Simple cooling for tank

[Bruce60]

It's amazing what you can accomplish with an inexpensive fan. I took advantage of a column next to the tank to mount an inexpensive 6" fan to move air across the top of the tank. I could have it on a timer to run when the lights are on, but I took advantage of an open outlet on my Apex. The fan turns on at 78.6F and off at 77.9F. I have the heater come on at 77.4F and turn off at 78.1F. Total cost <$20. Much better than using the room ceiling fan.

 

[Auquanut]

It's amazing what you can accomplish with an inexpensive fan. I took advantage of a column next to the tank to mount an inexpensive 6" fan to move air across the top of the tank. I could have it on a timer to run when the lights are on, but I took advantage of an open outlet on my Apex. The fan turns on at 78.6F and off at 77.9F. I have the heater come on at 77.4F and turn off at 78.1F. Total cost <$20. Much better than using the room ceiling fan.

Did the same thing myself. After placing a new (to me) tank next to my 125, I realized that I had basically eliminated airflow to the 125 when the temp controller alerted me to high temp in the 125.

After adding a $20 fan to the timer for the lights and mounted it to flow across the top of the tank, the temp came right back in line. Admittedly, the fan doesn't move much air, but it sure did do the trick.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Great tip.

Not only is the fan diffusing the heat from the lamps but it aids in evaporation which helps cooling. Just be prepared with additional RO for top off in some cases.

 

[FishOkay]

Yeah fans are good for a bit of cooling but to be honest once it actually gets hot out over summer they can't really keep it down much and serve really only as a tool to make you go through a lot ro water lol.
But they are probably good at dissipating additional heat from the lights atleast

 

[GarrettT]

I did something similar. I attached mine to my canopy and runs off my apex when temp >79

 

[GarrettT]

Yeah fans are good for a bit of cooling but to be honest once it actually gets hot out over summer they can't really keep it down much and serve really only as a tool to make you go through a lot ro water lol.

I disagree. Mine will drop the temperature considerably.

 

[FishOkay]

I disagree. Mine will drop the temperature considerably.

What's considerable to you though? I find it hard to believe it will drop more than 1 - 2 degrees below ambient temp

 

[GarrettT]

What's considerable to you though? I find it hard to believe it will drop more than 1 - 2 degrees below ambient temp

Definitely will, with ease. Matter of fact, I had to remove one of the fans from my sump, because my heaters couldn’t keep up. My 220g tank wouldn’t go above 77F. I keep my house around 76-77F. In Austin, it’s hard to get below that number in the summertime. My AC pretty much stays running : (

Note: I only run 2 of the 4 fans at a time. All 4 would be way overkill. It’s more for back up in case one fails. I keep 2 on one power supply and the other 2 on a separate one.

 

[Auquanut]

What's considerable to you though? I find it hard to believe it will drop more than 1 - 2 degrees below ambient temp

Can't say for sure, but in my125, I have the alarm set at 80. The temp got closer to 81 than 80. The heaters come on at 78 and go off at 79. Since I added this fan (that I thought was WAY too weak) my temp has stayed between 78 and 79. Thought I would have to crank up the A/C, but I guess not.

 

[52728299]

I did something similar. I attached mine to my canopy and runs off my apex when temp >79

Are those pc fans? How are they plugged in..

 

[GarrettT]

Are those pc fans? How are they plugged in..

see post #3 and #4

Build Thread - GarrettT's 192 gallon SPS

Like always, I tend to start a build thread after majority of the labor is complete. Originally, I had no intentions of building a thread, however after seeing some of the progress, I can't help but document the build. It's turning out much nicer than I had intended it to be. I always enjoy...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[FishOkay]

Can't say for sure, but in my125, I have the alarm set at 80. The temp got closer to 81 than 80. The heaters come on at 78 and go off at 79. Since I added this fan (that I thought was WAY too weak) my temp has stayed between 78 and 79. Thought I would have to crank up the A/C, but I guess not.

Makes sense but here in UK without Air con although its not hot all of the time during summers my fans were just constantly on I was going through a load of ro and it wasnt able to keep the temp down to much, they maybe kept it a degree c lower and helped stop the temp rising too quickly than without it running but still it was slowly raising to 29°c. It depends a lot on the ambient temp and humidity I think as too how effective they are.

 

[All_talk]

Evaporating water draws out a surprising amount of energy. I have two small fans that blow across the top of my 50 gallon tank and with room temps at about 5 deg F above the tank temp they only run about 1/2 time (Apex controlled). I have tried to run them full time to force more evaporation (to increase kalk dosing through my ATO). And I found my first stage heater (150 watts) was on full time to keep up.

 

[FishOkay]

For sure evaporative cooling is an effective and definitely a more cost effective way to cool its why its used so much in industrial process ie cooling towers lol I didn't mean to down play that but humidity has a major impact on its effectiveness and no doubt in an air conditioned house it will perform better. But in british summertime which seems to get warmer every year, maybe not up to your summer temps haha but in a hot stuffy house its not as effective imo. Not totally usless but definitely not as effective. It's why I bit the bullet and bought a chiller.