Do I need a chiller?

[Krixic]

I live in Sacramento where it gets to 100 degrees a good few times a month and stays in mid to high 90s most of the summer months. My tank is upstairs where temp in pretty inconsistent (thanks to the stack effect ). I installed a Vornado fan in my sump to do some evaporative cooling and it keeps the tank under 83 to 84 degrees on 100 degree days but between morning and afternoon, the temp swings can range between 75 - 84 (due mostly to the fact that i have not installed a heater yet). Mind you I have no live stock in the tank yet and want to get my temperatures more consistent.

Once I install the heater (my controller is set to 78) Im sure I'll close the gap in the swings to 78-83. Should I get a cooler? If so what HP/ brand would you recommend?

And when it comes to coolers, I heard they heat up the room pretty bad and since this tank lives in my room is there a way I can install some sort of vent out my window so I dont don't have to live in a sauna?


Sorry for all the questions haha

 

[Reef.]

you can vent the air outside, hopefully the tank is near the window, I guess you could vent it into the hall or bathroom if that is the only option.

as for brand, sorry can’t help with that.

would a air con unit for the bedroom not be a better option.

running the tank at a higher temp may be an option, run it nearer 82f then the fan might be enough to keep it there.

 

[Krixic]

If your room gets to 100f, yes you definitely need a cooler, you can vent the air outside, hopefully the tank is near the window, I guess you could vent it into the hall or bathroom if that is the only option.

as for brand, sorry can’t help with that.

would a air con unit for the bedroom not be a better option, fish can’t live in a 100f room, not sure you should either

Thats accually a pretty good idea! Getting an AC unit just for the room I mean. The cost of operation will probably be the same or simular anyway. Fortunately my tank is right next to a window (not in direct sunlight tho) so venting is easy. Thanks!

 

[K7BMG]

All good questions and yes you should do what you can to keep the temp stable.

It seems as if you you use your AC through the night if the tank drops to 75.
I gather you head out to work and turn off the AC then the tank rises as well.
It may be cheaper in the long run to set your homes heating and air conditioning to keep the room stable.

Chillers will need to exhaust the heat, and that result will add heat to your room, unless you can vent the exhaust somehow.
I don't know that I would add a chiller to the system.
A high of 84 is not ideal but I don't think its high enough to go to the expense.
If you have room for a chiller can you go with a larger sump or add another sump?
The larger volume of water will be slower to change temperature.
If you can keep it within a degree or two at most you should be fine.

What size is your systems water volume?

I have a JBJ Arctica Titanium chiller and am happy with it.
However the design of this unit would not be easy to set up a vent.

 

[ps2cho]

Theres absolutely no need for a chiller unless you have a huge tank. I live in Arizona where summers hit 120F, a fan blowing on the surface is all you need. Your problem is a lack of a heater, those swings are going to hurt your livestock. Plug the fan into a controller and set it to 79F and the heater to 78.

 

[Krixic]

All good questions and yes you should do what you can to keep the temp stable.

It seems as if you you use your AC through the night if the tank drops to 75.
I gather you head out to work and turn off the AC then the tank rises as well.
It may be cheaper in the long run to set your homes heating and air conditioning to keep the room stable.

Chillers will need to exhaust the heat, and that result will add heat to your room, unless you can vent the exhaust somehow.
I don't know that I would add a chiller to the system.
A high of 84 is not ideal but I don't think its high enough to go to the expense.
If you have room for a chiller can you go with a larger sump or add another sump?
The larger volume of water will be slower to change temperature.
If you can keep it within a degree or two at most you should be fine.

What size is your systems water volume?

I have a JBJ Arctica Titanium chiller and am happy with it.
However the design of this unit would not be easy to set up a vent.

Shoot i should have mentioned. I have a 45 gal dt, with a 20-25 gallon sump I think. I fill the sump about half way so I'd say net volume is close to 60-70ish. The sump takes up all the space in the stand so a bigger sump is not ideal (maybe a taller one). I live with my family currently as I am a full time college student so AC is not on all the time as my parents are pretty frugal and possibly not sane (I walked into the house being 95 degrees downstairs with them relaxing on the couch). Getting a portable ac or chiller is probably the only way I can get the tank to the temperature I need it. Im kind of paying for a portion of the electric bill as the tank is already a energy hog so a few hundred more watts is no biggie. Thing is, summer is ending soon so I might just wait things out until Temps drop a bit and buy a chiller if i absolutely need it next summer.

 

[Krixic]

Theres absolutely no need for a chiller unless you have a huge tank. I live in Arizona where summers hit 120F, a fan blowing on the surface is all you need. Your problem is a lack of a heater, those swings are going to hurt your livestock. Plug the fan into a controller and set it to 79F and the heater to 78.

Gotcha. But even with evaporative cooling, my tank still reaches 83. Is this an issue?

 

[K7BMG]

Theres absolutely no need for a chiller unless you have a huge tank. I live in Arizona where summers hit 120F, a fan blowing on the surface is all you need. Your problem is a lack of a heater, those swings are going to hurt your livestock. Plug the fan into a controller and set it to 79F and the heater to 78.

Yup what ps2cho said.
Humm Parents not sane and getting advice from a psychopath.
YOUR DOOMED I SAY DOOMED.

 

[jcbasile]

Here is one observation. If the swings are going from 75-83, then you set the minimum temperature at 78 with a heater, it may exceed 83 degrees on the high end. Since it is starting at a higher temperature in the morning it may get hotter in the afternoon. That was one way I reduced summer heating was by lowering DT temp from 80-78 and installed a fan as mentioned above.

 

[Krixic]

Yup what ps2cho said.
Humm Parents not sane and getting advice from a psychopath.
YOUR DOOMED I SAY DOOMED.

Peachy, thanks for the advise

 

[K7BMG]

You could always put a second fan on the tank.

 

[Krixic]

You could always put a second fan on the tank.

Thats fair but I suppose I could probably put one on or above my lid directly in the water. Although how would I plug two fans into my inkbird? Could I get a divider to connect both to one of the outlets?

 

[nereefpat]

on or above my lid

Do you have a lid on the tank? If that's the case, removing a glass lid and replacing with a screen top would help tons.

 

[Pistondog]

Thats fair but I suppose I could probably put one on or above my lid directly in the water. Although how would I plug two fans into my inkbird? Could I get a divider to connect both to one of the outlets?

Use a surge protector box to split the fans.
If the high temps are once in a while, i put quart frozen water bottles in the fuge.
Sometimes 4 a day, but not some thing you want to do every day.

 

[Reef.]

Running the tank all year round at 82f is what some do, it is better to run at a higher temp than keep having big swings.

if my tank, I would see what reasonable drop in temp I can get with fans, if that gets me to a suitable temp then great, if not I would add a air con for the room if costs allow, if not a chiller for the tank.

sounds like you have a lid on the tank, that will be raising the temp quite a bit, I would maybe look to remove that, that will drop the temp and also allow a fan blowing across the surface of the water, which promotes evaporation which in turn cools the water, a fan on the sump will help too, leaving the sump door open will also help.

all depends on what you want to spend and the noise lvl you are willing to put up with, I think aiming for a tank temp of 78f will make your job that much harder, aim for nearer 82f.

 

[Mkkari]

I live in Sacramento where it gets to 100 degrees a good few times a month and stays in mid to high 90s most of the summer months. My tank is upstairs where temp in pretty inconsistent (thanks to the stack effect ). I installed a Vornado fan in my sump to do some evaporative cooling and it keeps the tank under 83 to 84 degrees on 100 degree days but between morning and afternoon, the temp swings can range between 75 - 84 (due mostly to the fact that i have not installed a heater yet). Mind you I have no live stock in the tank yet and want to get my temperatures more consistent.

Once I install the heater (my controller is set to 78) Im sure I'll close the gap in the swings to 78-83. Should I get a cooler? If so what HP/ brand would you recommend?

And when it comes to coolers, I heard they heat up the room pretty bad and since this tank lives in my room is there a way I can install some sort of vent out my window so I dont don't have to live in a sauna?


Sorry for all the questions haha

I have a 240g tank (including sump)

I live in Arizona, the temp fluctuations are crazy in my house even though I keep my Ac at 76 all day long.

Now I have had 2 pumps installed, 1 return, 1 for UV another pump is coming in for the reactors and that just means introducing more and more heat. Now if you have a party, the AC runs more blah blah...there are several things that can increase your tank temp (atleast for me)

My temp fluctuates from 78 to 82 (with those mini 3 fan crap installed) I mean it works, to bring it down around 1 degree. I am looking to buy a chiller myself (1/4 hp) it will help to bring the temp down by 4 or 5 degrees.

From what i heard, there is no straight forward answer to what hp chiller for specific size of tank.

Higher hp will bring temp down sooner than a lower hp chiller (hence not running ALL the time where as a smaller one needs to run more).

 

[Krixic]

Do you have a lid on the tank? If that's the case, removing a glass lid and replacing with a screen top would help tons.

I've been meaning to replace my cover (its acrylic). Any recommendations on places that make covers? Its a cube tank.

 

[Krixic]

Use a surge protector box to split the fans.
If the high temps are once in a while, i put quart frozen water bottles in the fuge.
Sometimes 4 a day, but not some thing you want to do every day.

Gotcha, I'll give that a go then. Any recommendations on a surge protector?

 

[Krixic]

Running the tank all year round at 82f is what some do, it is better to run at a higher temp than keep having big swings.

if my tank, I would see what reasonable drop in temp I can get with fans, if that gets me to a suitable temp then great, if not I would add a air con for the room if costs allow, if not a chiller for the tank.

sounds like you have a lid on the tank, that will be raising the temp quite a bit, I would maybe look to remove that, that will drop the temp and also allow a fan blowing across the surface of the water, which promotes evaporation which in turn cools the water, a fan on the sump will help too, leaving the sump door open will also help.

all depends on what you want to spend and the noise lvl you are willing to put up with, I think aiming for a tank temp of 78f will make your job that much harder, aim for nearer 82f.

Sounds good. I just wanted to make sure I don't cook my future live stock and coral. Thanks!

 

[Pistondog]

I've been meaning to replace my cover (its acrylic). Any recommendations on places that make covers? Its a cube tank.

Do it yourself cheaper with screen mesh and standard window screen repair frame.