Temperature ???

Ursula

Ursula

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Nov 27, 2006
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I live in the Pacific NW of the US. It got to 72 here today, and my house is now up to that. I normally keep the temp in my home at 68.

My tank is a 180gal. It has been set up for 2 mos, and has always run on the high side ie 79-80ish. I have been taking the heater down a tick every day or so, in hopes of lowering the temp. Today, however, it's up to 82. I unplugged the heater...

Can a malfunctioning heater cause the temp to rise? Is the slight increase in my room temp actually causing a rise in my tank temp?

Who has coolers, and why? Is it normal for someone in a temperate climate to need one?
 
I should add that I just have the standard FOWLR light set-up. No halides or anything fancy...
 
might just be the heater. that doesnt seem hot enough to raise the temp. i use fans and they work well built in ...but now that summer is coming i find ill need a chiller because of my halide...u should be fine though see how it goes. can u think of anything else that may have caused it or that u did different
 
Germanman said:
can u think of anything else that may have caused it or that u did different
Click to expand...

The only thing different, other than the temp, was that I stuck some batting in the back part of the cover to quiet it down a little. I have acrylic covers on top of the tank itself, though, so I don't think that could have made that much of a difference???

How much heat do the pumps generate? My LFS guy replaced one of them last week because the original pump wasn't performing up to stuff. Maybe that's it?

So, with regular old lights, I shouldn't need a chiller? It gets max 85ish in my house during the hot days. Tank is not in direct sunlight...
 
Ursula said:
I have acrylic covers on top of the tank itself, though, so I don't think that could have made that much of a difference???

How much heat do the pumps generate? My LFS guy replaced one of them last week because the original pump wasn't performing up to stuff. Maybe that's it?

So, with regular old lights, I shouldn't need a chiller? It gets max 85ish in my house during the hot days. Tank is not in direct sunlight...
Click to expand...

The best way of reducing high tank temperature (apart from using a chiller) is to increase evaporation. I would suggest that you remove the acrylic covers, or at least elevate them slightly, to allow for some air movement. If you don't have a sump this should also help in maintaining the pH of the water, as it would allow for a greater exchange of gasses (oxygen and CO2).

If the pumps are in the water, they would generate the same amount of heat as a heater of the same wattage e.g. 100W pump = 100W heat.

Before you revert to something as extreme as a chiller you could increase evaporation as mentioned above, and in addition you can boost the evaporation by adding one or two small fans, such as those used on desktop computers, in your canopy.

Hennie
 
Thanks, everyone. I just bought a fan. We'll see if it works.
 
Ursula said:
My tank is a 180gal. It has been set up for 2 mos, and has always run on the high side ie 79-80ish. I have been taking the heater down a tick every day or so, in hopes of lowering the temp. Today, however, it's up to 82. I unplugged the heater...

Can a malfunctioning heater cause the temp to rise? Is the slight increase in my room temp actually causing a rise in my tank temp?

Who has coolers, and why? Is it normal for someone in a temperate climate to need one?
Click to expand...

79-80 really isn't that bad. Yes, malfunctioning heaters can definitely cause the temp to raise.

I don't have a chiller but keep procrastinating on getting one. If fans, AC, and all other preferable options are exhausted, then you may want to consider one.
 
Just to report: I bought a clip-on, and it has reduced my tank temp about 2 degrees (from 82 to 80 over the past two days). :)

I have a second sump, so I'm just got another fan to blow onto it. We'll see. I thought the goal was to be around 76-77. Not right?

Definately noticed the evap, though.
 
My tank is constantly at 82 to 84 near the heater. I don't think your temp going up to 82 is that big of a deal... unless it changed quickly.
 
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