Chiller or no chiller thats the ???

[jumpincactus]

Well Chris here is the skinny on my tank. I am using in a closed loop a Dolphin 3000 Ampmaster. For my sump return I am using anothe Dolphin 2100. The lighting is in a custom canopy it is running two 36" blue actinics rated for 40 watts. Also two 250 watt MH Iwaski 10,000 K bulbs with Icecap ballasts. You had asked what my setup was because you were concerned aboout my filtration pumps adding heat.

The summers here in Seattle are very mild. Very rarely do we hit 90 degrees and although we have no air con we are shaded by a wooded lot and the internal temps in the home never really peak over 85 deg. It can get humid as we are 15 miles from the Pacific and 4 miles fromLake Washington. The MH lights are approx 8 inches above the tank.

I am just wondering if I could save 600 bucks and not add a chiller. I would like to hear from folks that do not use a chiller. And that have tanks based on all critter types. SPS,LPS and so forth.

The money I save on the chiller would be better spent on a Calc reactor or Kalwasser dosing pumps. So thats where I am at.

 

[ChrisRD]

With a well ventilated canopy and some fans you'll probably be fine most of the time. I would be a little concerned with 85 degree ambient temps, however, especially if it's humid. It's hard to say for sure as it really depends on how far above ambient temps the tank normally runs (something only you can know).

If there's an outdoor window in the room, one alternative is to get a cheap window AC. If you start having extra hot days you can throw the AC unit in the window to help cool and dehumidify the room the tank is in.

 

[The_Big_Fish]

Dehumidifiers can be your best friend in helping you to cool your tank.
Thay can be had fairly sheap as well when compaired to the cost of an AC unit.
http://home.listings.ebay.com/Heating-C ... ngItemList

 

[Anonymous]

I'd go the window AC route if you need too. The best thing is to just monitor the water temperature and act accordingly. You could drive to HD and pick up a window AC and have it installed in no time (assuming a HD is nearby).

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Seeing that you do not have a central AC unit. I would either get the chiller or a window AC for that room.

 

[trido]

After litteraly living down the road from you for six years and never having any problems with my two FW tanks (of course i didnt have 600 watts of light heating them up). I wouldnt worry about A/C for now. Seattle as you know averages mid to upper 70s most summer. You may agree that there are about two weeks where it hangs in the 80s' and one week it gets in the 90s on average. Most Seattlites cant justify central A/C for three weeks of the year. I would think that with some cooling fans we will be alright up until the those rare days of 90s. On those days. Leave the lights off and call it a cloudy day on the reef. Worst case scenario. As Louey said "Run to HD or Lowes and pick up that A/C when its absolutely necessary"

Just my very inexperienced opinion. I guess we'll have to play it by ear.

 

[The_Big_Fish]

I'm serious guys. you would be very surprised what a dehumidifier can actualy do for temp.

 

[trido]

Does my 80CFM bath fan installed in the ceiling of my tank/laundry room count B.F.?

 

[ChrisRD]

Exhaust fans and dehumidifiers will definitely help. Anything that removes heat/humidity from the ambient air will increase the evaporative cooling potential for the tank.

 

[Anonymous]

Evaporative cooling works great.

Aim some fans at the surface of the water. You will need allot more top off but it usually works well.
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[Anonymous]

I would use a window AC over a dehumidifier any day. A window AC does some dehumidification, but it also cools the room. That makes the reefer and the reef more comfortable.

Dehumidifiers eat up electricity at about the same pace as an AC unit.

I have both, because I get condensation problems on cool nights. I have my dehumidifier on a timer to come on a few hours each night in the winter. I ran it 24/7 the first month I had it an my next month's power bill was $100 higher than the highest one I had ever received before. 8O

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Evaporative cooling works great.

Aim some fans at the surface of the water. You will need allot more top off but it usually works well.

Agreed. Temps here can easily stay in the upper 80's to low 90's for a week at a time, with humidity to boot.

I have a simple clip on fan that I blow on the surface of the water, and temp stays perfectly steady at 80-81 all summer no matter what.

Evaporation is a bit high, but topping off is easy.

 

[moggyhill]

I use fans with my canopy so whenever the lights come on the fans kick in. I also have a couple of fans blowing over my sump. That helps alot. However here in Florida my chiller kicks on 90% of the time the lights are on.

 

[Anonymous]

Have you ever seen those cooling towers, well probably not because the only place I saw them was on a nuke base in Idaho.

Anyway, pump some water up to the top of one of those old fashioned washing boards and let it run back down into the sump.


I always wondered how well that would work :lol:

 

[ChrisRD]

It can work - there are aquarium supply companies like Deltec now producing evaporative coolers for aquarium applications.

 

[Anonymous]

I lived at FT Lewis for 3 years and had a 55g with 500W of Halides on it and had no issues with heat. I kept the house cool with fans and had no issues.