texas heat

[tom reilly]

I have a new tank, just finished the cycle. have a partial cleanup crew working. Tank sits in front of three windows that get sun till about 1pm. Tank is painted black on back and sides so sunlight is no concern other than heat. Heavy wooden blinds in the windows, Temp is getting to 80/81 degrees in the afternoon even if blinds are kept closed. Outside temp is getting to 100/102. Its Texas. thinking of a cooling system of some kind before I go on with stocking the tank. System is about 125 gals total water. Suggestions welcome. Thank in advance.

 

[moreef]

I'm in Fort Worth area and have 155g with canopy and T5/Led's and it gets up to 80/81. I didn't want to buy a chiller so I put a small 6" fan in the sump blowing across the water and also an even smaller 4" fan in the canopy and my tank is now 78/79 consistently. The only draw back with this is increased evaporation and of course top off water

 

[tom reilly]

I'm in Fort Worth area and have 155g with canopy and T5/Led's and it gets up to 80/81. I didn't want to buy a chiller so I put a small 6" fan in the sump blowing across the water and also an even smaller 4" fan in the canopy and my tank is now 78/79 consistently. The only draw back with this is increased evaporation and of course top off water

 

[redfishbluefish]

I've got to believe you have air conditioning in Texas. Turn it down, or do what I did....put a window unit in the fish room to run the temperature a bit lower.

Your other choice is a chiller....which I think is more costly.

 

[tom reilly]

I also have a canopy and glass top. lost to many cichlid jumpers. This is my first reef tank. I am blown away already with just snails and crabs. I have an ATO set up . how much do you loose to
evap daily?

 

[cmcoker]

I also have a canopy and glass top. lost to many cichlid jumpers. This is my first reef tank. I am blown away already with just snails and crabs. I have an ATO set up . how much do you loose to
evap daily?

I'm in dfw, I'm currently filling up 9g reservoir every 7ish days. 120g display with screen tops and open back canopy, sump is 40g with back of stand completely open except supports.
I have my led fans set up to run 24/7 in the canopy. I run leds and a couple t5s, my leds don't kick on till afternoon and I have it set so the t5s don't come on till 6pm to reduce the heat output in the middle of the day.

I keep ac at 75 all day, my tank is normally 78-79. Recently, I Have seen 80 in the middle of the day when the crappie ac is struggling.

I think screen tops will help your cooling, use 1/4in netting in a window screen kit from home Depot. It will allow heat to escape but not the fish. A fan on the sump should help as well.

 

[tom reilly]

Yes I have AC in the house,you would die in San Antonio. Its set at 74 degrees. Dropping to 72 would cost extra $200 a month. I think it would be more economical to cool the tank a bit more for the summer months.Trying to find the reasonable way to do that. Fans or chiller?

 

[moreef]

I just added the fans and a new (larger 10g Ato container) so not sure what it will be yet but I'm adding water more than even a week ago. I think it's definetly worth a shot if you don't want the expense of a chiller or cooling the house more. I paid like $10 for fan and so far my tank is much cooler and I can keep the canopy closed.

 

[moreef]

I agree with cmcooker a screen/mesh top instead of glass would help a lot as well.

 

[cmcoker]

Oh and make sure your condensation pipe for the ac is clear, mine backed up twice last summer don't know if it's the age of the system or the amount of water it's pulling out of the air.

 

[cmcoker]

What is your lighting and run times? If using t5 or metal halide I would shift the photo period to later in the day. My buddy had metal halides for a bit and ran from 6pm till middle of night to reduce the heat from the lights during the day...

 

[tom reilly]

I'm in Fort Worth area and have 155g with canopy and T5/Led's and it gets up to 80/81. I didn't want to buy a chiller so I put a small 6" fan in the sump blowing across the water and also an even smaller 4" fan in the canopy and my tank is now 78/79 consistently. The only draw back with this is increased evaporation and of course top off water

Sounds like the way to go. Thanks

 

[Steve Tobias]

I am not sure if it will help you out, but we get up around 90-95 this summer and my temp started to rise uncontrollably. Chillers are just way too much money and not designed to be powered up and down all the time... so I know where you are coming from. "How do I get this water back to 78 to 79?" Here is what I did... I bought a screen to fit the top of my tank and removed the glass canopy. (keeping the jumpers at bay) Evaporation is the key to cooling. Then I purchased some large zip lock baggies. Not the cheap ones, the good ones that seal really tight. Then I double bagged as much ice as the bags would hold and I dropped it in the return pump compartment of my sump. It worked for me. It didn't lower the temperature to quickly and when the ice melted and I need to lower it more I just filled up the two bags again.

 

[Chris Adams]

Sounds like the way to go. Thanks

Ya that is absolutely the way to go. Light type needs to be considered. Might need extra fan or 2 for MH
If you get an Apex or other controller for your tank you can add the fan to configuration and set it to go on and off at certain temps.
I have 38gl, live in FL, outside temp 90 and up, house at 77, screen top(if I put it back on), no canopy. Tank would go up to 82 or so if not for the fan.
I have mine controlled on my Apex. Kicks in at 78.5 and off at 78. Tank averages 78.2ish

 

[dragon99]

Some heavy blackout curtains over the windows would help also. That would be another layer of insulation between the window and tank.

But like stated above, your best bet is to remove the glass covers and go with a screen top. My tank is currently open top, and I have no trouble keeping the tank below 78 (in the heater is kicking on the evenings).

 

[FishLover01]

I wouldn't worry too much as long as the temp stays 80/81. I wouldn't want it to go higher than about 82 though. You did the right thing blacking out the sides and the back. If you hadn't done that, the algae would have taken over. It's never ever a good idea to have a tank in front of a window, but in your case I think you've did things the right way. On a very hot day, you might could consider running a box fan pointing toward the tank. If you don't want to go the chiller route, a box fan can drop temps by a couple of degrees. Good Luck.

 

[SALTHEAD]

I have found a chiller that goes for 1/2 the price and uses 1/2 the energy. It comes with a great warrantee as well.
http://penguinchillers.com

 

[SALTHEAD]

I have a 250 gallon display with three gen3-radion led fixtures and four t5-ho lamps. Installed a whisper quiet exhaust fan in the basement. Route ductwork up to my hood and I have my apex control the fan. This helps greatly to keep my hood cool during the day.

 

[charged]

If you want to reduce evaporation you could install 2 fans to blow out of the canopy. You would be pushing out hot air. For cooling you could use the zip lock bags or frozen water bottles dropped in your sump. 2 liter bottles work great if you have room.