Reefer 250 in a home office... evaporation and light an issue?

[darkrabbit]

Hi all, as the title says, I have a Reefer 250 and am looking to put it in my home office. It's planned out at a high level but the only concern is moisture from evaporation and night time light.

I will likely run the sump / plumbing into the basement through one of my walls as my basement is unfinished and my office is on the main floor. Easy to pop through an inside wall, which will keep the noisier parts of the tank in the basement and give me lots of room to work. Also minimizes any chance of spills / splashing from whatever I am doing in the sump.

I have an evaporation rate in the basement of around 1.25gal / day. I expect that to increase slightly as my office can get warm, and the humidity level is a little lower.

The office is about 13x9, not terribly big. The door is open most of the time, unless during the day when I am working.

So:

1) Is moisture going to be an issue keeping a 55gal tank in a room this size?
2) What about light from the office lighting? I sometimes work late and my office lights may be on until 12-1AM. Is that generally an issue?

Thanks!

 

[Rlreefing]

The moisture issue is going to depend on the airflow/ exchange of the room. Lighting you may want to have a work lamp that you can direct the light to your work area or develop a cover for the tank glass like a blackout curtain. I would be more worried about the moisture issues in the basement. You need to make sure that the sump area is not going to start to introduce moisture into the wood creating rot as this could eventually make your system become an elevator shaft.

 

[darkrabbit]

The moisture issue is going to depend on the airflow/ exchange of the room. Lighting you may want to have a work lamp that you can direct the light to your work area or develop a cover for the tank glass like a blackout curtain. I would be more worried about the moisture issues in the basement. You need to make sure that the sump area is not going to start to introduce moisture into the wood creating rot as this could eventually make your system become an elevator shaft.

Re the basement, no not worried at all. It’s completely unfinished, and well ventilated. I've seen a lot of people run plumbing from the main floor to the basement for sumps, I am confident I can do the same with no problem.

I might add a cold air return to my office. The ventilation in my office isn't fantastic.

Re: light, I suppose I could do a work lamp. I'd be surprised though if others have tanks in their office and don't work late... What I could do as well is add another smart switch which automatically turns my office lights off at 10-11PM. Did that in my basement, made a big difference.

 

[rhdoug]

My tank has been in my home office for 20 years, and I also often work till midnite. My lights are dimming from about 9 until midnite, but I work in the dark, usually only lit by the monitors. Nobody in the tank has complained...

Moisture is an issue, my computer guy yells at me all the time as some rust occurs where it shouldn't. I try to run a fan at night but often forget to turn it on.

 

[darkrabbit]

My tank has been in my home office for 20 years, and I also often work till midnite. My lights are dimming from about 9 until midnite, but I work in the dark, usually only lit by the monitors. Nobody in the tank has complained...

Moisture is an issue, my computer guy yells at me all the time as some rust occurs where it shouldn't. I try to run a fan at night but often forget to turn it on.

Thats good to know. I have a moderate amount of exposed equipment, but if I ventilate well the humidity might actually help the rest of the house