Advice on Venting Canopy

[Itchy Trigger]

I recently added a 6" clip on fan to my 330g tank, but the temp is still hanging around 85 degrees. The problem is that the top of the tank is enclosed in a canopy that goes right up to the ceiling. If I leave the doors on the front open, the temp seems to go down a little bit, but i'd rather not leave the doors open all the time, so I was thinking of cutting a vent hole in the side of the cabinet and installing a vent fan.

Attached is a pic of the canopy. I was thinking of putting the hole on the left side. The right side is flush against a wall, so it's the only place I could really do it...

My question is, does this seem like the best way to go? Or is this an awful lot of work to just lower my tank temp by 1 degree? When the middle of summer hits, things will get hotter. This used to be a freshwater tank and the fish didn't mind if the water was 90 degrees, as long as circulation and surface agitation was good (which it always was). Should I be looking into getting a chiller now though? It's a FOWLR tank with a few leather corals in there. No plans to add any LPS or SPS.

 

[mcgyvr]

Absolutely a good idea..
Fan on one side.. exhaust vent on the other.. (your vent should typically be larger than the fan opening. ) Notice I said exhaust vent.. Its typically best for the life of the fan to have it PUSH fresh air into the canopy so its not passing "moist/salty" air through it.

I'd start with minimum 100CFM+ fan.(and bet more is required for a decent temp drop) Also check the dB ratings to get one thats quiet..

Now this all assumes the local room ambient is below 85 deg C.. If not it ain't gonna do anything.
With enough CFM you can get it down close to ambient..
Note evaporation will increase too..

 

[Maskpainter67]

I also run fans in over top of sump that my APEX kick on when temp reaches 78 .1 and I have an open back stand and open top so it works well

 

[Itchy Trigger]

OK, so to be clear - it's only possible to cut a hole on the left side of the canopy. The right side of the tank/cabinet is flush against a wall. So the only hole I could drill would be on that left side. So would I move the existing 6" clip on fan to the right side, blowing across the tank's surface towards the left side, where i'd put the vent hole? And would it be further advisable to put a computer fan in the vent hole, pulling air from inside the cabinet and blowing it out into the room?

The room temp never gets above the mid 80s, and I would LOVE to avoid getting a chiller.

 

[Reefstarter2]

I'd invest in a chiller with temps that high

 

[mcgyvr]

OK, so to be clear - it's only possible to cut a hole on the left side of the canopy..

Then fan on the side. vent on the door furthest from the fan.. No choice.
You can find some nice wood grills (even home depot/lowes... just a nice wood floor/wall vent)

Or vent out top with a jump vent through the ceiling (assuming attic above or joists running the right way) if you don't want holes in the door. <--but thats much more work

fan and vent on the same side may work some but won't work nearly as well..

 

[Itchy Trigger]

Ah ok. So fan on the left side, mounted to cabinet and pulling in air from the room into the canopy, and then a vent on the right-most door. I don't mind having a vent on the door.

 

[mcgyvr]

Ah ok. So fan on the left side, mounted to cabinet and pulling in air from the room into the canopy, and then a vent on the right-most door. I don't mind having a vent on the door.

Bingo.... Winner winner chicken dinner :lol:

 

[Itchy Trigger]

Bingo.... Winner winner chicken dinner :lol:

Haha. Cool - thanks! Will start searching for a fan now. :spin1:

 

[mcgyvr]

Just a 12V fan and 12V "wallwart" power supply of sufficient current capacity.. maybe a switch (or thermal switch if you want to go the extra step)

Don't know the heat rate or any dims but 100CFM can really make a difference. Like I said I'd "start" with that as a min and adapt as needed.. Just pick a fan where increasing the CFM rating is still possible in the same frame size so you can just swap out the fan if needed vs having to mess with cutting holes again.

 

[Itchy Trigger]

Bingo.... Winner winner chicken dinner :lol:

If you have a moment, could you link me to a fan that might work? I'm finding bathroom exhaust fans as well as computer fans that have 100+ CFM ratings.

 

[mcgyvr]

If you have a moment, could you link me to a fan that might work? I'm finding bathroom exhaust fans as well as computer fans that have 100+ CFM ratings.

Give me a sec...

 

[mcgyvr]

Quick find..MPJA always has good cheap stuff like this..and will have a 12V @1A power supply too..
http://www.mpja.com/12VDC-4-11_16in-Sq-X-1-1_2in-NMB-Box-Fan/productinfo/32167 FN/

There are some down in the 38 or so db levels too..(digikey/newark/mouser) but the MPJA one is a great price

 

[Itchy Trigger]

Quick find..MPJA always has good cheap stuff like this..and will have a 12V @1A power supply too..
http://www.mpja.com/12VDC-4-11_16in-Sq-X-1-1_2in-NMB-Box-Fan/productinfo/32167 FN/

There are some down in the 38 or so db levels too..(digikey/newark/mouser) but the MPJA one is a great price

Great - thanks very much! :thumbsup:

 

[smedlin]

why is your tank laying on the ground??

Just kidding.. (the picture is sideways).

What's above the tank? Is it the attic or another room?

What about your sump? Do you have room to put a fan on your sump?

I'm in the process of redoing my build. I'm going to put fans in the canopy and fans on the sump.

In the picture below, you can see the soffits I used in the side of the canopy (have 2 on each side and 6 on top).

.

 

[Itchy Trigger]

Ha! Yeah, pics always come out sideways when I attach them here for some strange reason! Anyhow, your canopy looks great.

I live in an apartment building, so above the tank is my upstairs neighbor's apartment.

why is your tank laying on the ground??

Just kidding.. (the picture is sideways).

What's above the tank? Is it the attic or another room?

What about your sump? Do you have room to put a fan on your sump?

I'm in the process of redoing my build. I'm going to put fans in the canopy and fans on the sump.

In the picture below, you can see the soffits I used in the side of the canopy (have 2 on each side and 6 on top).

.

 

[smedlin]

I live in an apartment building, so above the tank is my upstairs neighbor's apartment.

There goes any ideals about venting thru ceilings or walls

It would be some work, but if you moved your tank even a few inches to the left, you could have a nice cross-flow a going in the canopy.

I'd look into putting a fan on the sump also.

I'm in the processes of making a new sump, so I'll probably make my own fans for it, but I've been looking at the below aquarium fan as well...

 

[Itchy Trigger]

Moving the tank even one inch is unfortunately not an option. I'll just put a vent on the right most canopy door. I think it'll look ok. I might even put one on each of the three doors just to make them all look the same. I like the look of the soffits you installed. Can you show me where you got the hardware?

I could put a fan on the sump too, yes. I like that one you pictured. Would want something that looks nice as the sump is in full view on the other side of the wall from the tank...

 

[Itchy Trigger]

OK, how about if I got these vents:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-Plastic-R...234?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item233127efca

I could put one where the fan will be, and one on each of the cabinet doors (3). Or would I need bigger vents?

 

[CuzzA]

I would cut two holes in the side of the canopy. One at the top and one at the bottom. Install a 140 mm fan in each. Both blowing cool air in. Typically you don't need an exhaust fan because the air will blow out around the cracks of the cabinet doors. Unless of course they are really flush and air tight. If that's the case then I would have one blowing in (bottom) and one blowing out (top). You could test both ways with a thermometer in the canopy.

I would do the same thing for the sump. Also add a fan blowing directly on the water. The one blowing directly on the water will substantially reduce temperature in my experience, but evaporation will also increase a lot.

I would not be cutting my cabinet doors. Aside from it taking away from the aesthetics you'll like have light beaming out which would really annoy me.