Temperature swing
- Thread starter Silverni2
- Start date
- Location
- Bay Ridge, BK
I would say that is on the high side (depending on the range it should not kill your animals but it certainly isn't a normal swing in our tanks (the ocean is a different story), why is it swinging so much?
I don't use a Heater only a chiller, I've recently cut down my photo ( I use metal halides). I was able to stay between 77 and 80 now I go as low as 72.
- Location
- Bellmore, NY
77-80 is ok. 72 seems a bit low. I would invest a few bucks in a heater...pretty good insurance for $20-30
How about 72-75? I can lower chiller temp and not use Heater? It's not the money for heater but I always here horror stories about them malfunctioning.
- Location
- Bellmore, NY
You have a few options...you can get two 1/2 powered heaters instead of one. You can get a temp controller, or if you already have an aquarium controller, you can let that control heaters too. If you are worried about glass breaking, you can go titanium. Either way i think and others can chime in that 72 is too low for a reef tank, maybe a fowlr can get away with it...
- Location
- Brooklyn
the titanium heater can fail. The point is you NEED a temperature controller. With it, you can use the heater and chiller (overkill) to keep your temp at a certain range. I do 78-82 with only a heater and a walmart deskfan in my sump.
Optimally, I'd suggest getting two heaters and setting their dials to 85. Then set the controller to kill the heat at 78 degrees. This way if the stars align and the world ends and your controller fails (never happens) your heaters are still only maxing at 85.
Drop the chiller and save it for the summer.
Optimally, I'd suggest getting two heaters and setting their dials to 85. Then set the controller to kill the heat at 78 degrees. This way if the stars align and the world ends and your controller fails (never happens) your heaters are still only maxing at 85.
Drop the chiller and save it for the summer.
- Location
- Westchester
72 is definitely low, especially if there are swings like that on a frequent basis. Does your chiller have a heater controller?
- Location
- NY
Bruce, 72 is definitely on the low end of the spectrum by 6 degrees (although it is better than being too high by 6 degrees). I totally agree with two 1/2 size heaters. What I don't agree with is setting the heaters at 85 even with the controller. I would set them to turn on at 77 and off at 78 with a controller. Set the heaters at 79 and let the controller do the work.
Russ
Russ
- Location
- Brooklyn
I was taking into account the heater temperature gauge is semi inaccurate.
http://www.petstore.com/media/catal...27136e95/H/y/Hydor-THEO-Heater-50-Watt-99.jpg How could you ever trust that within a few degrees?
- Location
- NY
We're talking about someone using a controller. I would never even consider a $9.99 heater with a reef tank (or any tank for that matter). Eheim or Via Aqua Titanium are both dependable and have a lower risk of variance.
Russ
- Location
- Brooklyn
I would never even consider a Eheim or Via Aqua Titanium. both have a risk of variance.
Russ
ok, bro.
- Location
- NY
- Location
- Kings Park, NY
I didn't know Scars was Russ's brother!
- Location
- Kings Park, NY
Set your controller to heater on at 77 off at 78. Set heater to 79-80. Done
I don't own a controller. I set the heater at 77 and the chiller at 80 so that should do it. My original thinking was lights were keeping the temp up at 80. Lights go off temp goes down to 76 ish. With less of a photo period temp drops to low that's where my problem came in.
Thx for the help
- Location
- NY
In a perfect world you would not need a controller and your design above would work perfect. The problem with your design apparently resides in the heating wattage you have installed on your system. I appears inadequate. You say you set the heater at 77, yet the temp drops to 72. This is a glaring indicator that you need an additional heater.
All this CAN work without a controller.....however, this is NOT a perfect world and heaters do fail. In my experience I would say that heaters are the #1 product in our hobby to fail. Therefore connecting your heaters, if nothing else, to a controller is a prudent security measure for the safety of your animals. There are a few ways to do this inexpensively:
- Ranco Controller (controls heater and nothing else)
- Neptune Apex Jr. (allows control of other system components as well as heater)
- Digital Aquatics Reefkeeper Lite (allows a minimum control of other system components as well as heater)
This is not a comprehensive list, rather a short summation of products readily available and on the inexpensive side.
Russ
Hey Russ
I think the original point was missed. My issue started when I shortened my lighting period.
What I've been doing is running my lights from 8 am until 5 pm. The system is a metal halide compact fluorescents ( 2 150w MH and 2 96w compact fluorescents ) this would keep the temp at 77 ish all through the nite. During the day the temp would get to 80 and the chiller would keep it there but with the lites on so long I've been getting nuisance algae on the glass and sand. Now that I've shortened my lighting time from noon to 5 the temp in the tank never gets to 80 during the day, which means my nite temp at its lowest is 72 ish.
With all that being said now I have the need for a heater.
I hope this explains my issue?
Thx
Bruce
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