What chiller do you have

[daytriper]

We all almost have to use a chiller for are reefs,It amazes me that no one seems to rates them.So the big question is what chiller you have? Do you like the way it works? Hindsight is 20/20,what would you change if you could? And most important how do rate your chiller? The public would like to know!!!!!

[jdieck]

I have used an AquaLogic Delta Star. It has been working for five years On and Off besically every half an hour and keeps on going.
I have it checked every two years by an Aircon guy but has been performing flawlesly.

[SDguy]

Well, mine's only a couple months old, but I love it. It's super quiet and looks nice enough to stand next to the tank for all to see. It's a 1/4HP JBJ.

[GinaSofia]

1/10 HP Current..only a couple months old and on pretty much constantly.So far,so good.

[daytriper]

Thanks, anyone else have a coment, there are a lot of chillers out there. bad good or otherwise.

[jdieck]

Chiller cought on fire: In this case a poor design having the water connections on top makes the chiller very succeptible for leaks to drain inside the chiller's electrical wiring causing a short.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=381214&highlight=chiller+fire
http://members.cox.net/pault1/images/chiller/chillerStand.gif

http://members.cox.net/pault1/images/chiller/chiller1.gif

[snslarison]

Whoa thats scary. Glad my connections are on the bottom of the chiller.

I have an Aquamedic Titan 250. I dont think they make them anymore but it does a good job on my 60g.

[daytriper]

Fire and chiller,odd combo, I read your thread, I am glad everthing worked out jdieck.Anyone else?? the public wants your chiller stories and opinion!!!!!!!

[mfinn]

I just installed a Prime Current 1/3 hp chiller and it seems to be doing just what I wanted.
Glad I saw those pictures of the burned up chiller. I ran the outflow on mine back up over the top. I'm going to change it.

[xtm]

JBJ Arctica 1/10... works fine. I've had it for 6 months now

[dstall]

I have the Teco Seachill, which has a nice clean look and the intragrated UV sterilizer built in is a nice touch.

[DarthBaiter]

I also have a 1/3hp Teco Seachill with uv and a heater. It's for my 90g with a 20g sump. It runs maybe ten min every hour when the lights are on. The tank used to be around 83-85 degrees and now it's constantly on 78.
I got it from tecus.com and got a 15%discount when I entered "reefcentral" in the promotions box at check out.
Eith out a doubt the best investment for my reef.

[DarthBaiter]

jdieck, I just read the thread and the owner said the top connections didn't look like it leaked. It was mentioned by someone else that top connections can leak, but I don't think the owner of the burnt chiller ever said that that was the cause.

[daytriper]

mfinn is yours the tower? How long have ran it?jdieck what hp is yours? Everone else please tune in chillers are important to us all and it seems size and instalation is key.

[daytriper]

Anyone else?

[bergzy]

i have a 1/2 hp aqualogic that performs flawlessly when the summers here in socal are scorching hot. it is pretty noisy but chills the water very very effectively when it does.

all my equipment is in the garage, so it gets really hot in there when summer rolls along. the chiller surprisingly doesnt need to come on that much as my heat issues are solved with a powerful fan blowing into the sump.

the chiller comes on a few times during the hottest part of the day in the summer for a few minutes at most.

the chiller is set at 80F and i have another temp controller that controls my sump fan that is set at 78.

my chiller hasnt come on since august but my fan still does when my main lights come on. i have never seen it creep above 79 degrees on temp controller 1.

[Acroholic]

I use an Aqua Logic Delta Star 1/3hp Chiller on my 180, controlled by an ACIII Pro. Been performing without a hitch....

[mfinn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8340293#post8340293 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by daytriper
mfinn is yours the tower? How long have ran it?jdieck what hp is yours? Everone else please tune in chillers are important to us all and it seems size and instalation is key.


I have the Prime Current Modular 1/3 hp chiller. Only about 2 weeks. Tank use to run about 83 to 84. Now 79 most of the time, sometimes 80.

[daytriper]

Thank you for all your posts, I have noticed a lot of you have heaters uv lights built in, who makes these, and how well do you like them? And once again tell us about your chiller good or bad!

[golfish]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8329658#post8329658 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by daytriper
We all almost have to use a chiller for are reefs,It amazes me that no one seems to rates them.So the big question is what chiller you have? Do you like the way it works? Hindsight is 20/20,what would you change if you could? And most important how do rate your chiller? The public would like to know!!!!!

I use a 1\3 hp Aqua Logics Delta star. The only problem I have with it is the size of the input and output holes (3\4") I'd kind of like to see atleast 1".

I've used this chiller for 6 years without a single problem.

If I had to buy another it would probably be a Tradewinds chiller. All the experts refidge guys I've talked to tell me the compressors Tradewinds uses are the best.

[jdieck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8339988#post8339988 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by DarthBaiter
jdieck, I just read the thread and the owner said the top connections didn't look like it leaked. It was mentioned by someone else that top connections can leak, but I don't think the owner of the burnt chiller ever said that that was the cause.
He was going to have someone check it out before sending it to the manufacturer for inspection and I do not think we have a final word on the actual cause itself, in any case I think water connections on top of electrical connections are a poor design feature. Add to that no GFCIs and that will be asking for trouble.
Note that in this same design not only the water connections are above the electrical cord but the whole evaporation (cooling coil) is. If for some reason the water in the chiller stops circulating the water in that chamber will get frozen and crack the casing. Once defrosted an internal leak will drip on the electrical.

Another issue I have seen with chillers is the air flow. When installed around a sump or a skimmer whose vent air is loaded with fine salty moisture, it soon settles fine white salty dust around, that salty moisture and dust sucked in by the chiller fans and if the internal electrical connections are not insulated (In my Aquatec they did not) the salty dust can create an internal short circuit by depositing on the wire connections.
This is mainly why I open the chiller once a year and clean all the interior and the condenser coil and have it checked for refrigerant.

Another of my recommendations will be to insure that your plug and outlet is tight. Given the high current taken by some chillers, loose connections will spark and overheat also creating a potential fire hazard.

Finally if you can, try installing the chiller on a shelve higher than the sump, in case of a flood the chiller itself will not get wet. In my installation I have the chiller on a shelve. Electrical wires are on the oposide side of the conexions, the ones under the chiller are installed under the shelve with dripping shield on the shelve sides so it there is a leak on the chiller the water will not fall directly on the electrical.

In this general view you can see the black chiller box on the shelve

http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/Eq_General_View2.jpg

[daytriper]

Another issue I have seen with chillers is the air flow. When isntalled around a sump or a skimmer whose vent air is loaded with fine salty moisture soon settles fine white salty dust around, that salty dust can be sucked in by the chiller fans and if the internal electrical conections are not insulated (My old Aquatec did not) the salty dust can create an internal short circuit. IT seems that some maufacturs say that you can put thier chiller under the tank in the stand, I do not think I would recomend this. I am no expert so I may wrong but I do know air flow is a major concern. Space under the stand is always a concern as well. I would like to hear your opinion on Modular chillers,and thank you for posts, A weath of info and experance by people that use this equipment is hard to find so keep on posting.

[daytriper]

jdieck Now thats a amazing set up!

[jdieck]

If by modular you refer to the Peltier effect semiconductor based chillers I think they are mostly for smaller tanks, the new italian models seem to have improved performance a bit but still I think they are underpowered for larger tanks 100 gal+ and the potential power savings if any are not enough to pay back for the initial high price tag.

[bergzy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8341292#post8341292 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jdieck
......Finally if you can, try installing the chiller on a shelve higher than the sump, in case of a flood the chiller itself will not get wet. In my installation I have the chiller on a shelve.....

In this general view you can see the black chiller box on the shelve



I AGREE!!! :D:D:D

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y38/bergzy/IMG_7667edit.jpg

[jdieck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8341435#post8341435 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by daytriper
jdieck Now thats a amazing set up!

Thanks, that pic is from some time back, since then there has been some additions. The Ca reactor has been replaced by one twice the capacity, a Kalk reactor has been added, a second RO.DI tank also has been added and a Kalk reactor. The RO/DI unit has been expanded to include automatic systems and a second RO and an Ozone unit with silica gel dryers has also been added.

Here is the temperature chart of the tank, the chiller is set to turn off at 78.5 and turn on at 79.5*F. This chart updates automatically every hour.
http://67.184.79.174/IISSamples/Default/aqimg1.gif

[daytriper]

I did not even think about puting a chiller off the ground. bergzy nice set up. So much good information,all of you have shown me things I would not of thought of. I was interested in what chillers people used, now I see that it is not just size or brand but how you install it the dangers of not installing it properly, and all the ways that it can be installed! Anybody else?

[daytriper]

jdieck You must have on very nice motoring system, more food for though! My wife is going to rule the day I started this hobby. anyone else?

[db_triggerfish]

daytriper, thanks for starting the tread and for many post I plan on using a chiller.

[daytriper]

db_triggerfish I think that if we all keep on updating what we are using we all will see the improvment in the quality of products for are hobby.

[SDguy]

I inspected my JBJ as soon as I saw those scary pics. There are depressions molded into the plastic around the water hookups. If there was a leak from either one, the water would flow into these depressions and then down the sides of the unit, not the back. This of course is assuming the chiller is on a level surface, and it's not a gushing/spraying leak. I feel better :D

[daytriper]

It was strange but I think that was a freak.

[Karl K]

I just built one for a friend this summer where there is no way for the electrical to get wet.

Here is the thread.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=8407386#post8407386

Enjoy.


Karl