Do you allow your reef tank to run COLDER during the winter months?

[n2585722]

I have my heaters set to come on at 76 and the cooling fans come on at 78. The tank does not get much cooler or hotter that those temps. I don't have a different setting from winter to summer.

 

[tigre44]

Most of us live in places where the temperatures are considerably colder in the winter time. No matter what season it is though, the goal is to keep your water temp consistent year round. That being said it can be a bit more difficult to maintain warmer water in your reef aquarium depending on certain variables. I noticed yesterday that my tank temperature shot up beyond acceptable levels just because I raised the temp on the thermostat by 2 degrees! Let's talk about it!

Do you allow your reef tank to run COLDER during the winter months? How many degrees if any?

image via @sfgabe

Mine runs 76-78 I. Winter and 77-80 in summer. I’m sure the MH be lights had a lot yo do with it. The chiller keeps temp in check

 

[Rubberfrog]

Winters are fairly mild here, but summer will be challenging with the months of 110+ heat.

 

[Ashish Patel]

Right now my temp is 74-75 degree since its in a basement (and i am not living there and 900 watts of heat is the most I can deal with at this time) I've even had bad situation where temp dropped to 69 degrees last winter. Anything lower than 71 degrees starts to become an issue for fish breathing and anything 72 I noticed my fish where normal. I didnt notice much issues with corals when temp dropped and believe they would prefer it 4-5 degree than our hobby normal ranges.

Take the ocean for example, 73Degree to 84Degree is considered ideal temp. I'll stick to 76 degrees year round moving forward with it 75-77degree for swings

 

[Ashish Patel]

I never answer the question asked lol.

Yes run it lower in the winter vs summer - mainly bc that 1-2 degree can save a lot on energy.

 

[Jax15]

I never like my temp to waver more than +/- 1 degree F. But there's exceptions, heat waves that cause problems, or a nearly 2 day power outage where the temp dropped to 65, and stayed there for many hours. That stunk, but it didn't seem to do any damage long term. Just used the battery backups for the flow, and it all survived.

 

[ReefHomieJon]

My chiller n heaters keep it generally the same all year....

 

[LRT]

Right now my temp is 74-75 degree since its in a basement (and i am not living there and 900 watts of heat is the most I can deal with at this time) I've even had bad situation where temp dropped to 69 degrees last winter. Anything lower than 71 degrees starts to become an issue for fish breathing and anything 72 I noticed my fish where normal. I didnt notice much issues with corals when temp dropped and believe they would prefer it 4-5 degree than our hobby normal ranges.

Take the ocean for example, 73Degree to 84Degree is considered ideal temp. I'll stick to 76 degrees year round moving forward with it 75-77degree for swings

This is about where I'm at with it all too.
Wife has some thing with the temps in the house. All summer she likes to set temp at 80 in 110 degree weather. All winter its set at 70.
Constant battle here and not really sure why lol.
My reef stays around 76 but will drop to 73 degrees with 3x300 watts heaters.
In the summer its going to be different story this year as I need to figure out a way to exchange air.
Do have a chiller I haven't used yet but have a feeling ill be breaking it out this summer.

 

[Sharkey18]

I run around 76 in the winter, 78 - 80 in the summer. I have a fish room and keep a window cracked in the winter to help control the humidity and provide fresh air. But it does mean the tank runs a few degrees cooler. Doesn't seem to cause any issues. My inhabitants all seem happy. A few degrees up and down does not seem to matter.

 

[Therinx]

I do the opposite, i run it warmer 78-79, in the winter and cooler 77-78, in the summer. That way i have a degree or so leeway in case something goes wrong.

 

[LimestoneCowboy]

76 in winter/78 in summer on our 300 and our troughs. Everything seems happy!

 

[Frank_Aaron]

I use season tables on my APEX to adjust throughout the year. After watching a ton of videos about acros spawning in captivity I decided to adjust my tank to season tables. I'm currently adjusting my Radions every month to match. Really wish there was a way to set them up on my reef link to do this automatically.

 

[JimFuller]

I run 78 in the winter and about 80 in the summer.

 

[revenant]

I run my 100G at 78.something and in the winter my house is chillier so the heater seems to be on a LOT.. I just purchased two 150w heaters to install soon... my current one came with the tank and I have no idea how old it is.. I check the temp every morning.. I will be installing the new heaters with my new DC return pump soon.

 

[Turkey head]

Not sure about before but I have an InkBird controller with BRS Ti heater and it’s been very stable since having it. Haven’t had it in the summer yet

 

[Viva'sReef]

Running 2x - 200w Cobalt Neo-Therm heaters to keep my tank at 78.5 - 79 year round on my IM Int75g. Setting was too low on the actual heaters and caused my Hydros Control 4 to blow up my phone at 3am one night.

 

[Minor4reef]

No. I run two 200w heater and a chiller. The tank fluctuates 1.5 degrees all year long.

 

[Reefglide]

I use 4/500 watt titanium’s. Have had issues in the past with the Apex power blocks shorting out due to high amps. Currently they are each independently controlled. 2 in the sump, 1 in the Refugium,1 in frag tank. Temperature holds at 79 degrees Fahrenheit year round with a .05 swing over night.
As I am away for weeks at a time, if a heater cropped out while I’m away there’s more than enough to compensate. My sump, Refugium and frag tank are in a exterior room with no climate control. Am in the piedmont of N.C. and have never required a chiller.

 

[CMMorgan]

Likewise... I live in Florida. My current sump is in the garage. I have never run a chiller or a heater really. We had a few days in the 40's last week, so I did drop in this baby heater that my daughter used on her betta fish tank. Even without it, I did not drop below 72. In the summer, I never creeped up passed 80. The betta fish heater has me sitting at about 80 right now, so I'll need to go unplug it. Warm weather has returned.
I figure the ocean isn't the same temp year round either.
I'll be moving the sump and the new tank to inside the house. It will probably keep the temp more stable. Thinking of adding a UV, so hoping that does not drive my temp up. I'm going with a 25 watt to reduce the heat. In Florida, the idea of going overkill on the UV can backfire. I really don't want to start looking into chillers.

 

[Nimitz87]

delete.