What's your expert advice on CHILLERS... I did get one but..

[scifi_3d_zoo]

I did a search here and only found some mild suggestions about using fans all over. I'm actually considering this b/c of my bad experiences so far.

I bought a PRIME Drop-IN 1/4. I had it next to my stand to see what it sounds like and it sounds like... a A/C WINDOW UNIT. If that isn't bad enough the plastic housing vibrates a bit too. VERY disappointing. And of course it says everywhere.. "DO NOT" place inside a closet or stand. They need a lot of ventilation I guess. But it's too damn noisey to have out anywhere. RIDICULOUS. :?

On some IN-LINE ones I did notice that even the manufactures say not to enclose them BUT if you do try to have space/ventilation/fans/etc. I just don't think my stand (90 gal) will hold it in the bottom with my wet/dry and have the space/ventilation. I just so happen to have a closet right on the other side of the wall the tank is against. I would never run an IN-LINE there b/c of the fear of water leaks.. however remote. But a DROP-IN yea. It would reach too... power/coil/etc... to the tank. But there's only 6" in the front and back for ventilation.

Boy..this whole thing has been a nightmare. I live in Florida and I'm basically running 83'F lights out up to 86'F with lights on. Kinda warm. Maybe fans and stuff can get it down to 80'F or so and I can dump the chiller? THIS SUCKS. :evil:

 

[Anonymous]

That's pretty high. I run mine at 75-77. If 83F was your high then that's not that bad as long as your low isn't far away. Large temp fluctuations are bad for corals and fish.

You could consider getting an A/C for your home instead. If it's warm in your home, then a chiller doesn't help much. Btw, my chiller isn't very quiet either.

 

[Anonymous]

So you're pissed off because you didn't have the presence of mind to ask questions (here, anywhere) about the limitations and operation caveats of a piece of equipment before you bought it? :?

 

[scifi_3d_zoo]

I do have AC of course. And it's pretty chilly in the house. 76-77. I think it has more to do with dual HQI's and dual Actinics.

Coprolite: That's not helpful at all dude. I'm pissed off b/c there's really not a lot of options here, and I was expecting some noise. But I was disappointed in how noisy it actually was and how picky they are about location (24" clearance around it). Now I'm looking at seeing it I can put it in this closet (maybe putting fans in there) and punching a hole in my wall for the coil to pass through.

 

[Anonymous]

An aquarium chiller is basically a window unit compressor with a submersible or pass through heat exchanger. Not much you can do about the noise. I'm sure you can get by with less than 24" clearance all around. If you put them in an enclosed space they will heat up the space and be less efficent. Do not put it in you stand. All it will do is heat up the inside of the stand.

I have dual HQI and dual actinics on a 150 and I run my tank at 80-82 in summer kept in check by 4 fans.

 

[scifi_3d_zoo]

Yea. I think I could get by with even 6" of clearance but it would get really hot in there with nowhere for the heat to escape. I was thinking about so many things I forgot all about the heat in the stand that would build-up... oh yea.. duh. That would be counterproductive. I saw one IN-LINE that said it could be in the stand (with fans)... also it said it only has about 25 dcb of noise. Maybe I can find on the internet somewhere how loud that is. I wish I could run it at 76-77. I noticed every time I buy something the water is always cold. I'd like to be more efficient but the whole chiller thing isn't working. I'd have to have one of those crazy setups with a separate equipment room.

 

[IslandCrow]

Check out the JBJ Arctica in-line chiller. I own their 1/6 HP model, and it's very quiet. I can hear it when it turns on if I'm in the same room, but it very quickly fades into the background noise. If I don't hear it come on, I literally have to look over at it to see if it is on.

As for where to put it, what I did was built a small wooden enclosure that I could place beside the stand. Stain it the same (or approximately the same) color as your stand and it should match pretty nicely. It doesn't exactly have to be structurally sound, so you don't have to have any master carpentry skills. I'm not overly worried about water leaks with my chiller, but I did silicon the joints on the bottom of the enclosure so it could hold about half a gallon or so of water if there are leaks. Now, you will need to leave the front and back open so you can get good air circulation into and out of the unit. That will be absolutely essential for all A/C units. Some people even vent their chillers outside or into the attic, but that's not really necessary.

 

[youareafever]

i remember when i was looking for a chiller someone recomended me the teclima ones. well i have one now its it pretty good, the noise isnt all that bad and it has a sileint mode on it too (which just slows down the fan a little). you can also get a UV and a heater in it if you want to. i thought that was pretty cool.