Chill Solutions CSXC-1 Unboxing and Installation

[reefiniteasy]

In the small BioCube the only option is the third/return pump chamber. The middle chamber has all the filter material and the first chamber has the heater. I did extend one the output of the chiller line so it would reach closer to the intake of the return pump. The intake of the chiller is a shorter line so it sits higher up in the chamber. So far things seem to be working just fine. I originally had the same concerns, but so far I think we are ok.
I made this change almost right away. I had the heater at 76 and the chiller set at 77 and it wasn't working. When I rated the chiller to 78 degrees it magically started working.

 

[reefiniteasy]

Fron your pics, it looks like inlet and outlet are in the same chamber, along with the return. Is the heater in there too?
My thought is that you may be recirculating a large portion of the chilled water back into the inlet, providing little benefit to the tank. If possible, you might want to relocate one of those.
If your heater is in there too, you probably should move the outlet directly into the tank next to the tunze's outflow. Chilled water flowing onto the NeoTherm would cause it to turn on, effectively negating the chiller's effects.

In the small BioCube the only option is the third/return pump chamber. The middle chamber has all the filter material and the first chamber has the heater. I did extend one the output of the chiller line so it would reach closer to the intake of the return pump. The intake of the chiller is a shorter line so it sits higher up in the chamber. So far things seem to be working just fine. I originally had the same concerns, but so far I think we are ok.

I'd consider at least a 2° difference, if not 3°, between the heater and chiller. The heater does not provide a constant 76.0° stream, it will fluctuate because, well, thermodynamics. Likewise, the chiller is providing water colder than its setpoint. Setpoints that close together and the two systems may fight each other.*
Even though we say stability is key, during the course of a day, tropical ocean temps at 6' depth will change 3-4°. Water in tidal pools change even more... sometimes 25, 35 degrees. 2° diff during a day is no sweat.

I made this change almost right away. I had the heater at 76 and the chiller set at 77 and it wasn't working. When I rated the chiller to 78 degrees it magically started working.

 

[Adamantium]

In the small BioCube the only option is the third/return pump chamber. The middle chamber has all the filter material and the first chamber has the heater. I did extend one the output of the chiller line so it would reach closer to the intake of the return pump. The intake of the chiller is a shorter line so it sits higher up in the chamber. So far things seem to be working just fine. I originally had the same concerns, but so far I think we are ok.



I made this change almost right away. I had the heater at 76 and the chiller set at 77 and it wasn't working. When I rated the chiller to 78 degrees it magically started working.

How weird. Am I understanding right: the chiller wasn’t working at 77, but when you set it one degree higher, to 78, it did?

 

[Adamantium]

It is working great so far. My heater is set at 76 and the chiller is set at 78. When the AC is on the room the tank sits at 77.2 degrees. When the AC is off and the classroom is between 85-90 degrees the chiller runs nonstop and the tank doesn't go over 78.5 degrees.



At the beginning I didn't think the chiller was doing anything. The tank was at 82-84 degrees and not moving. It took 36-48 hours for the tank to stabilize and everything has been perfect since. How long did you have it running on the tank before you gave up? Over what period of time did the temp rise back up to 84 degrees, I'm wondering if it ran longer if it would then begin to drop again like it did on my tank. What pump are you using with it? Maybe water flow through the chiller is too fast? I'm not sure.

I've had it going for almost 4 days now :/ It's pushing out heat, so it sure seems like it's working, and it works well on a small pail of water, just not my tank. I'm using the Rio 180 that it comes with.

 

[reefiniteasy]

How weird. Am I understanding right: the chiller wasn’t working at 77, but when you set it one degree higher, to 78, it did?

I was just commenting to the point that the two, heater and chiller should be set 2 degrees apart so they don't compete/fight with each other. Once I did that I was getting the temp I wanted. It was always working, just had to get it to what I wanted.

I've had it going for almost 4 days now :/ It's pushing out heat, so it sure seems like it's working, and it works well on a small pail of water, just not my tank. I'm using the Rio 180 that it comes with.

Hmmm... If your tank was 84 and your fan cooled it to 80 and you shut the fan, then of course it will rise back to 84. If you then hook up the chiller and the water is still 84, then the chiller isn't functioning properly. Now which model do you have? the one with digital readout or the dial?

 

[Adamantium]

I was just commenting to the point that the two, heater and chiller should be set 2 degrees apart so they don't compete/fight with each other. Once I did that I was getting the temp I wanted. It was always working, just had to get it to what I wanted.



Hmmm... If your tank was 84 and your fan cooled it to 80 and you shut the fan, then of course it will rise back to 84. If you then hook up the chiller and the water is still 84, then the chiller isn't functioning properly. Now which model do you have? the one with digital readout or the dial?

I have the model with the dial. It seemingly works, as it puts out heat, and cools a 1 gallon bowl of water, but it doesn’t seem to do squat on my tank.

 

[reefiniteasy]

I have the model with the dial. It seemingly works, as it puts out heat, and cools a 1 gallon bowl of water, but it doesn’t seem to do squat on my tank.

Any update? Has it worked? Have you given up on it?

 

[Adamantium]

Any update? Has it worked? Have you given up on it?

I actually moved it to my axolotl tank, which has significantly less equipment on it, and therefor a lower temperature, and it’s bringing it down a solid 4-5 degrees. It’s a 20 gallon tank.

I think my tank just has too much equipment generating heat in too tiny of a space. It gets all the way up to 86 without a chiller.

 

[reefiniteasy]

I actually moved it to my axolotl tank, which has significantly less equipment on it, and therefor a lower temperature, and it’s bringing it down a solid 4-5 degrees. It’s a 20 gallon tank.

I think my tank just has too much equipment generating heat in too tiny of a space. It gets all the way up to 86 without a chiller.

I’m glad you found another use for it. That sucks though that it didn’t work for your reef. You are probably right about the other pieces of equipment producing heat. I only have the return pump in the chamber with the chiller pump. Sorry I couldn’t help.

 

[reefiniteasy]

So, just a quick update. This little chiller is a beast! School was cancelled Tuesday and Wednesday due to Hurricane Dorian (which missed us, thankfully!).Thats 5 days of no AC. I went in to my classroom 3 times and the chiller was running and holding steady at 78 degrees. I could't be happier!

 

[immortl]

Regarding only having the third chamber available for intake and output...

When I plumed my chaeto reactor in to my BioCube, I put the pump in the third chamber, but then for the return, I used 2 90 degree elbows with some tubing in between and bridged the gap between the back of the tank and the back wall of the display and have the return shooting down the back wall of the display. Works well.

I have not heard of these before, but have wondered about peltier coolers. I think I'm going to pick one of these up. With the 'regular' return pump, the chaeto reactor pump, and the skimmer all in chambers 2 and 3 combined either daytime LEDs or nighttime LED chaeto lights, my temps can hit 83 or higher (I add frozen water bottles at 82/83) over the course of the day, with room temps at 70-72. This seems like a perfect solution.

Thanks for posting about this.

 

[reefiniteasy]

think I'm going to pick one of these up. With the 'regular' return pump, the chaeto reactor pump, and the skimmer all in chambers 2 and 3 combined either daytime LEDs or nighttime LED chaeto lights, my temps can hit 83 or higher (I add frozen water bottles at 82/83) over the course of the day, with room temps at 70-72. This seems like a perfect solution.

Did you purchase the chiller? I would love to know how it's working out for you. If you haven't yet, pick up some black vinyl tubing from BRS 1/2" ID 5/8" OD to replace the tubing that comes with the chiller. I have found that I am getting algae growth in the tubing as a result of my classroom fluorescent lights and the sunlight streaming in from the windows. I don't know how algae will affect the chiller long term but I am going to swap out my tubing to try to prevent it in the first place. I will take a picture of the algae growth tomorrow and I will also post an updated picture once I swap out the tubing.

Regardless of the tubing, this little chiller is a beast! My tank doesn't go a degree over 78. I couldn't be happier.

 

[Martingale]

I have this chiller. Was on an approx ~24 gallon system. I think a controller is a necessity as it will constantly turn on/off at the set temperature. With a controller you can set the chiller a degree or two lower than you actually want and have the controller kick it off to prevent this. If the controller fails the chiller should still prevent itself from cooling to much.

It can be loud, but the above really helped that. A constant drone is better than a constant pulse up and down.

I never paid much attention to what it was cooling and at what rate, but before it my tank was regularly climbing to 85 due a lot of equipment for a nano, being near a window, and not really keeping the AC on. This kept it at 78 anytime I checked and I regularly noticed it on for a bit to then cut off for the day.

 

[immortl]

I have not purchased the chiller yet. I was traveling for work for a few weeks and now that I'm home, the temperatures have dropped and the house is around 60-65 during the day instead of 70 (yes, we keep it cooler than most). This ambient drop has been enough to keep the tank temps around 78. I will pick one up over the winter in preparation for next spring/summer and I will be sure to pick up the black hose as you recommend, thanks for the tip.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[reefiniteasy]

Well it's been 8 months. This chiller is a workhorse. My aquarium is at a constant 77 degrees. No issues with the chiller. I routinely use a can of compressed air to clean out the heatsink. It also worked flawlessly over our two week winter break. I also felt inspired this morning and unmounted the chiller and changed out the tubing. I replaced the clear 1/2" tubing with black tubing. I don't know if this would be an issue outside of my classroom, but the clear tubing became home to a ridiculous amount of algae growth, a combination of green, brown and the red variety. I believe it is because of the fluorescent lights in the classroom. The process was fairly easy. My only worry was dripping water into the chiller's electronics. I was extra careful. I have to replace the Rio 180 pump. I decided to clean the impeller housing, it was gross, and as soon as I opened it the silicone o-ring disintegrated. I ordered a Sicce Syncra Nano pump (110gph) to replace it. It's working fine now, but there is a slight vibration as the impeller cover is not tight fitting at the moment. I'm sure it'll be fine for a few days as we await the new pump. The only downside is that I will have to disassemble the tubing again to install the new pump. Oh well! After 8 months I can say definitively, if you need a micro chiller, this unit doesn't disappoint.

 

[GK3]

I picked one up from Craigslist, and the darn thing just isn't cooling my tank. It started at 80 (thanks to a fan) and just climbed and climbed to almost 84 when I put this on, and turned off the fan. It might as well have been adding heat with the pump. I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. It's especially weird because I tried it in ~1 gallon of water, and it worked great, so I know it works. Any thoughts?

It's in an open area, so it's not like the heat output is hitting the tank.

What’s you tank size

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

I’m sorry, but you missed the point. Everything I’ve read on these forums say that a reef tank can survive at what seems to be any temperature, 72 to mid 80s. However, temperature change needs to be slow and not quick as to cause issues.

When the AC is on my classroom it is 76 and that’s where the tank sits. However I have seen quick spikes as high as 84. I’m sorry, but from what I have read, having my tank on a Friday at 77 and then Saturday it’s at 84 and Monday it’s back to 77 could be too much of a change for such a small habitat. Not to mention my room can hit well into the 90s over the summer with no AC.

Anyway, can’t I run my tank at whatever temperature I want? I am not around my tank at night, from 5pm to 8am and on weekends. Wouldn’t you do anything to stabilize your tank as to prevent an issue when you’re not there?

So I have plenty of reasons to want my tank at 77. Also, I could say the same about running your tank at 85. Why condition your tank to do that. With available technology there is no reason to run that high. Do you post on everyone’s threads when they mention temp that they can keep their tank at 85 and they have no reason to do what they are doing? Or was I just the lucky recipient of a comment that’s got nothing to do with my unboxing, installation, and review of this device.

I have a chiller too at 75 °, no issues, most sensitive corals
Meet Deadpool, I cut it up for frags and heals in less than 2 days, Deadpool

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

Well it's been 8 months. This chiller is a workhorse. My aquarium is at a constant 77 degrees. No issues with the chiller. I routinely use a can of compressed air to clean out the heatsink. It also worked flawlessly over our two week winter break. I also felt inspired this morning and unmounted the chiller and changed out the tubing. I replaced the clear 1/2" tubing with black tubing. I don't know if this would be an issue outside of my classroom, but the clear tubing became home to a ridiculous amount of algae growth, a combination of green, brown and the red variety. I believe it is because of the fluorescent lights in the classroom. The process was fairly easy. My only worry was dripping water into the chiller's electronics. I was extra careful. I have to replace the Rio 180 pump. I decided to clean the impeller housing, it was gross, and as soon as I opened it the silicone o-ring disintegrated. I ordered a Sicce Syncra Nano pump (110gph) to replace it. It's working fine now, but there is a slight vibration as the impeller cover is not tight fitting at the moment. I'm sure it'll be fine for a few days as we await the new pump. The only downside is that I will have to disassemble the tubing again to install the new pump. Oh well! After 8 months I can say definitively, if you need a micro chiller, this unit doesn't disappoint.

Try black hose, use electrical tape on u fittings. May help

 

[reefiniteasy]

Try black hose, use electrical tape on u fittings. May help

The black hose is what I installed today, but I didn’t think of the electrical tape on the u fittings. That’s genius! I might just do that. Thank you!

 

[reefiniteasy]

Well the chiller did it’s job. My aquarium is now home because of the virus. Our house is a constant 76 degrees so no need for the chiller. I cleaned it and boxed it up in case I should ever need it again. Well worth the investment and one of the best purchases I’ve made.