Avoiding my tank crashing this summer by asking this question now...

[STiTCH87]

So I have my 29gallon placed right beside the only one window in my small bedroom (there's no other places I can put it unfortunately so keep that in mind when answering this).

Problem is, I live in New England. Massachusetts to be exact. Summer can get as hot as 104 degrees though an average high is around 97 degrees. So Anyone else have experience with this type of issue? I can't afford a $300+ chiller for just a 29 gallon tank. I have a shade which i'll leave down on my window to block sunlight heat, but we don't always run our A/C in the house so my window would be open with the shade down sometimes. I just realized this issue today and REALLY do not want problems in the summer. :sad2:

[wab]

WoW,:lmao:who new mass got that hot on average. Thats great your getting ahead of the heat question. I have heard some people use bags of ice in the water to keep their tanks cool.:dance:

[STiTCH87]

WoW,:lmao:who new mass got that hot on average. Thats great your getting ahead of the heat question. I have heard some people use bags of ice in the water to keep their tanks cool.:dance:

Oops, didn't mean average high, I meant average highest. As in, most summers it doesn't get hotter than 97. Lmao. My bad. No yeah it's probably what would you say, low 80's? NJ has basically the same weather.

Haha but no, really, i'm not putting ice in my tank i'm not that crazy. Lol.

Maybe i'll just buy a mini a/c for my bedroom and tell my parents to deal with the electricity bill. Haha wait til they see what a 100w heater, 130W PC, 2 powerheads, and a protein skimmer running 24/7 (with the exception of the lighting) does to their electric bill. They get all crazy when the bill is $5 more a month than normal. Lol. Maybe i'll buy them a nice dinner for two and be like, "here's your reimbursement ahead of time. I'm getting my own A/C."

But no really, any answers? Aside from that one, lmao.

[aerie2008]

People in my area use one or several PC ventilators. They install them so that they blow on the surface of the water, which lowers the water temperature due to the occurring evaporation.

If you keep in mind to top off the tank more often during that time, you should be fine.

One can either buy such instalments, or build them oneself.

A genuine water cooler is usually oversized for such small tanks, plus it´s extremely expensive and uses a lot of electricity.

[TexasMike]

I used one of these before I bought my chiller.

http://www.aquacave.com/jbj-c-breeze-air-blower--fan-2627.html

It cooled off the water 1 or 2 degrees, but you'll have a lot more evaporation.

-Mike

[STiTCH87]

I've seen a few people buy those clamp on mini-fans. I'm thinking of rigging up a strip of computer cooling fans. Maybe 4 or 5 connected and put them on a custom rail with a mounting bracket. 1-2 degrees lower isn't really worth it IMO though. Cuz if the tank gets to 90 degrees by some act of god, 2 degrees ain't gonna save my ***. Lol.

I think I may keep anyone's suggestions in mind, and come this summer, i'll see how being near the window affects the tank temperature.

[lordofthereef]

Fans work great, but if the ambient temperature is in the 90s the tank will still stay warm IME.

[wab]

If you buy the a/c unit now it should be cheaper with 20" of snow on the ground.:beer:

[aerie2008]

Good point. By using the PC fans, people got the temperature down perhaps 2 degrees Celsius.

And it does not usually get extremely hot over here - A/C is by no means the standard in houses in my area.

[Jaycen B.]

+1 for the fan over the water surface. Evaporative cooling works great just remember to top off more often.

[STiTCH87]

If you buy the a/c unit now it should be cheaper with 20" of snow on the ground.:beer:

My thoughts exactly! :beer:

[bertoni]

A fan plus autotopoff always worked for me, although the temperatures here were a bit lower, and the humidity is a fair amount lower, I think. I'd give it a shot.

[STiTCH87]

Yeah i'm just gonna keep the shades down during the summer and keep a close eye on the thermometer and try and run my A/C as often as I can and if it starts to get over 81-82 i'll just get a fan for it.

[NirvanaFan]

Fans may work well enough for you. If not, those window AC units really don't use that much electricity.

[MrRyanT]

What WAB mentioned above is not a bad idea. You don't actually put the ice in the water, you freeze water in a plastic bottle and float that in your water. Which frozen RODI water wouldn't hurt anyway, might even work out pretty good if you put in the correct amount for top off.

[Hwang]

i use 2 computer cans powered by 2 old phone chargers. free in my case because they were extra fans i had laying around. dropped my temp enough so it doesn't get hotter than 82 degrees with MHs on as well. I live in SoCal

[Ebisan]

Have ice ready and zip lock bags. Had to cool my tank down quickly once and just put some bagged ice in my tank. Took it out when it got down to the right temp. Bought a chiller soon after.

[Mountain_Medic]

Dont throw out the ice idea. I have used ice in zip-lock bags in emergencies before. Worked great. Might be an easy solution for those above average days.

[STiTCH87]

Ice it is... The more I think about it the more sense it makes. I'm thinking about setting something up where there is a metal strainer to hold an icepack and have a computer fan above it blowing the coldness of the icepack at the water. Basically a makeshift mini A/C.

[Percula9]

When I had a canister filter, I would put it in a bucket and load ice around the canister. This worked very well. If it cooled to much the heater would kick on to maintain temp. You can also take a pump with some flexible line and wind it through a cheap styrofoam cooler loaded with ice. As the water runs thru it will cool the water before it is returned to the tank.

[slchurch]

I live in Kansas and I know that our average temp in the summer is way hotter than mid to low 80's, but when the temp around your tank get above the highest temp you want your water to be, no amount of fan air will drop enough to keep it cool. I don't run a chiller and I have to kick the air cond. on when it get to 80-82 just to keep the tank cool, and I run two fans in my canopy.

[Korrine]

I may have to worry about heat this summer w/my 250w halide on my 29g

[bradjenny]

doesnt the sudden drop in the temp cause ich?????? i myself is wondering about the temp thing this summer. i usually keep the air on so i am hoping it isnt a issue

[pammy]

Hi Stitch87. I'm in NH on the MA border, so I'm probably about 2 hours from you so deal with the same weather. I have a 3 story townhouse and have a 53 gallon tank on the
2nd floor. I have Central Air, and while it keeps the first floor nice and cool, it struggles to keep the 2nd and 3rd floors cool (really high ceilings) I'm finding I have to keep the AC on almost constantly for the tank, even when I would be fine without it, and the tank is still getting way too warm. For the first two years, I would float frozen 1 liter bottles of ice in my sump when the tank would get too hot, but the problem with that, is the water temperature just goes right back up if the air temp in the house is high. I would constantly have big temperature swings in the tank from about 80 after I floated some ice, to a high of about 86 or 87, even with the Central Air running. I bought the fan in the link below last year (fan is almost silent !), and it made a HUGE difference. Now the water temp doesn't get more than about 83 degrees. I let the water stay at this warmer temp during the summer, rather than having constant huge temperature swings by floating ice trying to bring the temperature down. I think temperature stability is probably more imporatant, than trying to keep the temperature down to 80. Everything in my tank has been fine at 83 degrees. I think 86/87 is borderline dangerous. Pam

http://www.marinedepot.com/Azoo_Cooling_Fans_Cooling_Fans_for_Aquarium_Lighting-Azoo-AZ71021-FILTACAF-vi.html

[STiTCH87]

Hi Stitch87. I'm in NH on the MA border, so I'm probably about 2 hours from you so deal with the same weather. I have a 3 story townhouse and have a 53 gallon tank on the
2nd floor. I have Central Air, and while it keeps the first floor nice and cool, it struggles to keep the 2nd and 3rd floors cool (really high ceilings) I'm finding I have to keep the AC on almost constantly for the tank, even when I would be fine without it, and the tank is still getting way too warm. For the first two years, I would float frozen 1 liter bottles of ice in my sump when the tank would get too hot, but the problem with that, is the water temperature just goes right back up if the air temp in the house is high. I would constantly have big temperature swings in the tank from about 80 after I floated some ice, to a high of about 86 or 87, even with the Central Air running. I bought the fan in the link below last year (fan is almost silent !), and it made a HUGE difference. Now the water temp doesn't get more than about 83 degrees. I let the water stay at this warmer temp during the summer, rather than having constant huge temperature swings by floating ice trying to bring the temperature down. I think temperature stability is probably more imporatant, than trying to keep the temperature down to 80. Everything in my tank has been fine at 83 degrees. I think 86/87 is borderline dangerous. Pam

http://www.marinedepot.com/Azoo_Cooling_Fans_Cooling_Fans_for_Aquarium_Lighting-Azoo-AZ71021-FILTACAF-vi.html

I was looking at one of those. They sell a 4-fan version of that as well you know. On a 55 gallon you could probably put two and have an 8 fan ventilation system. So do those fans blow on the water, or pull air away from the water?

[Bigshow]

I use a window unit that keeps my room fairly cool. Yeah it's a little more on electricity but cheaper than a chiller.

[pammy]

I did see the larger fans. My 53 gallon isn't the typical dimensions of a 55 gallon. My tank is 31.5" x 19.5" x 19.5". As it is, the 2 fan unit is about half the width of my tank from front to back, so I didn't want something too obtrusive up there. I have it blowing across the water, and only have it on the tank during July and August. Other than those two months, I don't have any heat issues. My light fixture also has a fan built into each end, and pulls air up away from the water. Pam


I was looking at one of those. They sell a 4-fan version of that as well you know. On a 55 gallon you could probably put two and have an 8 fan ventilation system. So do those fans blow on the water, or pull air away from the water?