Broken A/C casualties

OwduaNM · Aug 31, 2020

My central A/C failed last week in the middle of the hottest stretch of days this summer in the Midwest.

My home got up to 89 degrees for 2 days. Unfortunately I do not have a chiller on my 32 gallon AIO. So far, I’ve lost my prized Scoly, and a blasto. My hammer looks all but gone at this point and one of more torches is looking really rough. My Duncan has not opened up since, but does not shows signs of bleaching or tissue rot. My Monti seems to have changed color but still show signs of new growth so maybe it will pull through.

My other corals look like they will survive.

I know these things happen, but still dealing with the let down. Looking for any words of encouragement others can share. Motivation is a big part of recovering and preventing further loss.

JustAnotherNanoTank · Aug 31, 2020

Well shoot idk about encouraging but what steps have you taken to try to cool the tank down?

Reverse photo period? Lights at night when cooler outside.

HUGE fan blowing on the top of the water constantly?

frozen water bottle to swish around while monitoring to keep temps low?

As far as positive, you got this, try harder. I know it can be hard due to work but take every step possible.

dzfish17 · Aug 31, 2020

Bummer... I have lots of fans and keep bottles of water frozen in case of power outage. 2 days is a long time... Ours usually only goes out for a few hrs at a time. Hang in there.

OwduaNM · Aug 31, 2020

I have the temperature under control now. I put a fan on it and shut the lights off when it was happening but temp still got well above 80 degrees. I wasn’t home when it first started happening so all my actions were a bit too late.
A/C is fixed and temp is back to around 77.
I actually did not think about the frozen water bottle. I know not to put ice cubes in to prevent copper leaching, etc.

OwduaNM · Aug 31, 2020

dzfish17 said:
Bummer... I have lots of fans and keep bottles of water frozen in case of power outage. 2 days is a long time... Ours usually only goes out for a few hrs at a time. Hang in there.

This ties back to a lesson I should have learned from watching BRS. Know what you are going to do ahead of time. It never occurred to me to use frozen water bottles.

OwduaNM · Aug 31, 2020

dzfish17 said:
Bummer... I have lots of fans and keep bottles of water frozen in case of power outage. 2 days is a long time... Ours usually only goes out for a few hrs at a time. Hang in there.

The compressor in our central air unit failed. It’s pretty rare for that to happen, but unfortunately it did. And by the time I realized it, it was evening. Had service the next morning, then new compressor installed the day after (had to be ordered/delivered, etc).

robbyg · Aug 31, 2020

I am also curious as 32 gallons in an 89 degree house is not a huge problem to solve so long as you have electricity. I have had one week of 98 degree temps and no cooling on 90gal+sump. I was running around like a mad man buying up bagged ICE at the supermarkets. My wife was busy putting the ice in smaller bags and filling the freezer. I kept the tank near 80 degree through the ordeal.
Lots of options are available when you have electricity.

MichaelReefer · Aug 31, 2020

A fan blowing at the top of the water may help.

BlennyTime · Aug 31, 2020

There are always setbacks in this hobby, it’s what makes it fun to me actually. Pretty much any other hobby, you can just buy your way to success with the best equipment and stuff. In this hobby, you have to know what you are doing and how to use it, and take the time to learn how to maintain the system. Some of the best reefs I’ve seen are with basic equipment but are labors of love for the reefer.

We‘ve all been there and it sucks in the moment, but is a good experience to grow and learn from.

BlennyTime · Aug 31, 2020

And agree with others, buy some water bottles and rotate them through the freezer and in to the tank to cool things down.

rcpalmer1 · Aug 31, 2020

I live in Florida and have had to cool off my tank. I turned off my lights. Coral can live for weeks with the lights off. I used gallon Ziploc bags filled with ice.

OwduaNM · Aug 31, 2020

BlennyTime said:
There are always setbacks in this hobby, it’s what makes it fun to me actually. Pretty much any other hobby, you can just buy your way to success with the best equipment and stuff. In this hobby, you have to know what you are doing and how to use it, and take the time to learn how to maintain the system. Some of the best reefs I’ve seen are with basic equipment but are labors of love for the reefer.

We‘ve all been there and it sucks in the moment, but is a good experience to grow and learn from.

Thank @BlennyTime you are right. The joy and sense of accomplishment comes from the challenge not from it being easy.

rcpalmer1 · Aug 31, 2020

But with that said, don't give up on corals to quickly. I have had some corals I was sure we're dead. I always leave them in the tank if a can. I have had some that I could not see any living tissue on. Then up to 6 months later I have had them start to grow back. In any case, I will never pull out a coral until algae covers the skeleton.

Karen00 · Aug 31, 2020

So sorry for your loss!!! These situations are always hard!! Every loss hurts as we all know and we've all had them. I can vouch for the fan in an emergency. I had a floor fan that I put up on a stool so it blew across the surface of my 15g. I was plesantly shocked that it dropped the temp by 5 degrees. I didn't think it would do that much. Fortunately that was good enough until I could get the temp stabilized again. I like the suggestion about frozen water bottles to bring it down more if needed (or if you don't have a fan). I didn't think of that before. I'm also looking to invest in a chiller.

Biglew11 · Aug 31, 2020

sorry for your losses. like others have said leave the corals in until there's algae growing on the skeleton. use this as a learning experience, you'll know what to do next time you have a heat issue. 82 degrees usually isn't extreme 83-84 start to panic. i keep about six 5 pound cooler ice blocks in freezer just incase for my 75. i can drop the temp about 1 degree per hour with two blocks at a time.