How hot can it go

[Dr RBG]

The other day it was hot and humid and although the house has central air the room where the tank is (red sea 450) is always the least air-conditioned. I got an alarm from the Apex system tat the tank was 82F I blew some fans on it and that had little effect but stabilized the temperature over 80.

The question is: How hot is safe for a reef tank which has fish and corals? Should I consider a chiller? They seem pretty pricey.

Thanks again for any info :hmm5:

 

[mcgyvr]

In general a temperature range of 76-83deg F is a good range..
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/

Mine is running around 81-82 right now in the summer with t5 lights..
I personally think 78-79 is perfect..

I would not invest in a chiller.. A little fan/more surface agitation goes quite a long ways to reducing temps..

 

[Half Vaped]

On my RSM S-650, I lower the temps maybe two to four degrees by taking off the two doors for the sump. I drop maybe another one or two degrees by running a small fan over the refugium part of the sump.

This maintains the temps at 78 to 79, unless the fish room is hotter than usual. It would be from 82 to 84 during the day without the hacks. The 800 watts of fluorescent lights are pretty efficient at heating the tank.

Might not be the prettiest solution, but it's a lot cheaper than buying and running a chiller. I got macroalgae and a mangrove growing in the fuge, so at least there's something to look at down there.

But if you can maintain 80, I think you should be fine. 82 should be good as well, unless you keep deepwater fish that prefer cooler waters. I feel that above 84 is when you should start to get worried.

 

[Haunt]

FWIW one of my older tanks used to hit 85, 86 degrees almost on a daily basis in the summer and I never had any problems. (mixed reef) Four VHO bulbs in an unventilated canopy can really generate some heat, not to mention that it's 100+ degrees outside.

Sometimes it's not really a matter of how high/low the temperature can get, but the amount of time it takes for it to get there that causes all the problems. Just something to think about.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-06/nftt/index.php

 

[Sk8r]

An aquarium fan array (internet) can lower the temperature by as much as 10 degrees.

 

[Ron Reefman]

This is one time I'll partially diagree with mcgyvr. A chiller, even a small one can be a life saver... OK, a reef saver, if you ever have a long power outage in the summer. However, you need a generator as well, and that's not a bad accessory to have for you aquarium either.

Sure, it's a bigger deal for me as I'm in SW Florida so a lot more heat a lot more of the year and oh yeah, on rare occasions we do lose power due to thunderstorms . But those are usually short. The bad power outage is due to a hurricane. We were in the low 90's F and without power for 10 days after Hurricane Charlie.

 

[mcgyvr]

This is one time I'll partially disagree with mcgyvr.

You motherf#5... how dare you..

I'll run the generator to keep my fridge going and float cold beer bottles in the tank..

 

[homer1475]

My tank typically gets up to 85 in the summer during the day, and down to 80 at night. When it does get up past 85 I run a fan over the top and it lowers to 80. I do normally run my temps around 78.5.

I will agree with Haunt though. It's not always how high it gets, but how fast it gets there.

 

[Dr RBG]

Thanks, I feel better about this. I will try the fans and see what happens.

Going to Reefapaloza this weekend in NY. Hope I don't spend too much.

 

[BPReefer]

Thanks, I feel better about this. I will try the fans and see what happens.

Going to Reefapaloza this weekend in NY. Hope I don't spend too much.

You can plug that fan into your apex on outlet no. 8 which is pre programed for a fan to turn on and off in a temp range btw.

 

[Ron Reefman]

You motherf#5... how dare you..

I'll run the generator to keep my fridge going and float cold beer bottles in the tank..

That will work. BTW, let me know when it happens and I'll stop by and have a cold one with you!:beer:

BTW, we'll be up near you for the total solar eclipse later this year.