Cheapest Way To Control a Fan

[tablesalt]

I've been having some issues keeping my tank cool, was considering buying a chiller, but have found that a cheap desk fan will cool my tank from 81 down to 78 in about 3 hours, and should be more than sufficient for my needs. The tank is 45 gallons. However, if I leave the fan on, I have evaporation issues, and the heater (100w) struggles to keep up. What would be the cheapest way to have the fan rigged so that if the temperature in the tank hits 80 degrees, the fan kicks on?

 

[Retro Reefer]

I use inkbird controllers for heating and a cooling fan, they work great and only about $30 if you shop around a little

 

[Bob Escher]

I tried that couldn’t figure it out. But it was on my QT tank. But I have a apex on my main display and I use that for both my fan and heater but I know that isn’t cheaper

 

[tablesalt]

I use inkbird controllers for heating and a cooling fan, they work great and only about $30 if you shop around a little

This is exactly what I was looking for. Just ordered one. I think the $10 clip on fan and the $30 temperature controller will save me from the $600 chiller.

Thanks!

 

[Retro Reefer]

I tried that couldn’t figure it out. But it was on my QT tank. But I have a apex on my main display and I use that for both my fan and heater but I know that isn’t cheaper

The manual can be a little confusing, here is the set up process

Flow chart..

PLUG IN UNIT AND YOU WILL SEE SOMETHING SIMILAR TO THIS..

1 TO PROGRAM PUSH AND HOLD SET BUTTON UNTIL DISPLAY FLASHES
2 USE UP DOWN ARROWS TO GO TO FIRST PARAMETER tS TEMP SETTING, USE THE UP/DOWN AROWS TO SELECT 78.. THEN PUSH AND HOLD SET FOR THREE SECONDS TO STORE SETTING

3 REPEAT STEP ONE (push and hold set until it flashes)
4 PRESS UP DOWN ARROWS TO GO TO NEXT PARAMETER Hd HEATING DIFFERENTIAL, USE UP DOWN ARROWS TO SET WHEN the HEATER IS ACTIVATED (I use 1 degree) THEN PUSH AND HOLD SET FOR THREE SECONDS TO STORE

5 REPEAT STEP ONE (push and hold set until it flashes)
6 PRESS UP DOWN ARROWS TO GO TO NEXT PARAMETER, Cd COOLING DIFFERENTIAL AND USE UP DOWN TO SELECT YOUR VALUE, PUSH AND HOLD 3 SECONDS TO STORE

7 NEXT TWO STEPS ARE FOR ALARMS.. I DID NOT NEED THAT SO I SET MAX VALUES TO PREVENT IT FROM SOUNDING, JUST LIKE PRIOR STEPS.. REPEAT STEP ONE (push and hold set until it flashes) THEN USE ARROWS TO GO TO AH AND THEN AL (screen 5 and 6) SET YOUR VALUES AND PUSH AND HOLD SET TO STORE EACH DESIRED VALUE

8 REPEAT STEP ONE (push and hold set until it flashes) USE UP DOWN ARROWS TO SCROLL TO COMPRESSOR DELAY Pt ITS NOT USED WITH FAN SO SET TO 0, LIKE PRIOR STEPS PUSH SET FOR THREE SECONDS TO STORE

9 REPEAT STEP ONE (push and hold set until it flashes) SCROLL TO CA TEMPERATURE CALIBRATION, USE A ACCURATE TEMPERATURE PROB TO DETERMINE YOUR TANKS ACTUAL TEMP THEN SET INKBIRD TO MATCH AGAIN USING UP DOWN ARROWS THEN HOLD SET 3 SECONDS TO STORE PARAMETER.. I had to make a 0.8 adjustment to one of mine but the other was right on

10 FINAL STEP.. REPEAT STEP ONE (push and hold set until it flashes) SCROLL TO CF to set display preferences in Fahrenheit or Celsius, as before use arrows to select value then push and hold set to store

Hope this helps, if you have any questions just let me know

RR

 

[tablesalt]

I bought and setup the ink bird and it works perfectly. Between the new Inkbird (38$), a clip on desk fan ($10) and the heater I already have. I'm able to maintain the tank at a perfect 78 degrees without having to do anything. Thanks!