Temporary and long term solutions for reef tank overheating

samiam2003 · Aug 26, 2021

Hey Guys,
I live in KC, and I have a 75 gallon reef tank. My AC broke down last week, and my family has been running the ceiling fans nearly 24/7 which is why I thought my reef tank would be fine. However, I recently noticed that my anemone shrunk back significantly which is when I checked the tank temp only to find that it was 90 degrees Fahrenheit. This made me really worried, but before I make any bad decisions, do you guys have any temporary advice in lowering temp to a tolerable level while I try to implement a long term solution. I won't have AC until beginning of winter probably with the whole pandemic thing. I briefly read about floating some frozen water bottles in the sump with an overhead fan. Is this a good idea? For long term wise, is an aquarium chiller or overhead fan a good investment? I don't have much space, and I'm guessing it will be a good month before things cool down. So I'm thinking two fans from amazon to run during the day with lids off. (I also do have a wrasse) Let me know what you guys think.

reefinatl · Aug 26, 2021

Cut back on lighting photo period and put a fan blowing across the water.

G Santana · Aug 26, 2021

Float the ice, keep recycling frozen to melted. 90° is dangerous.

Discordian · Aug 27, 2021

I battled the heat wave up here in the pacific nw this year without ac. It hit 111. Made it through without the tank going over 82 (normally keep it at 78). The biggest thing was doing everything I could to keep the house as cool as possible. Open all the windows at night, close them as soon as it starts heating up. Get all the blinds closed. Then I used ice packs and frozen gallon jugs to keep the water as cool as possible when it was the hottest. I also did a water change with freshly made rodi water. And put a fan blowing over the top of the tank.

outhouse · Aug 27, 2021

best solution is a swamp cooler. I live in a 100 year old house, in northern ca. we get 3 months of 90-105f and I have never lost anything in any tank. Helps to have a basement 100g sump