How warm is too warm?

[SquidHC]

I put a pair of 250w MH's on my tank yesterday and I noticed my tank is at 82 degrees today. How warm is too warm, to the point it will endanger my livestock? Whats the best way to cool it off? Note I dont have a sump.

 

[blackheart]

too warm is about 85-86 i would say IMO. I know guys who keep thiear tanks at 84. The main thing you need to try to get is stability try to pick a temp and stick with it. As long as you temp isnt under 74 or over 86 and you keep it stable you "should" be fine of course that being said i keep my tank at 79 and the easiest way to chill a tank is to buy a chiller that will do the job for you.

The ghetto way to chill a tank is to freeze a bottle of water and put it in the tank. Its ghetto but in a pinch it will work every time

good luck

 

[sunfish11]

Mine fluctuates between 78 and 81 degrees with the 250W MH. Everything is fine. I wouldn't want to see it go much higher than that though. I tried to slowly reduce my base temp to 77 once and things in the tank didn't look as happy so I put it back to 79 and it was all good again. That is what my stuff is just used to, so it seems stability is the key. You could always lower your starting temp, run cooling fans, or buy a chiller.

Lisa

 

[kurtg]

I try to stay within 79-81. I added a heater to keep the nocturnal temps up and then added a fan to the light timer to blow across the water. It works so, so depending on temperature, humidity, etc.

It's spring time in florida, so the temps oscillate violently from day to day, so I switch between heat, AC, and open windows on a daily basis.

I really need to buy a chiller/heater to keep the temp more stable, so so far, I have coughed up the $800 such a unit would cost.

btw, the ballast emit a lot of heat, so be sure to keep them away from the tank. I had my in the cabinet with the sump and my sump picked up a lot of heat. I moved them out of the cabinet and my temps fell a few degrees.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

FWIW, I keep mine at a constant 82ºF

 

[benjonesn]

I started losing corals ~90 degrees once when the thermostat on one of those digital readout titanium heaters went haywire. Stylophora and Seriatopora were the first to show signs of stress and impending and death. The thermostat said the tank was a steady 79, but a cheap old fashioned thermometer confirmed what the back of my hand was telling me; that the tank was too hot. Lost a few, most recovered.

<86 is the rule, but I usually hit that mark several times during the summer with no ill effects.

 

[greenbean36191]

I really need to buy a chiller/heater to keep the temp more stable, so so far, I have coughed up the $800 such a unit would cost.

No you don't. Save the money. Trying to keep temps stable is a fool's errand. There is no reason to do it.

 

[JamesJR]

I will tell you that I have found corals to be forgiving at times. Corals can rebound from short durations of heat but I would not risk it for long. My reef has hit the high 80s and even low 90s on a couple of occaisions but This is really pushing it. I would err on the side of caution and opt for abou 76-82 degrees F. I would try to never let the tank get warmer than about 86 as the corals may start to die after a few hours of this.

 

[NightShade00013]

A LFS here in town had a persons system on consignment in his store, nice tank like 150 gallons full setup including chiller. The store owner pulled the glass top enclosing the top of the tank and the temp stayed in the 78-80 degree range. With the top on it would go up hihger and require the chiller.

Moral of the story, open up the top and let the air in, a small fan would be good too and will save you 790.00 you don't really need to spend.

 

[JamesJR]

not to mention you will cut down on your electric bill!