Temperature

D

Dave Cushing

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Jul 31, 2003
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Lake Balboa, CA
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Over the weekend I finished planting getting my tank up and running. Everything looks great but I am a little concerned about the temperature.

It is still a littel warm in So Cal and witht he lights, my tank gets up to about 84 degrees. All the fish I have show a range of 78 - 82. They all look happy and healthy, but I want to know what people think about the temperature.

2 Angels
6 Black Phantom Tetras
6 Silver Tip Tetras
5 Cory Cats

Thanks

Dave
 
The cories are the only ones I would worry about, and as long as you keep the water very clean and well oxygenated, they should be okay. If you are concerned, adding some fans that blow across the water surface, and lowering the level to increase the drop from a water return will help, but likely not be needed.

Short term, gradual increases are seldom fatal for fish. Sudden changes, or extended extremes more than 2-3 degrees beyond their normal range can cause problems, but the occassional fluctuation seldom does, especially if other parameters are within acceptable ranges.
 
I presume you do not have a heater, and you are getting 84 degrees just from the ambient air temperature. Do you have air conditioning or not?

The short answer is you should be all right. Freshwater fish live naturally in waters that are heated and cooled on a daily cycle and you've got fairly hardy fish. One of the best ways to condition fish to get them in breeding shape, assuming you're not doing guppies which are the rabbits of the aquarium world, is to change the water temperature. So the temps you have should not be a major concern.

Now, if you do have a heater, well, I'd turn it off until the temps level out. If you don't have a heater and you have a/c and you keep your house in the mid 70s or lower, well, then, I'd get a second thermometer. 84 degrees seems pretty high for a house that's air conditioned.

Also, you mentioned lights. Do you have flourescent bulbs, or are they incandescent. If you've got the later, you'll want to get flourescent, just because the heat given off by incandescents can be a little bit of a problem.

Anyway, let us know how it turns out...

Val
 
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The house is air conditioned, but we have my ill mother in law living with us and have to keep the house around 76 degrees for her confort. The den (where the fish tank is) is the hot spot in the house, and the local thermometer in the den reads 79 degrees ambient.

The heating all comes from the PC lights. For the plants I have 2 x 96 watt lights. I am only running a single bulb right now until I know what is going on.

I have a heater, but it is never on, it is set at 78.

Once the lights turn off, I get about a 1.5 degree drop over night.

As the weather gets cooler, my problem should go away.


Thanks for the input.

Dave
 
84 degrees seems pretty high for a house that's air conditioned.
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Hah!
I have an aquarium that will not get below 85ºF because it is in a room with frequent door openings- let dogs in, let dogs out, dogs see squirrel- let dogs out. Repeat 100 times a day.
The only time I have to even heat this discus tank is in the winter when we leave the doors open all the time (South Florida).

FWIW I have cories, otos, and tetras and they all do fine. I'll search out a heat tolerant cory if I ever need to add another group, but the palateus are doing swell.
 
Originally posted by Cearbhaill

Hah!
I have an aquarium that will not get below 85ºF because it is in a room with frequent door openings- let dogs in, let dogs out, dogs see squirrel- let dogs out. Repeat 100 times a day. . . . .
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I'd get a doggy door installed if I were you. That way the dogs can let themselves in and out. We've got 4 dogs, and I don't know what we'd do without our doggy door.
 
Water level

If you can lower the water level a bit, you'll have more air space and more distance from the heat of the lights.
 
I'd get a doggy door installed if I were you. That way the dogs can let themselves in and out. We've got 4 dogs, and I don't know what we'd do without our doggy door.
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My dogs are Irish Wolfhounds.
Any door that would let one of them out would let a burglar the size of a linebacker in.
Plus being sighthounds, they'd be bringing possums and the erstwhile (dead) cat back in with them. And having no bodyfat they'd sink like stones if they fell in the pool- ask me how I know :eek:

I'm happy to be a doormom :D
 
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