High Temperature in reef tank

[Rodolfo Garcia]

It’s the middle of summer and it’s HOT in Texas. I have two thermometers on my tank. One reading 84.9 and the other reading almost 87 degrees. Everything looks ok in the tank but this temperature is worrying me.
What do you guys think?

 

[BonnieB]

I think that’s too high. Do you have a chiller? That will keep the temps down where they should be 78-82 (most often recommended for saltwater reef tanks).

 

[Schlafrig]

What livestock do you have in the tank? And what's the ambient tempature of the room? I would personally have a fan blow across the top to help cool it and maybe get a ziplock bag of ice as well. I dont let my tank get above 80

 

[JumboShrimp]

I can run my 150-gallon FOWLER tanks at that temperature all through the summer; but the only tank I have with corals in the same area of the house is a 20-gallon all-in-one, mostly softies. They seem to do OK-- but I'm no 'aquatic gardener' like some of the fine folks on here. I'm more of a coral 'hack'.

 

[iAmARomeoSF]

That's extremely high do u have a way to cool the water some how I had that same issue and was able to MacGyver a way to cool my tank with an old Computer fan that I installed between the two lights and made it powered by USB you can see the picture i attached and maybe you can do the same or get an idea of what you can do to cool your tank.

 

[Rodolfo Garcia]

I think that’s too high. Do you have a chiller? That will keep the temps down where they should be 78-82 (most often recommended for saltwater reef tanks).

I dont have a chiller. I may buy two aquarium fans and just blow them across the tank. Im not liking this temperature

 

[Rodolfo Garcia]

What livestock do you have in the tank? And what's the ambient tempature of the room? I would personally have a fan blow across the top to help cool it and maybe get a ziplock bag of ice as well. I dont let my tank get above 80

I have two clowns a flame hawk, several snails, two hammers, a torch, a rock flower (who seems to be absolutely thriving lol) but im not liking this temperature

 

[BonnieB]

I think that’s too high. Do you have a chiller? That will keep the temps down where they should be 78-82 (most often recommended for saltwater reef tanks).

I dont have a chiller. I may buy two aquarium fans and just blow them across the tank. Im not liking this temperature

Yeah especially cause in your neck of the woods you haven’t seen the worst of it yet this summer! Wondering if you could rig it so an aquarium fan could blow over a frozen bottle of water (without the bottle being in your tank)? No idea if that would work, just an out of the box thought! I’d limit the lights which produce heat too!

 

[bobnicaragua]

I run halides on my SPS tank and use evaporative cooling to control the temperature. Run your fans across the surface of the water, not between the lights. You can also blow air along the sump surface for additional cooling.

 

[Peair]

It’s the middle of summer and it’s HOT in Texas. I have two thermometers on my tank. One reading 84.9 and the other reading almost 87 degrees. Everything looks ok in the tank but this temperature is worrying me.
What do you guys think?

I think it is best to search around for a Chiller on sale or a good used one, I picked up a 700 dollar use one that was not working for 40 bucks on eBay and all it needed was a 3 dollar fuse, a chiller will add much needed stability.

 

[Fish Fan]

This is right on the edge of when to panic, but not quite there yet

Float frozen water bottles in the tank or sump, and aim a fan so it's blowing across the surface of your tank.

Look into a chiller if this is an everyday experience.

Stay cool

 

[KrisReef]

I’m not sure how good these are but 85f is to much f

Amazon product

 

[Macdaddynick1]

I am sure some corals and fish may survive but it doesnt seem ideal. I would throw a small pc fan just to be safe. I run predominantly Acropora tank, and keep it max at 82 degrees with a small 12 v pc fan on an 80 gallon tank. I'm in Cali, it gets crazy hot here, and that little fan has never failed me.

 

[Rodolfo Garcia]

I have found the culprit of my heating issues. My filter motors are overheating the tank. I have had the motors off for 2 hours and the tank is coming down to 79 now.
How can i fix this? Why are they overheating? Tank is 2 months old brand new.

 

[Fish Fan]

I have found the culprit of my heating issues. My filter motors are overheating the tank. I have had the motors off for 2 hours and the tank is coming down to 79 now.
How can i fix this? Why are they overheating? Tank is 2 months old brand new.

What pumps/motors do you have? Can you run one of the two motors and keep the temp down?

It may not be that they are overheating in a bad way, it's just that any running pump in your system is going to generate some heat. In your case, this may be the stone that broke the camel's back, so to speak, that puts you into overheating range.

Has you problem been going on all summer because you live in such a high climate, or are you fighting your way through a short term heat wave?

For a long term solution, you likely will need a chiller. Short term solutions include floating frozen water bottles or setting a fan to blow across the surface of your tank can help.

 

[Pistondog]

If the relative humidity is not high, dewpoint 63 or lower the fans will be most effective.

I dont have a chiller. I may buy two aquarium fans and just blow them across the tank. Im not liking this temperature

 

[Rodolfo Garcia]

I have found the culprit of my heating issues. My filter motors are overheating the tank. I have had the motors off for 2 hours and the tank is coming down to 79 now.
How can i fix this? Why are they overheating? Tank is 2 months old brand new.

What pumps/motors do you have? Can you run one of the two motors and keep the temp down?

It may not be that they are overheating in a bad way, it's just that any running pump in your system is going to generate some heat. In your case, this may be the stone that broke the camel's back, so to speak, that puts you into overheating range.

Has you problem been going on all summer because you live in such a high climate, or are you fighting your way through a short term heat wave?

For a long term solution, you likely will need a chiller. Short term solutions include floating frozen water bottles or setting a fan to blow across the surface of your tank can help.

These are the motors my tank uses. It’s two of them in my 60 gall AIO. Will running only one overwork it?
Well ever since starting my tank it has ran unsually warm at about 82-84 which is the upper limit but it is now breaking the 87 degree mark and that is worrying me. In regards to the heat, this is usual summer weather here in Houston.
Buying new pumps sounds like a waste of money if these are working just fine right?
I may have to look into a couple of fans as I cant afford a chiller right now .

 

[Rodolfo Garcia]

I should also mention that I have my heater in the same sump box that i have the return pumps. Should I move the heater?

 

[Fish Fan]

Those pumps seem well sized for a 60. And I would hope your heater isn't running right now

Again, are you fighting a short-term heat wave, or is this something you've been dealing with for some time? There's short-term, stop-gap solutions, but the long-term answer is likely a chiller, or at the least a room AC unit.

 

[Tangdora]

if the return pumps are a a primary source of heat in your tank be sure that that temp sensors are not right next to your return lines. The ideal spot to take a temp reading is in your sump in any chamber upstream from your pumps and heaters.