82 degrees without heater

[jajasonson]

My temp stays at 79-82 without a heater. My house thermostat is set to 72. Does this sound right or is it way off?

I have a 90 gallon with a 20 gallon sump. Is my equipment putting out that much heat? Here’s what I have:

Display:
ATI 6 bulb T5
2 jebao SOW-15

Sump:
Sedra pump (for euro reef skimmer)
1 Hydor Koralia 850
Sicce 3.0 return pump

I used to have 3 100w Eheim Jager trutemp heaters, but removed them since the temperature was so high.

My cheap digital thermometer and float thermometer have the same readings. Either they’re both wrong or my equipment is raising the temperature by 7-10 degrees! What do you think?

 

[TripFamAZ]

My temp stays at 79-82 without a heater. My house thermostat is set to 72. Does his sound right or is it way off?

I have a 90 gallon with a 20 gallon sump. Is my equipment putting out that much heat? Here’s what I have:

Display:
ATI 6 bulb T5
2 jebao SW-15

Sump:
Sedra pump (for euro reef skimmer)
1 Hydor Koralia 850
Sicce 3.0 return pump

I used to have 3 100w Eheim Jager trutemp heaters, but removed them since the temperature was so high.

My cheap digital thermometer and float thermometer have the same readings. Either they’re both wrong or my equipment is raising the temperature by 7-10 degrees! What do you think?

Not a huge help as I have a much smaller tank but I’m in AZ and even with our AC on all the time my tank still sits at 81-82 on the regular.

 

[jkcoral]

In my experience, T5s can pump out a lot of heat, but I don’t know if that would be raising your temp like that.

You might consider how much air flow is around the tank and also surface agitation. Increasing your surface agitation can help with the exchange between the tank and the cooler 72 degree air in your home. Adjusting the angle of the return nozzles or adding another power head that is aimed a little more towards the surface might help.

 

[MarineandReef Jaron]

This is possible. Do you have a lid on the tank? A glass lid will trap a lot of heat.

 

[m3xm3xm3x]

Also I use a small fan blowing above tank. It takes cold air from a/c and cool down your tank a bit. It’s working for me this summer.

 

[workhz]

Is the air actually 72 in your home or just what your thermostat is set to? What’s the air temp near the tank?

 

[jajasonson]

This is possible. Do you have a lid on the tank? A glass lid will trap a lot of heat.

There is no lid on the tank. There is also a lot of surface agitation. There is also an a/c vent nearby. The tank is in a corner of the house though, so what people are saying about increasing air flow makes sense.

 

[jajasonson]

Is the air actually 72 in your home or just what your thermostat is set to? What’s the air temp near the tank?

Good question. It’s just what the thermostat is set to. Will have to check air temp near tank. Thank you

 

[jajasonson]

Also I use a small fan blowing above tank. It takes cold air from a/c and cool down your tank a bit. It’s working for me this summer.

Going to have to try that. Thanks.

 

[MarineandReef Jaron]

I would confirm with multiple thermometers and start by using a fan to increase evaporation.

 

[Poseidon Johnson]

My "rescued" biocube stays at a constant 80°-80.2° I thought I was crazy cause i diddnt see a heater and never put one in, my fresh water tanks will drop danger low if a heater fails, I guess it's the salt that insulates the tank.

 

[ninjamyst]

Have you tried turning off the sow15 for half a day and see if that lowers the temperature? I am surprised you have to run two sow15 for a 90 gallon tank. That's A LOT of flow....

For reference, I live in Florida and AC is set to 78. Tank stays at 79 because I have a ceiling fan above the tank. Without ceiling fan, tank hits 83 easy.

 

[Gtinnel]

My "rescued" biocube stays at a constant 80°-80.2° I thought I was crazy cause i diddnt see a heater and never put one in, my fresh water tanks will drop danger low if a heater fails, I guess it's the salt that insulates the tank.

It’s usually caused by a piece of equipment producing the heat, or a cumulative effect of all equipment. I have an old skimmer that when running the tank stays consistently at 81 degrees. If I turn the skimmer off the temp drops to 79 before the heater turns on.

 

[Poseidon Johnson]

It’s usually caused by a piece of equipment producing the heat, or a cumulative effect of all equipment. I have an old skimmer that when running the tank stays consistently at 81 degrees. If I turn the skimmer off the temp drops to 79 before the heater turns on.

I just pulled the skimmer earlier to clean and inspect I was thinking maybe I had some sort of heater skimmer combo but that makes perfect sense in a way it is a combo cause the temp did drop a degree in the time it took to take it apart and clean.

 

[Gtinnel]

I just pulled the skimmer earlier to clean and inspect I was thinking maybe I had some sort of heater skimmer combo but that makes perfect sense in a way it is a combo cause the temp did drop a degree in the time it took to take it apart and clean.

It’s not that it would be designed to heat the water it could be that the pump is producing more heat than normal.
All pumps produce some heat it just usually isn’t enough to matter.

 

[Poseidon Johnson]

It’s not that it would be designed to heat the water it could be that the pump is producing more heat than normal.
All pumps produce some heat it just usually isn’t enough to matter.

It was gunked up, looked as though it had never been maintained which would cause strain on the pump and more heat, I'll keep a even closer eye on my temp to see if cleaning it drops a few degrees. Thanks

 

[jabberwock]

I had a hot tank problem. Turns out my return pump was all gunked up. I pulled it and cleaned it up good and I am stable again.

 

[Poseidon Johnson]

I had a hot tank problem. Turns out my return pump was all gunked up. I pulled it and cleaned it up good and I am stable again.

I'll pull it now I bet it's gunked up also, thanks

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

My "rescued" biocube stays at a constant 80°-80.2° I thought I was crazy cause i diddnt see a heater and never put one in, my fresh water tanks will drop danger low if a heater fails, I guess it's the salt that insulates the tank.

No, it has nothing to do with the salt. It's the equipment that gives off heat, the lids, the lights, etc

 

[Poseidon Johnson]

No, it has nothing to do with the salt. It's the equipment that gives off heat, the lids, the lights, etc

Ahh ok, I figured they use salt to keep the roads from freezing over and to keep pipes from freezing so maybe there was some insulating properties of the saltwater. I'm deep cleaning everything in the sump now to make sure its all running smoothly as possible. Thanks