Info On Chillers...

M

mvght

Registered Member
Nov 11, 2006
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I have a 55 gal tank with 40 lbs. Live Rock, 3" DSB, Red Sea wavemaker with 4 maxi Jet 1200s, Oddysea 492 w light system (2 96wcfs blue actinic and 2 150wmh-unaware of K rating) a wet/dry trickle filter/refugium combo I built myself, (nitrates were high, so I replaced bio-balls with small chunks of live rock and now nitrates stay at zero...period) and a cpr backpack protein skimmer. I have had the tank set up for 1 year. Only live stock in tank now is 6 red-legged hermit crabs, one lysmata wurdennia (sp?) shrimp, 1 lawnmower bleeny,and 5 chromis. Water parameters are: Temp-78 deg, pH-8.1, Amm-0ppm, Nitrite-0ppm, Nitrate-0ppm, Cal-420ppm, Kh-8deg, Pho-0ppm...Sorry this is a long winded intro to my thread, but I believe in being thorough! Note there are no corals in tank yet. My lfs said to cycle the tank and let it establish for a few months first...I was new to the hobby other than a failed attempt at a FO tank about 10 years ago, and I failed miserably with limited access to info and internet. So I made sure I was able to maintain strict controls in regards to water parameters and what to do if those parameters changed. I feel I am fairly adept at that now and want to add corals. The only constant I cannot maintain is temperature...In the winter, the heater will maintain a constant 78 degrees...in the summer, temp can vary from 78-86. I am a carpenter so i work all day from 6-4 and can't be home to place ice bags or such in the sump, and they don't work all that great anyway...What is a good, fairly reasonably priced chiller, and where on the internet should I look? I will not get corals until I can maintain the temperature at a constant 77-80...Thank you fro your patience and potential responses. Mike
 
id jsut get a window AC for the room. t hat is what i do with my tanks. it keeps both me AND the fish cool enough :)
plus, they are less expensive than chillers....
 
fishieness said:
id jsut get a window AC for the room. t hat is what i do with my tanks. it keeps both me AND the fish cool enough :)
plus, they are less expensive than chillers....
Click to expand...

yea that actually works well for most people. i just intalled some fans in my hood and it doesnt rise more than +-0.7 degrees anymore
 
fishieness said:
id jsut get a window AC for the room. t hat is what i do with my tanks. it keeps both me AND the fish cool enough :)
plus, they are less expensive than chillers....
Click to expand...


That's good to hear. My MHs make my tank so inconsistent at times so I've been recently researching chillers. I have a spare AC I could throw in the room but wasn't sure how well it'd work.
 
I love my central air!!:dance2:
 
Anyone ever seen anything as far as DIY Chiller goes? I thought of maybe adapting a drinking water fountain to use as a chiller. What do you think?
 
I just can't get with how expensive chillers are. I don't understand it. :huh:

Some alternatives that might eliminate needing a chiller are:

-not using a cover, or use egg crate rather than a glass top
-not using a canopy or installing a fan if a canopy is in use
-T5 lighting or even power compacts are much more heat friendly than MH or VHO
-look at the wattage used in all powerheads and pumps that run in the aquarium, this can greatly contribute to rising water temp. I was shocked to find my mag 7 consumed 70watts. The newer stream type powerheads are much more energy efficient and produce less heat. Tunze 6025 move 600 gph and only consume 7 watts, hydor koralia move even more water for less energy consumption.
-keep ambient room temperature cooler
-adjust lighting schedule
 
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