Do you use a fan on your tank?

[Dom]

I made my own system that is controllable with Hydros or Apex. Provides about 5-6 degrees of cooling by directly blowing air across the ~75g tank. IP67 waterproof fan should last a long time!

How does that work? I see a fan blowing into a piece of glass.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I had a fan clipped onto the sump but it didnt do much cooling the tank so I purchased another 2 fans and they're sitting on the overflow cover blowing the surface of the main display now. Works great. Only issue I have is no way of making it turn off/on automically when it reaches a certain temp. I'm using the KASA smart to control it, don't have hydro or apex. Is there another cheaper alternative I can do for temp sensor to trigger it on/off?

Any temperature controller (Ranco, Inkbird, etc.) will work.

The sump fan likely did not work well because it just recirculated already saturated air over the surface of the sump. The saturated air could not pick up any more moisture.

 

[BeanAnimal]

How does that work? I see a fan blowing into a piece of glass.

It is a small duct that blows water over the surface.

 

[nothing_fancy]

Yep, the little AC Infinity box fans, usb powered. works well. I have them just hanging out at the rear of the tank blowing out into the room. They don't angle down just straight out. Game changer for me as I don't like to run AC that much. My heater will actually kick in occasionally. Have a similar fan underneath to cool the stand. I like @TheHarold Design, definitely interested.

 

[TheHarold]

How does that work? I see a fan blowing into a piece of glass.

There is a duct inside that forces all the air out the top, blowing across the surface of the tank. It works incredibly well, taking my previous 5 degree daily temperature spike to <1 degree daily variation.

 

[hornedonald]

During the summers I often use a fan blowing across the top of my reef tank as part of the temperature control plan. The fan that I have been using for many years just recently stopped working and my replacement fan arrived today. While I was setting it up - it is controlled my my Hydros - I was wondering who else uses a fan on their tank? If so, what type of fan do you use? Do you have it on a controller or timer?

What’s up! Yes, I just recently bought the Tunze fan and it’s been great. I have a WB Cube 20 upstairs in my office and it gets very hot in the room in the summer. The fan has helped me keep the temp stable at 78. Best of luck…

 

[TheHarold]

I made my own system that is controllable with Hydros or Apex. Provides about 5-6 degrees of cooling by directly blowing air across the ~75g tank. IP67 waterproof fan should last a long time!

More details for those curious. It can be powered from a standard outlet on a temperature controller, or you can use the Apex DC24v port/Hydros Drive ports.

Here’s an example of the performance. In the summer my tank used to spike to 83, and the fan keeps it at 78.

Example shows dropping from a 81 peak to 78. Much more stable for your tank!

 

[BeanAnimal]

Back in the MH days I also ran (2) titanium mag drive pumps. I could easily hit 86 degrees with no fans.

I was able to keep the system at a fairly stable 80 by evaporating ~2 gallons a day. The humidity was too much for the AC to reliably handle though. I had to run a dehumidifier and exhaust fan too. It was a lot of trouble and work. Even a chiller I borrowed was an issue. It was 1/2 or 3/4 horsepower and dumped tons of heat into the basement and was rather loud.

I was considering an HRV to remove the humidity, but hey were expensive too. So the LEDs were kind of a savior as well as moving to a ReeFlo dart pump and ditching the "water cooled" titanium pumps.

If I were to do it again, I would still opt for a chiller instead of fans, but the chiller would be a mini-split style with the condenser outside. I would not want to deal with the heat of the chiller or the humidity of the fans.

Currently I have a 1/10 HP chiller plumbed in for "emergency" use in case the AC fails or something else causes a temperature spike.

 

[Griev]

So I guess this is where we explain to everyone why/how the fan cools the tank

The fans on your aquarium do VERY LITTLE cooling of the water by "blowing heat away" or "blowing cooler air onto warmer water". Those processes, "conductive" and "convective" cooling, have minimal (almost no) effect on the water temperature.

What the fans do is increase is evaporation. In fact, you get ~8,000 BTUs of cooling for every gallon of water evaporated.

It takes 1 BTU to raise or lower a pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit. So a 100 gallon tank (~800 pound of water) would be lowered by 10 degrees for every gallon evaporated.

Evaporation occurs when dryer air is in contact with the surface of the water. Without getting into a lot of detail, the most efficient method is to blow dry air across the surface of the water, not "at" the surface of the water. You don't need big fans to do this. You can use rather small well aimed fans that create a sheet of air moving over the surface and way from the tank.

Evaporative cooling is extremely efficient. But as the Rev says - beware the salt creep and have a way to remove the humidity from the room or house.

Have Fun.

Same way a swamp cooler works! A lot of people also seem to think that evaporative cooling can only lower the tank water to the temperature of ambient air, but it's actually good for almost 20 degrees below ambient air temperature if your fan is strong enough.

I cool my 200 with a fan blowing across the sump, and one across the display, controlled by my apex. Never budges above 79, even in the summer.

 

[FUNGI]

I had a fan clipped onto the sump but it didnt do much cooling the tank so I purchased another 2 fans and they're sitting on the overflow cover blowing the surface of the main display now. Works great. Only issue I have is no way of making it turn off/on automically when it reaches a certain temp. I'm using the KASA smart to control it, don't have hydro or apex. Is there another cheaper alternative I can do for temp sensor to trigger it on/off?

InkBird.....works great

 

[eislekel]

I have this one for 20 gal.

 

[ReefGeezer]

YEP... a cheap WalMart fan that blows across the top of the tank. It is hooked up to my Inkbird controller. It seldom comes on though.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

I had a fan clipped onto the sump but it didnt do much cooling the tank so I purchased another 2 fans and they're sitting on the overflow cover blowing the surface of the main display now. Works great. Only issue I have is no way of making it turn off/on automically when it reaches a certain temp. I'm using the KASA smart to control it, don't have hydro or apex. Is there another cheaper alternative I can do for temp sensor to trigger it on/off?

this and don't use the heater portion.

Inkbird ITC-308 Digital Temperature Controller 2-Stage Outlet Thermostat Heating and Cooling Mode Carboy Homebrew Fermenter Greenhouse Terrarium 110V 10A 1100W https://a.co/d/aDj8R2C

 

[codenfx]

this and don't use the heater portion.

Inkbird ITC-308 Digital Temperature Controller 2-Stage Outlet Thermostat Heating and Cooling Mode Carboy Homebrew Fermenter Greenhouse Terrarium 110V 10A 1100W https://a.co/d/aDj8R2C

Thanks for the link, not sure if that metal probe is safe for saltwater use. I see they have one made for saltwater with the black probe.

 

[c0kefree]

Yup, my fan almost broke my tank too lol.

If i could post a video here, i’d show my 10” fan falling 3 feet from the ceiling onto my radion mounted on a kessil a arm on my reefer 170g2. After a year of it hanging up, it completely broke off it’s mount and fell directly onto the light.

Happened this past friday morning.
Didn’t break the tank or light somehow someway.

 

[thatmanMIKEson]

Thanks for the link, not sure if that metal probe is safe for saltwater use. I see they have one made for saltwater with the black probe.

yes your right the plastic one is the one you want sorry, although I think people have used both. go with the plastone though

 

[Dom]

There is a duct inside that forces all the air out the top, blowing across the surface of the tank. It works incredibly well, taking my previous 5 degree daily temperature spike to <1 degree daily variation.

Any pictures of it before you put it in place? I wouldn't mind seeing more angles.

 

[Cichlid Dad]

My household has one portable ac unit, our living room is upstairs, ac is down stairs in the fish room. I love my wife.

 

[FUNGI]

Thanks for the link, not sure if that metal probe is safe for saltwater use. I see they have one made for saltwater with the black probe.

They have an aquarium version

 

[Court_Appointed_Hypeman]

I made my own system that is controllable with Hydros or Apex. Provides about 5-6 degrees of cooling by directly blowing air across the ~75g tank. IP67 waterproof fan should last a long time!

Got a design post on this?