Water temp in summer...?

[Putty]

Now that the weather is in the 80s here, I have noticed my tank beginning to get warmer. Today my temp was 83.3....How are you keeping your water cool? My heater is set to 78.

[reefergeorge]

A fan across my sump keeps mine at 81 in the summer.

[sporto0]

Chillers or fans are your best options as well as your home AC. I don't trust anything above 84 degrees.

[Playa-1]

I use a fan across the sump and it works great. My controller will also kill the MH lighting if the tank get too hot and then turn them back on when the temp drops a bit. That only happens a couple times a year on the hottest of days, but it's a nice safety feature. If I lived in a hot climate then I would look into cooler runnings lights and maybe some type of a DIY heat exchanger. A chiller would be a last resort for me. I own a chiller but it's in the garage collecting dust. I should sell it one of these days ;)

[bnumair]

fan on top of the sump is a cheaper option while a chiller is a bit more expensive.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I use cold tap water sent through a big coil of small diameter plastic tubing in my sump, and then out to my back yard to water plants. The tap water is on a temperature controlled solenoid. This works very well unless your tap water gets close to tank temp. :)

[Ron Reefman]

OK, I live in SW Florida so the normal daily temp for 5-6 months of the year is 92-94 degrees (every single day without fail) and we keep our house at 80-82 at night and allow it up to 85-86 in the afternoon. I have 1000w of MH over my 180g, 250w over my 70g and 70w over a 30g frag tank (all tied together). So absolutely the only way to keep it cool is a chiller. I have a 1hp chiller plumbed out behind the house (north side in the shade and in a well vented storage unit). I also suck hot air out of my canopy with a temperature controled fan and vent it into the attic by a solar attic vent fan. All in all, it seems to work just fine. I just offer this up as an example of a rather extreme situation.

[Putty]

I will try a fan down there. I have 4 T5s running...I could shut two off to help.

[Putty]

Got home today.....84.4 Grrrrrr!!!!

[Humuhumunuku]

Getting that air you're blowing over the sump out of your stand will help. If your stand is closed in, open up the doors during really hot days. If things really heat up, a fan over the display tank can help as well. Remember, 1hp~750watts, so those chillers can really add up. If you need to use one, be sure to give it some space from the tank, or you may just be adding the heat right back in!

[James77]

If your livestock is accustomed to temperature swings, 84-ish is harmless. In the super hot summer days, I let my tank hit about 87 last summer and everything could not possibly look happier. I do kill the lights with a controller after 87.5, though I may play with letting it go higher. The largest problem lies in shocking coral and fish that are not used to that.

But I control temps with fans blowing down onto the surface of the water to help. Look at what pumps and powerheads you are running as a pump=heater, all of the energy it draws ends up in the tank so a more efficeint pump could help. PLaying with the lighting schedule so the main lights come on at a cooler time can help.Canopies trap heat easily if they are not vented, halides can ridiculously heat the water if kept too close.