Aquarium Cabinet Ventilation Please Help

[Innocent_romeo]

Hi all.
I have a 200g tank with about a 40-50g sump. I have a small fan blowing across the surface of the sump water to keep the temp below 80. [we keep the AC a little warmer than most because it costs so much to cool it.) The problem that I'm seeing is a lot of condensation /moisture in the enclosed stand. The inside of the stand near the sump is often coated with moisture,everything is wet floor,walls,uv,sump pvc fittings and even the fan. I'm guessing this is because the fan is increasing evaporation of the sump water, and it has to go somewhere also my stand is enclosed so there is heck no way for ventilation except doors and i dont wanna make holes and damaged my stand to put that small cpu fans.one of my friend told me that if you coverup your sump completely that way you can getrid of this moisture problem so still confused because its hard to cover with all pvc fitting skimmer etc etc.its a major problem for me because i can see the walls of my stand is wet thats way too much moisture.

Note:Top is open with egg crates
I would appreciate any help you have. Thanks.

 

[Brew12]

Hi all.
I have a 200g tank with about a 40-50g sump. I have a small fan blowing across the surface of the sump water to keep the temp below 80. [we keep the AC a little warmer than most because it costs so much to cool it.) The problem that I'm seeing is a lot of condensation /moisture in the enclosed stand. The inside of the stand near the sump is often coated with moisture,everything is wet floor,walls,uv,sump pvc fittings and even the fan. I'm guessing this is because the fan is increasing evaporation of the sump water, and it has to go somewhere also my stand is enclosed so there is heck no way for ventilation except doors and i dont wanna make holes and damaged my stand to put that small cpu fans.one of my friend told me that if you coverup your sump completely that way you can getrid of this moisture problem so still confused because its hard to cover with all pvc fitting skimmer etc etc.its a major problem for me because i can see the walls of my stand is wet thats way too much moisture.

Note:Top is open with egg crates
I would appreciate any help you have. Thanks.

If you cover the sump the fan blowing across the surface won't work for cooling.

Unfortunately, the only options I see are to put a hole in the stand for an exhaust fan or to move your cooling fan to the top of the tank.

 

[TheEngineer]

Welcome to R2R!

I agree with Brew12. The water you are evaporating has to go somewhere. You could buy one of the damp rid setups to absorb some of the humidity but that’s a pretty expensive solution.

Running a fan across the top of the tank is a better solution. You could also go with a chiller but that’s expensive and uses a lot of power.

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

Hi all.
I have a 200g tank with about a 40-50g sump. I have a small fan blowing across the surface of the sump water to keep the temp below 80. [we keep the AC a little warmer than most because it costs so much to cool it.) The problem that I'm seeing is a lot of condensation /moisture in the enclosed stand. The inside of the stand near the sump is often coated with moisture,everything is wet floor,walls,uv,sump pvc fittings and even the fan. I'm guessing this is because the fan is increasing evaporation of the sump water, and it has to go somewhere also my stand is enclosed so there is heck no way for ventilation except doors and i dont wanna make holes and damaged my stand to put that small cpu fans.one of my friend told me that if you coverup your sump completely that way you can getrid of this moisture problem so still confused because its hard to cover with all pvc fitting skimmer etc etc.its a major problem for me because i can see the walls of my stand is wet thats way too much moisture.

Note:Top is open with egg crates
I would appreciate any help you have. Thanks.

Keep door alittle open, if no results, open a little more, till you get results. It's very humid in cabinet

 

[Crabs McJones]

Welcome to R2R!!

#WelcometoR2R

I'm in the process of doing something very similar to this on my tank. Basically you take computer a CPU fan and hook them up to a 12V power supply, cut a square into your stand where its structurally possible, and mount the fan in there.

 

[Greybeard]

I'd recommend some sort of external ventilation.

https://www.acinfinity.com/quiet-cabinet-fans/

 

[Billdogg]

For my recent canopy build I went with a dual fan setup with programmable temperature controller from www.coolerguys.com You could just as easily use a humidistat to control the fans, but inside the stand I'd be tempted to just leave them run 24/7. Be sure to have them blowing the air in to the stand rather than out. If you use them to pull the air out the humidity will greatly shorten their lifespan. Just make another hole to vent the air from.

It was for this reason (and for plumbing) that when I built my stand I left the back open from the top down about 8". It's high enough to protect the area behind the tank from any splashing/salt creep but also plenty large enough for passive ventilation.

hth

 

[Dom]

If your concern about cutting a hole in the stand is aesthetics, don't let it stop you. There are plenty of ways to install such a fan and not hurt the appearance of the stand.

I think the fans that GreyBeard suggested look really nice too!

So venting (IMO) is the best answer. And as mentioned previously, if you use a fan, draw fresh air into the sump area.

One last point: Until you make a decision, open the doors to give the moisture somewhere to go. I don't know what the long term effects of moisture on the structural integrity of the stand might be.

 

[KMench]

Welcome to R2R!!

#WelcometoR2R

I'm in the process of doing something very similar to this on my tank. Basically you take computer a CPU fan and hook them up to a 12V power supply, cut a square into your stand where its structurally possible, and mount the fan in there.

I did the same not too long ago. Cut a hole in the back of my stand and mounted the fan so you can’t see it or hear it really. I have mine running all the time now just to keep the humidity down in my stand.

 

[redfishbluefish]

If you have a fan blowing IN, (which is the right way), you need ventilation so the air can get OUT. Pop a hole somewhere...back of the stand comes to mind. If you need to go through a side or front, use a register to make it look pretty.

 

[Innocent_romeo]

Actually I just Noticed that there are 2 holes in my stand for wiring to go outside but nothing more.my question js whi this moisture is being created?
is it because of water temp or what?

 

[Innocent_romeo]

Check It Out.take a look on rear wall & bottom.
Water temp is 75

 

[Brew12]

whi this moisture is being created?

Its evaporation from your aquarium. My system evaporates between 1 and 2 gallons per day.

Water temp is 75

Are you caring for relatively cold water species? Most reef tanks are kept at a warmer temperature than that. I keep mine on the cool side at 78F.

If you raise the temperature of the water above the temperature of the house you will get less condensation within the stand.

 

[Innocent_romeo]

i can raise the temp to 78 no worries if it fix my problem but i dont think so because its way to muuch moist in my stand and i cant leave the door open all the time

 

[Innocent_romeo]

i am planning to coverup my sump even thts hard too because of all plumbing and skimmer

 

[Brew12]

i can raise the temp to 78 no worries if it fix my problem but i dont think so because its way to muuch moist in my stand and i cant leave the door open all the time

How warm do you keep your house? Judging from the pictures it looks to be warmer than the 75F of the aquarium. I think you will be amazed at the improvement if you keep your tank temperature above your home temperature.

 

[Innocent_romeo]

lol we dont run ac too much and usually my house temp stays 80 but the problem with the stand is its all closed i have one more tank with open stand and all good with it.

 

[Greybeard]

Not uncommon. Evaporation is even desirable, for half the year, at least, I'm happy to have the extra moisture in the air. Yeah, it kinda sux this time of year, but during the winter, it's great.

Ventilation and air movement are the keys. Evaporation into an un-ventilated space leads to mold. You don't want to go there. Add a fan, blowing in, and someplace for the air to get out (a loose fitting door is generally sufficient). Problem solved.

 

[Innocent_romeo]

from last night i started keeping my doors lil open but that much moisture in stand i dont think so its gonaa solve my issue

 

[Innocent_romeo]

Also putting a fan on top of tank somewhere by canoy doesnt make sense because my canopy and tank top is all open.i used egg crates so i think there is enough ventilation problem is the moist in stand