Chiller recommendations

djbetterly · Apr 9, 2016

I'd love to get some feedback on chillers. I'll probably go with either a 1/15 or 1/10, not sure yet.

I'm sure someone has an opinion on here and I'd love to here it!!
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twilliard · Apr 9, 2016

Hi!
Post up your total volume and from there can give a good idea on cooling capacity

djbetterly · Apr 9, 2016

I believe the total capacity is between 50 & 60 gallons.

DeniseAndy · Apr 9, 2016

It also depends not only on volume, but how far down you want to cool. Are you only doing a couple degrees or 15 degrees. Big difference on which size you want.

djbetterly · Apr 9, 2016

Only a few degrees, on a bad day the temp never goes over 84.

Lionfish Lair · Apr 9, 2016

Gee, I was about to make recommendations, except I just realized Current USA no longer has chillers? I have five or six 1/15, 1/10 and a 1/4 Currents and they are my favorite. Evidently they last a long LONG time, because hubby says they went out a nice while back. I have an AquaLogic 1/4 that is a work horse and currently have a 1/2 Active Aqua.

twilliard · Apr 9, 2016

DeniseAndy said:
It also depends not only on volume, but how far down you want to cool. Are you only doing a couple degrees or 15 degrees. Big difference on which size you want.

That is determined by cooling capacity

djbetterly said:
Only a few degrees, on a bad day the temp never goes over 84.

For that volume I would do 1/10th
Don't cut yourself short as it may run all the time if too small.
Too big and it will cycle hard on the compressor.

djbetterly · Apr 9, 2016

Good points! How about brands??

twilliard · Apr 9, 2016

Here is my thought on today's chillers
One of the biggest failures is the electronics.
Try to avoid chillers that use a control board for temperature presets.

DeniseAndy · Apr 9, 2016

I know with mine, I have had to change the fuse out once in 6 years. I would go with the 1/10th also. What blew mine was the pump feeding the water stopped and well, you can imagine that was not good on the chiller.

I know nothing about mechanical stuff. Hubby does that part.

I just thought it mattered how much you wanted it to cool down as well as volume. I guess it does matter whether you are working it hard or every once in a while. Mine is almost constant in the summer and hardly on in the winter.

twilliard · Apr 9, 2016

DeniseAndy said:
I know with mine, I have had to change the fuse out once in 6 years. I would go with the 1/10th also. What blew mine was the pump feeding the water stopped and well, you can imagine that was not good on the chiller.

I know nothing about mechanical stuff. Hubby does that part. I just thought it mattered how much you wanted it to cool down as well as volume. I guess it does matter whether you are working it hard or every once in a while. Mine is almost constant in the summer and hardly on in the winter.

Yes this leads to premature compressor failure. Cycling is hard on them.
(Retired electrician and hvac control tech)

djbetterly · Apr 9, 2016

So you still think 1/10th? Thoughts on Teco?

dodgerblew · Apr 9, 2016

I use a jbj 1/10 on a 60 cube plus 12g in sump. I live in the desert. Works great for me. I had the jbj 28 nanocube before this with mh and ran the 1/15

djbetterly · Apr 9, 2016

Seems like the most popular are aqua Euro, Teco and JBJ. The used JBJ I had burned out in 5 days. Left a bad taste in my mouth....doesn't mean they are bad of course.

Lionfish Lair · Apr 9, 2016

Tecos are awesome.

dodgerblew · Apr 9, 2016

I'm in SoCal and so is jbj and it makes it easy if you need repairs or parts

djbetterly · Apr 10, 2016

Just looked a bit closer at the teco's, the one for me would be the TK-150...huge design flaw in my opinion, they put the power plug coming out the front. Now, I know for some that might not be a big deal, but for those of us who live in a apartment in Manhattan, that's kind of a big deal. I have no place to hide the chiller, so having a power plug coming out the front is essentially like having a power cord running across the floor. Its an eye-sore and a tripping hazard. Its a shame...

Lionfish Lair · Apr 10, 2016

Did you see the Seachill line?

djbetterly · Apr 10, 2016

Those are no longer, they are considered legacy versions. That's actually what I was looking for. These are listed as being the next generation of TECO's flagship SeaChill™ aquarium chiller. Personally, I think its a huge mistake...the previous sea-chills were great looking! These new ones are just plain ugly!

https://www.tecous.com/chillers/tk-150/