Fluctuating temperatures

[bthomas04]

I know there have probably been a ton of temperature threads but I have a question regarding softies and lps. My apartment is so difficult to keep a steady indoor temperature. I’m going to be setting up a 15 gallon IM fusion tank. Throughout the summer there can be a fluctuation of 4-5 degrees in my apartment throughout the day. Do you think this fluctuation in air temp will effect my tank? I’ll be keeping mainly softies, Zoas, and some LPS.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

It might have a slight effect on water temperature, but it shouldn’t be enough to cause any problems:

Slightly diurnally and seasonally, yes:
"The diurnal temperature variations are about 0.3°C in theopen oceans and 2 to 3°C in shallow waters."
Source: https://www.academia.edu/36838790/Chemical_Oceanography
From what I've seen, for most tropical reef organisms, as long as the temp doesn't swing too far too fast, and as long as the temp is kept within ~75-82F (lower than 74ish can start causing problems, higher than 83 and many corals will start to bleach - so allowing for temp variation due to imperfect temp controllers in our tanks, I would set 75F as the min and 82F as the max), the temp doesn't seem to matter much. To give an idea, a 2C change (from 25C to 27C, for example) is about a 3.5F change (77 to 80.6, with the 25C to 27C example), so allowing a 3F to 4F temp change diurnally should be fine.

 

[Syntax1235]

With those temps you will most likely need a heater to keep things stable.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

heaters are very inexpensive, why not get one?