Chiller recommendations

[zoomonster]

I would pay particular attention to the quality of construction regardless of brand. I was talking to someone recently that does maintenance and they did what they could of a tank livestock salvage for someone who's chiller had failed and dumped its load of freon and oil into the tank pretty much wiping out everything. First question was what brand of chiller but they didn't know as they were really just there to get what they could out alive.

I have a fair knowledge of cooling systems both car and home and it makes me wonder how that happened and how many ticking time bombs are out there. Unlike home/car AC we are talking cooling water instead of air though. So I guess the connection between the evaporator and the water cooling chamber corroded and failed releasing the oil and gas. I suppose in a compact chiller design that's all one unit.

That's just one incident I've heard of and it was probably a fairly isolated case but it would make me very leery especially of cheaper units.

 

[djbetterly]

Ouch!! From what I've read about the JBJ's they have a titanium reservoir that is surrounded by the cooling elements. So basically both that reservoir and the cooling elements would all have to bust at once for that to happen.

 

[abinder]

Yep, that is what happened. The pump failed and the chiller ran. Mine is set lower than my apex. So, it will turn off eventually if water cools. Same issue if the pump fails and the chiller runs off internal. It cannot tell the pump failed. That is one of the downfalls of a pump separate from the chiller.

Maybe someone has come up with a backup fail safe. I do not know of one. Maybe in newer chillers they have them. Not sure. I run the JBJ arctica (I think 1/10 maybe bigger).

The chiller will turn of very quickly if the pump fails when using the internal because the coils will chill the water very fast.

 

[abinder]

I would pay particular attention to the quality of construction regardless of brand. I was talking to someone recently that does maintenance and they did what they could of a tank livestock salvage for someone who's chiller had failed and dumped its load of freon and oil into the tank pretty much wiping out everything. First question was what brand of chiller but they didn't know as they were really just there to get what they could out alive.

I have a fair knowledge of cooling systems both car and home and it makes me wonder how that happened and how many ticking time bombs are out there. Unlike home/car AC we are talking cooling water instead of air though. So I guess the connection between the evaporator and the water cooling chamber corroded and failed releasing the oil and gas. I suppose in a compact chiller design that's all one unit.

That's just one incident I've heard of and it was probably a fairly isolated case but it would make me very leery especially of cheaper units.

Supposedly, some of the cheaper brands don't use titanium could.

 

[Bracka345]

Sorry to hijack your thread.

Could someone recommend a good chiller for a 150 gallon tank with a 40 gallon sump? I live in the Caribbean so it gets pretty hot here.

Thanks!!!

 

[DeniseAndy]

The chiller will turn of very quickly if the pump fails when using the internal because the coils will chill the water very fast.

So having the chiller just slightly lower in temp than my apex will stop the chiller anyway? Just because the apex powers it on, it will still tun itself off when the water cools to a certain point? Does not explain why mine kept running unless I had the temp too low. The apex does not run the chiller it just turns the power on/off to temp of tank when needed. The internal thermometer still is in effect if needed.

Does that sound right?

 

[abinder]

So having the chiller just slightly lower in temp than my apex will stop the chiller anyway? Just because the apex powers it on, it will still tun itself off when the water cools to a certain point? Does not explain why mine kept running unless I had the temp too low. The apex does not run the chiller it just turns the power on/off to temp of tank when needed. The internal thermometer still is in effect if needed.

Does that sound right?

You may want to check with the manufacturer of the chiller, but it's possible that if the power to the chiller is turned off for long enough, it may 'forget' what the shut off temp is that you set it at.

That's why I prefer to use the internal controller of the chiller; just in case it 'forgets' what the shut off temp is set to if there's no power applied to it. With power always going to the chiller, the chances of it 'forgetting' the shut off temp is very very small.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Thanks. I will check with my instruction manual. All I know is that is not a concern start summer as it is on most the time. Very hot days. Of course over 6 years only one issue, but better safe than sorry.