Poll: Do you use a chiller?

dbl · May 9, 2018

As the dog days of summer are quickly approaching, I'm curious to see how many people use a chiller. Obviously dependent on where you live, do you run a chiller all year or just during the summer? Let's hear those chilling stories.

darkside666 · May 9, 2018

dbl said:
As the dog days of summer are quickly approaching, I'm curious to see how many people use a chiller. Obviously dependent on where you live, do you run a chiller all year or just during the summer? Let's hear those chilling stories.

Im from queensland and i use one all year for consistency

Luno · May 9, 2018

I live in Queensland Australia near the Great Barrier Reef we consistently hit 40c plus days in summer a chiller is a must

SPR1968 · May 9, 2018

I'm in the UK and although I could do with one in the summer months, i manage to get away with a pedestal fan pointing at the top of the tank which will reduce the temperature by 3-4c if needed.

The only reason i don't have a chiller is because of the heat output they produce into my living room, and for the few months its needed I can get away with a fan. For the moment anyway!

MaccaPopEye · May 9, 2018

I'm a bit unique as I live in the tropics. No 4 seasons here, just a monsoon season and a dry season.

Average daytime temp pretty much all year round is 30-35C. In the dry season it can sometimes get down towards 25C at night and in the wet it can get upwards of 38C in the middle of the day but generally hovers around the 30-35 mark.

So I have a chiller on my tank that is running almost non stop to keep the tank at 28C. The chiller usually gets a break overnight or when we are home during the day with the AC going.

crayon · May 9, 2018

I’m in Canada, but I have a temperate tank which lives at 18c or roughly 66 degrees F so it’s not a fair comparison cause a chiller is a must. Believe it or not this past winter I seriously considered putting a heater on my coldwater tank cause it was sitting around 15c for a few weeks.

However my tropical tank got a little too warm last summer, so this year I’m going to put the back up chiller on it, just to keep the temperature down a few degrees.

We have no A/C yet (in the process of renos) so the normal tank temperature of 76 got up to 82 last summer. I want to avoid that situation this year.

DSC reef · May 9, 2018

We run a chiller 24/7 for the past 6-8 years. Florida and halides makes for some heat! Tank stays at 78 during the day and about 77 at night.

Reef Jeff · May 9, 2018

I live in Pennsylvania so we have wide swings from below zero to above 100. My Reef is in the basement living space and I use a small air conditioner in that area during the summer to keep the room cool. 72 degree room year round so tank stays between 78-80 year round using heaters in winter and no heater in summer.

Brian W · May 9, 2018

I have one but have not needed to use it yet.

mckinleyw · May 9, 2018

FLORIDA! Yeah we need the chiller. I do anyway

NinnJinn · May 9, 2018

No Chiller for me.

I live in southern Indiana 20 to 30 degree Winters 85 to 95 degree Summers.

Winter time I keep the heat about 75 degrees in the summer I keep the central air unit about 72.

Dom · May 9, 2018

I could use a chiller here in the North East US during the summer months. But I have the cool side of my temperature controller connected to a $99 LG window AC (80000 BTU) and a 20" fan. So for about $125, any overheating is addressed.

Breadman03 · May 9, 2018

I'm in Northeast PA and don't need a chiller, but do have an air mover fan set to blow across my basement sump and have a portable A/C down there to control humidity and basement temperature.

taxiem · May 9, 2018

I am in UK and seeing as we don't really have a "hot" season as such, cooling fans seem to do the job just fine for me at present.

That being said, should we actually get some heat this summer that is concernin, I will buy a chiller just as an emergency measure x

SashimiTurtle · May 9, 2018

Do people not have air conditioning in 2018? My house is 72°F all year, and I live in South Carolina. Is in the low 90s this week, inside will be nice and cool.

Why would anyone need a chiller?

DSC reef · May 9, 2018

In our house running a chiller is more cost effective than running our a.c. at 72.

Nobbygas · May 9, 2018

I live in Central Germany, where the temperature can hit 40c+ in the summer. Even now, early May, the temperature is about 30c. I need a chiller for the summer, and I run it all year as it also provides the heating as well.

SashimiTurtle · May 9, 2018

DSC reef said:
In our house running a chiller is more cost effective than running our a.c. at 72.

Guess if you're comfortable with the hotter temperature.

The HVAC thermostat is set for me, the tank has a heater to keep from being 68°.

ca1ore · May 9, 2018

Robin Haselden said:
Do people not have air conditioning in 2018? My house is 72°F all year

I guess you’re serious, but I did find this funny. I try to run my AC as little as possible because I actually prefer fresh air - quaint, I know (plus I’m trying to raise my sons to not be ‘soft’ lol). OK, I live in CT which is s whole lot cooler than the South. When I am forced to run the AC it’s to 77. Means my tank hits 82-83. Not terrible, but I noticed a gradual decline in the corals over the Summer, so now I do use a chiller. It only runs July and August for the most part.