Chiller or AC?

[jrobbins]

ok, as a followup to a thread i posted earlier which got lots of responses (of varying utility), i have another question.

i was thinking about getting a chiller for the summer months, but a chiller for my 90 (approx 1/10 hp or greater) seems to pull even more electric than my AC does. i never had heat issues while the temp was in the 70's, so i am thinking that if i just run my AC to keep my apartment around 72-75 i could do away with a chiller and save some electric to boot (as i would still run the ac even if i had a chiller. i cant live in my fishtank afterall...)

anybody have any thoughts on this?

 

[Deanos]

Ac

 

[marki24]

Ac

:iamwithst

 

[meschaefer]

If you are going to run AC in the room anyway... then there is nor reason for a chiller in my opinion. I would add a fan to boot, and you should be all set for the summer months.

 

[jrobbins]

i was just wondering, bc to keep the room at 72-75 i am going to have to run the ac pretty much full blast, and for the better part of the day.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

AC all day. set it at 75 and leave it run. There are plenty of units out there with a power saver feature as well. Everyone in the house benefits from an AC not just the fish

 

[Wes]

you might need a chiller regardless depending on yours setup. My place stays at 74 degrees all year round w/ central hvac and my chiller comes on 3x a day.

You won't really no if u can get away with just a/c until you actually try it. Even if it never comes on its good to have one for emergency situations like a/c unit breaking etc.

Window units are prob different but my central a/c uses way more energy than my chiller.

 

[Chris5]

If you are going to run AC in the room anyway... then there is nor reason for a chiller in my opinion. I would add a fan to boot, and you should be all set for the summer months.

Great thread here, I am a big fan of the AC only because its literally 1ft away from my tank and it bring down not only the room temp but the tank temp significantly ... Only thing i would be interested in to see what the cost differences were between running either one for the summer ...

But i agree if you got ac and it does the job it will lower your tank as well, no need for the chiller ...

 

[adamrose]

you might need a chiller regardless depending on yours setup. My place stays at 74 degrees all year round w/ central hvac and my chiller comes on 3x a day.

You won't really no if u can get away with just a/c until you actually try it. Even if it never comes on its good to have one for emergency situations like a/c unit breaking etc.

Window units are prob different but my central a/c uses way more energy than my chiller.

+1

 

[Chongpark27]

I would go with the AC.

 

[ssmtcarlo]

Ac all the way

 

[wayne]

maybe you need to try the ac and see if it will do the job and if it does basically your question is answered

 

[qy7400]

AC and fans in the canopy are all I've ever had, I have the chiller but never needed it.

 

[ReefHunter]

Before I moved to the 150 I had a 90 SPS and used AC for temp control in summer. The only time I ever had an issue was with a power outage and then I had to resort to RO water that I made into ice blocks for emeregency purposes. What type of lighting are you using? I had dual 250 w HQI and 220w worth of t-5.

 

[NYPDFrogman]

A/C not only will it keep tank cool(and you too) it will help control humidity in the room

 

[reefs4life]

I say AC...I have my tank in my room, which is pretty small. I have a chiller on the tank but when it goes on it makes so much heat and since the room is so small it ends up heating the room up so much that the chiller has to stay on 24/7 to keep the water cold since it makes the room temp so hot from being on

 

[jrobbins]

maybe you need to try the ac and see if it will do the job and if it does basically your question is answered

the cost of being wrong could be pretty steep....

 

[jrobbins]

Before I moved to the 150 I had a 90 SPS and used AC for temp control in summer. The only time I ever had an issue was with a power outage and then I had to resort to RO water that I made into ice blocks for emeregency purposes. What type of lighting are you using? I had dual 250 w HQI and 220w worth of t-5.

i'm running 2 175w halides. no actinics. i haven't had any heat issues to date, as my place is pretty cold over the winter. however, this will be the first summer running halides and i figured it couldn't hurt to get some input.

btw, how did the ro icecubes work for you? i would imagine that you would need quite a few to cool a 90, and how quickly did they melt?

stupid question - how long can you have a power-outage and still have ice?

 

[ZANYMASTER]

I use a chiller because the room It's in does not have the A/C running often so therefore I must keep it cool with a chiller.Electric bills are higher anyway with the 3 a/c's in the apartment.

 

[Zuska]

i have the ac and chiller. wit the mh lights i cant have the tank at 80 with just an ac. i like to be cool and have my tank cool. so both isnt so bad...