What is the best 1/4 hp chiller?

[stoneriff]

I'm in the market for a chiller for my 72 gallon bow front mixed reef tank. I probably have about 100 gallons between the tank and sump. My apartment gets ridiculously hot in the summer. The A/C bills last summer almost put me in the poor house. I want to keep the tank at a nice 77 or 78 degrees all the time. My tank is in the living room, so it needs to be quiet, and if possible, ENERGY EFFICIENT!!! Any suggestions? Thank you.

 

[emmanuel]

Have you tried fans on the tank my chiller hardly turned on in the summer .
Cant really give input on chiller the one I got from marine depot broke after 6 months and marine depot said sorry the manufacturer went out of business you"re on your own

 

[alistair]

Got a 1/3 chiller with duel stage Ranco controller for sale. I used it on my 90g+30g sump in a house with no A/C - $500

 

[stoneriff]

Have you tried fans on the tank my chiller hardly turned on in the summer .
Cant really give input on chiller the one I got from marine depot broke after 6 months and marine depot said sorry the manufacturer went out of business you"re on your own

I have fans. They work now, but my apartment is always hot. They do nothing in the summer. I really need a chiller. If I didn't use the A/C in the summer, I would definitely come home to seafood stew. The cost of the A/C on for 3 months is crazy. Any other suggestions????

 

[juiceguy]

a chiller would only add more heat to your room unless you vent it out somehow, i have a chiller but i prefer to run the a/c.....if i have to pay con ed i might as well be comfortable cooling the room by a/c. my chiller only kicks on only for an hour on those really hot days and in that hour it gives off a lot of heat. i use a tradewinds chiller, it comes with a 1 year warranty and they offer a 5 year extension for $50 i think.

 

[stoneriff]

a chiller would only add more heat to your room unless you vent it out somehow, i have a chiller but i prefer to run the a/c.....if i have to pay con ed i might as well be comfortable cooling the room by a/c. my chiller only kicks on only for an hour on those really hot days and in that hour it gives off a lot of heat. i use a tradewinds chiller, it comes with a 1 year warranty and they offer a 5 year extension for $50 i think.

Thank you for the advice. I understand. I know the A/C is great, but a lot of times I'm only home late in the evening. The A/C would be on in my bedroom only. The tank is in the living room. I know that a chiller would only use 3000 or so BTU's. My A/C is 10000 BTU's. Get my drift? $$$. Thank you.

 

[stoneriff]

Anyone else? I could use the advice of some experienced reefers. Thanks.

 

[pecan2phat]

Chillers are more efficient then room ACs. Your cooling the water vs the entire ambient room temp.
It would be ideal if you can somehow vent the chiller exhaust in another room with an open window.
You can get away with a 1/10 hp but I would look for a 1/5 hp unit.

 

[ClosetFishGeek]

If you want the absolute best chiller on the market go with the Tradewinds unit with a Ranco duel stage controller. It has a copeland condenser and is a quality peice of equipment. To be honest a 1/4 hp tradewind on your tank is overkill !!! you probably need 1/5hp. I have used this chiller(1/4 hp) on my tanks for years...3 to be exact and it is still working like a champ(when needed) The only thing about trade wind chillers is they do not look the part of some of the other chillers...but make no mistake this thing is an animal. As said earlier their warranty is exceptional at 1 year standard and 5 extended.

 

[cono]

a great chiller is a jbj have a 1/4 hp on my 90 gallon works great and it comes with a 2 year man warantee have it for about 2 yaesr had a small problem and teh fixed it for free