put some blinds up in that window and close off the sun light, see if that solves it. Though the natural sunlight has really perked up my corals :(

After that, I'll probably buy a chiller whether I want to or not. I'd need 5-6 2 liter bottles to cool off my tank enough to matter, and I don't have that much freezer space.

[Ace25]

Any or All of the above right now to get the temp down. ;)

[Conski]

ill try the heater trick! ill turn it down now that way it hopefully be atleast at 79 come tomorrow!

[Conski]

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~idProduct~CW1131.html
i think i might get that?! definitly your take first though before i purchase

[tekonus]

I can't remember the last day we had 85°F weather here on Long Island... its rained for what feels like a month straight... :-(

[maverick1320]

I second that thought. I live in Suffolk. We haven't seen the sun on long island in well over a month but my tank hit 85 this week on a muggy day. It's going to be near 90 most of this week and im not looking forward to fighting the temps in my tank.

[DSR]

No dice conski... if you are going to get a chiller, get a chiller. There are several just north of that price range that work great. I have the AquaEuro 1/13 and it works like a charm. Since you are planning on getting a MH light I would seriously consider it. For now, though, put a fan across the top of the water. You will have more evap but better that than dead things.

[Bushtech]

I agree with lights and cover off and a fan directed at across the water surface. Where you have evaporation, you have cooling. You might want to increase you airation due to the certain lower O2 content of warmer water.

[Conski]

Tomorrow i will take the hood off and find a way to mount it a couple inches above the tank, and then put a fan across (like i have now, its contained finally at 79). I suppose your right man if im gonna get MH i might as well get a good chiller too, i wish they weren't so expensive!

[Conski]

http://www.allpetfurniture.com/Aqua-Euro-USA-AECL150-AEU1004.html
ill either be ordering that tomorrow or your exact chiller DSR.. i like copying you haha

[Conski]

i really dont think my frogspawn is gonna make it, i dk why the last few days his one head is sorta deflated and unsightly but the rest of it thrives(2 other heads) i think the heat strike mighta capped off all it could take.

on a lighter note my leather is stunning

[DSR]

Still say the AquaEuro... it really does what it says. I would stay away from a chiller that is rated for about the size of your tank... they overestimate their chillin' capacity. Go with the AE 1/13. They go on sale quite a bit.

[Conski]

alright ill do so. i hope i dont have to drill any holes? or is a drop in?!

[DSR]

It is a stand alone. No drilling just need a pump and some 1/2 id tubing.

[Amphiprion]

Additionally, what pumps are you running? More energy efficient pumps can make a big difference in many cases. A chiller should be the absolute last option for a number of reasons. Most of applications in which chillers are installed are actually unnecessarily so. It just amounts to a big, energy consuming, and noisy piece of equipment that wasn't really needed to solve the problem. Let's try to work around the use of a chiller, first.

85 is definitely borderlining a problem, unless your tank is warm all the time. Keep in mind that most wild reefs average right around 82 degrees, with the highest diversities occurring at ~84 degrees. I wouldn't really start to panic or anything unless it got higher, though you should work on getting it a bit lower.

As far as oxygen goes, the difference in the amount of oxygen @ 77 F (25 C) and 35 ppt is negligible compared to that of 86 F (30 C) and hardly amounts to a problem.

[lanimret]

Turning my heater down a few degrees (thereby lowering the base temperature) and taking my glass lids off completely solved my problem. It is now fluctuating from 78 to 81 during the day which is exactly what I want.

Just means I have to replace a hell of a lot more water every day! I need to add a top off valve.

[dolfans1]

3) Turned the heater down 3-4 degrees. I figure if i start the day at a lower temperature it won't get as hot later in the day. That's a balancing act, but I hope I can get it down to 78ish in the morning it won't go over 82 later in the day. It went down to 81.5 this morning, going to give it till tomorrow and see if it goes any lower.



I personally would take the opposite approach. I would RAISE the heater temp 2 - 3 degrees. 85F is a bit warm, but not dangerously so. For a day or too it certainly won't do the tank harm. What I think would do more harm is a large temperature swing in the tank. If you get it down to 76 at night, and it still makes it up to 85 in the tank during the day, you've had a 9 degree temp swing, which will make the inhabitants very unhappy. A 2 - 3 degree temperature swing won't be nearly as stressful.

Other than that, a fan will definitely help, and shortening the time the lights are on (or keeping them off entirely) will also help. There are cloudy and rainy days on coral reefs too.

[lanimret]

I was getting a 3-4 degree shift either way. So at 78 i go upto 81. at 81 I go upto 85. If I raise it to 83, It'll go over 85, i guarantee it.

78-81 is a pretty small swing in my book.

[Conski]

i have it under sort of control now. im still getting a chiller. rather then doing a bunch of tricks id rather just be set with it ya know? im very dedicated BUT i do have a life and keeping the temp at where it needs to be in my area is very demanding an all day thing.. one of which i cant do when you need to keep a gf happy and still sustain going out and doing things, i dont even know how i manage to keep the lighting schedule exact everyday manually and with not timer.

THe heat is still the same in buffalo but i managed to get my room in general much colder with multiple fans, i keep the hood propped up with a water bottle and then have a fan thats about 5 feet away on high blasting on the water when i need it to be. keeps it between 79 and 81 at most times, but im not taking any chances and will be getting a chiller... instead of MH at the moment.

[Ace25]

LOL.. tell me about it.. my roommate wasn't happy that I took up 3/4 of our freezer just to freeze water bottles to cool my tank down.. for over a year. haha. I finally got a chiller for the same reasons.. just didn't want to have to worry about temps while I am out of the house. I had my 29G tank crash the summer of 05 due to a heatwave.. expensive lesson but my new tank would be a 100x more expensive of a lesson if I wasn't able to control the temps.

[Conski]

exactly, i cant sit in my house all day.. plus if i make mistake as an 18 year old fresh highschool graduate with the 900 dollars ive put into this tank, there wont be another tank... its not worth the hassle id rather pay the 300 dollars for a solid state of mind and a happier girlfriend who doesn't have to think her bf is over obsessive

[DSR]

hahahaha. My wife is convinced I've lost my mind when I started cancelling trips because of the tank. But it is a lot of money if something goes south.

The temp in Oklahoma this week has been over 102 each day and is supposed to continue until this Sunday. That is d@mn hot

[Amphiprion]

Our temps have been in the 100s with 70%+ humidity. Makes the index something like 112 degrees. The problem is that it reduces evap--so it is harder to cool the tank down and harder for you to cool down. Still, the tank stays well within range.

[lanimret]

hehe, was 95 degrees yesterday here at like 20% humidity, the **** tank went from overfull slightly to sucking air within 24 hours!

[jenazen69]

Hey I live in Buffalo too. I bought a couple of desk fans that chill the air and clip on . they can be adjusted to just about any angle. I got them at CVS a few years ago for $20. They work great.

[mcsassy]

Drop ice bottles in the sump (if you have one) and use your AC, also if you have one.

[Conski]

no ac no sump lmao, and awsome to see another buffalo person!