Heat!

[moreey]

Every day the tank gets warmer and warmer. My room temp is 77.9 and the temp of the water is 83.7. I have 3 mag 950's submersed in the sump and the ocean runner on the skimmer, is this normal??

How do you control it without purchasing chiller, I still have 4 more powerheads that will be turned on and the lights aren't even up yet>?

thanks.

 

[Anonymous]

FANS.

Blowing across the top of the water and the sump.
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grape ape marijuana

 

[Sanfernando]

83.7 isn't that bad, I run my tank at about 82-83. I don't think you'd need to really worry about the temperature that much unless it will get even hotter in the summer. A couple fans would bring it down pretty easily though.

 

[moreey]

so what is a good temp to shoot for?
I was always under the impression that you wanted to keep the tank under 80???

 

[ChaoticReefer]

I have to play the devil's advocate, sorry. I would be worried. 83.7 isn't bad, but its not even summer yet. A lot of the heat is coming from your three mags. I would definitely consider switching to external pumps if I were you. Rob is correct too. Use fans to increase evaporation, mother nature's way of cooling things.

Hmm, what temperature to shoot for? You will get many different opinions on this, but majority of people keep their tanks between 78-82 on average.

Good Luck!!

 

[zizmans]

I keep my tank at 78-79. 83 is too high IMO. It's only going to get hotter in your room over the next few months. Unless you have AC. This might be a stupid question but, do you have a heater? What is it set at? Does you hood have a fan? If not, check out the DIY section for fans. You will find ways of adding them economically, and look good. If you get any heatwaves this summer a poor man's chiller works in a pinch. Fill ziplock bags with ice and float them in the tank.

 

[MarkO1]

If your room temp is in the upper 70's then your tank will probably hit 90º with the lights on. That is too high and you will need to do something about it. Best bet is a chiller, second is an AC unit that will keep your room temp down. I wouldn't hang your hat on just sump fans... jmo
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economy discussion

 

[Anonymous]

84 is generally accepted as the "highest" temp. Metabolism (growth) is actually better in a slightly warmer tank.

Fans on the tank surface and sump will help out a lot, plus good air movement around the room can't hurt.

 

[Anonymous]

I keep my tank at 83 and the chiller wont turn on till it hits 85

I sugest checking out the library if your really worried about high temps, o temp swings, there's plenty of documentation that will help you sleep better at night.

All the references to stable, and low temps are fairly dated, and more geared towards preventing other problems.

The most important thing, how does your tank look? Are the inhabitents stressed?

 

[wombat1]

Dude, you live in MN. Open your door and cool your room down. How hot does it get there in the summer?
I wouldn't worry about 84 either but fans, and if you get really desperate, 2 liter bottles of frozen water will work.

 

[moreey]

Ya, Minnesnowta......that's why i'm a little worried, it hasn't been that warm out, but my place stays about 75 all year round. I moved in here last august, so I can only imagine how hot it gets during a hot summer day, we haven't had a day over 80 yet!!!!! I know that the sun is on my place about 90% of the day. The thing that worries me the most, I still don't have the lights on my tank, and I am putting 3 x 250 watt MH so I can only imagine how warm it's going to get!!! 8O

I did finally turn on all the powerheads and it seems to be about 84...the room temp is 77. I hope this is the warmest it will get!

 

[ChrisRD]

Does the room the tank is in have AC? If not, you might want to plan on getting a small window unit or something to keep ambient temps in the room under control during mid-Summer. If room temps stay in the 70s I think you could keep tank temps reasonable with some fans.

 

[moreey]

Yes the room has central air.

And still, air temp now 78 and tank temp 89!!!! 8O

This is definately not good!!!

Since there is only LR in the tank, do I need to worry about any type of die off with this temp?

 

[Robf]

I have 2 mag 9.5s in the sump of my 29gal, and the heat is unbearable in my tank. Those monsters run HOT for little pumps. I also run a 2.5 for the Ca reactor, and 4 maxijets (2 1200's and 2 900's) my system is open top, and I have a fan blowing below my Nova pendant. Heat is not coming from the lamp... it's ALL pump heat. I know where you're coming from.

Personally, I'm concerned about the summer months. I began to have the heat issue in March, and it's only going to get worse. I'm installing a boatload of fans, and likely a quality iwaki or little giant retun pump.

jm$.02. Submersibles are convenient... but they do add a fair amount of heat to the water. Fans are an easy solution, but I'm already up to 1.5 gal of makeup water / day. I'm sure you've been through all the same things I've been through. You may wish to look into external pumps too.

R.