chiller nessessary for cali summer?

mmenz22779

mmenz22779

New member
this will be the first summer my 29BC will be up and running.

Everything is stock as far as lighting and the hood goes.

It is downstairs in a 2 story house. Not near any big windows. I keep my thermostat at about 80-84 during the summer months. Do you guys think the tank will be ok with out a chiller.

I really dont have the money to put down on a chiller for this tank. I have sps and a few soft corals (see my sig). my bioload of fish is pretty low so not sure what to expect this summer I am in northern cali. Summer temps can hit high 90's to low 100's?

If you guys think i may need a chiller what is the cheapest good one i would need?

any other tricks to keep the tank cooler? Maybe take off the hood during the day?
 
I'm in phoenix and there are far more reefers here without a chiller than with one. You should be fine
 
no chiller needed, just make sure you top off every day or every other day and use a fan. so far no chiller needed here but who knows what this summer will bring with new MH lights and no a/c
 
miller10 said:
no chiller needed, just make sure you top off every day or every other day and use a fan. so far no chiller needed here but who knows what this summer will bring with new MH lights and no a/c
Click to expand...

Im thinking your gonna have a major heat problem......if your running no AC in southern cali during the summer, the temp in your house will be AT LEAST 80, then add a metal halide, gonna be boiling some water.
 
ya i have been kinda worried about that and have been holding off into i get my new tank and stand built so that way plumbing it would be easier but its starting to not look so good on waiting it out.
 
thanks for the info. AZ is way worse than nor cal.

using a fan? you mean a fan on the tank that blows air on the tank? or a fan that removes the heat from tank?
 
since you have a small tank.. get a clip on fan and point it directly onto the water. they sell some fancy one's in petstores... I just went with a clipon desk fan from Walmart. Worked fine for me. This would be the more economical way. Test it out.. and if don't work.. go get your Chiller.
 
Yes, a chiller is necessary if you don't have AC. I run a chiller/fan combo because it gets hot out here in Los Angeles during the summer. When I didn't have the chiller, my tank got up to 83-84. With the fan, you'll have a lot of evaporation, though.
 
mmenz22779 said:
this will be the first summer my 29BC will be up and running.

Everything is stock as far as lighting and the hood goes.

It is downstairs in a 2 story house. Not near any big windows. I keep my thermostat at about 80-84 during the summer months. Do you guys think the tank will be ok with out a chiller.

I really dont have the money to put down on a chiller for this tank. I have sps and a few soft corals (see my sig). my bioload of fish is pretty low so not sure what to expect this summer I am in northern cali. Summer temps can hit high 90's to low 100's?

If you guys think i may need a chiller what is the cheapest good one i would need?

any other tricks to keep the tank cooler? Maybe take off the hood during the day?
Click to expand...

My experience in SOCAL with tanks: I say Yes. During the warmer months I can never get my tanks to stay consistent with temp. It appears many factors come into play... not only your room temperature, but how close is your tank to a wall and window? Does the air near your wall or window get cold/warm during the winter/summer? With typical SOCAL mass cookie cutter homes, it seems the ambient temperature near a window can change dramatically. My tanks have been placed typically near windows and I can say for sure that the Summer months raise my tanks 5' to 10' easy. I just ordered my first chiller for these reasons and that's with double pane windows. GL... although it's raining today, you and I know this cold spell won't last long. Also... I like Teco, Oceanic, Aqua Logic but most reviews are with JBJ. I don't think you can go wrong with any of those choices.
 
Just use a fan.. I use one on my BC14 and on my 65g system. Works like a charm...
For such a small system a chiller is a pricey addition
 
ya i am going to do that. My fresh water never really had an issue when i had it. Of course freshwater is a bit more tolerent.
 
DBarsotti said:
Just use a fan.. I use one on my BC14 and on my 65g system. Works like a charm...
For such a small system a chiller is a pricey addition
Click to expand...
Losing coral is a pricey subtraction. Nobody said this was a cheap hobby, you reap what you sow, and a fan won't cut it in a lot of instances
 
A fan is not enough for my 12 gallon nano during So. Cal summers. A pricey chiller was not an option so I bought a probe style chiller for $150 that does the trick for me.
 
robby818 said:
A fan is not enough for my 12 gallon nano during So. Cal summers. A pricey chiller was not an option so I bought a probe style chiller for $150 that does the trick for me.
Click to expand...

robby what do you have? a link maybe?

same here a 350-400 chiller on my tank is a bit much when only being used for 3-4 months out of the year.
 
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