Bean,
I am not here for a sales pitch, just to state some facts on the product. The reality is that you are posting on a new product to the market, that you have NO experience with. If this was a sales pitch, then I would be on here telling how no one ever needs a chiller, that this is the be all, end all for aquarium temp control. I have actually two test units up and running for over a month to make sure they perform as claimed, which they do.
fins... not trying to be picky, but I feel a need to differentiate between a sales pitch and reality.
as I mentioned on nano-reef also, the biggest concern that I have is the power supply. peltier notoriously draw HUGH current, u need a very good high amp DC power supply, reads $150+, to make the cooling device efficient and powerful. also as the room temp goes up, not only the peltier may not be as effective, but the current draw will rise also, hence, very good high amp DC power supply.
Ohms law is very simple, No where did I state that by using 24v that it will make is consume less power, just that the amp requirement is not as high, therefore the problem that DarkDevil had is not an issue.
Amps mean nothing without voltage. Of course increasing the voltage reduces the current (AMPS). However, POWER is the same. This is OHMS LAW in it's most basic form.
Incrase the VOLTAGE to 48 Volts, and the amaperage will be cut in half again. However your electric meter will still log the same amount of power being consumed....
When was the last time you checked, and on what Peltier chiller did you check on? This is very simple one to test, take a measurement of the incoming air temp on your chiller and list here, and I will do the same with the 1/3hp Chiller I have running here along with the Ocean Geotronic. I will have those numbers for you on Mon night. Please brand, model, and power consumption, so we can compare with all the info.
In your research, how much heat does a chiller produce per degree of cooling? You can walk by a chiller and just feel if it is on, on the Ocean, there is not noticeable heat coming from the unit.
The last time I checked a peltier produced a significant amount of heat per degree of cooling. This heat is also put back into the room. Again, these are simply not efficient devices
As far as a straw argument, when discussing energy consumption needed, all parts needed for proper operation need to be taken into consideration. And feed pumps is a part of consideration unless you use a drop in coil. The flow rates I posted are from Manufacturers specs, not something I made up. Try to run a 1/3hp chiller off of a 20w Maxi-Jet and lmk how well that works for you. On the flip side, if the Ocean Geotronic is not supplied with the proper flow, it will not operate correctly either. Flow rates should be paid close attention to on any form of Chiller, if not you will not be operating at peak efficiency and just wasting electricity.
This is kind of a straw arguement. Feed rates are important, but not to the degree that the claim states. Similar cooling capacities and surface contact will work with similar flow rates. Basic thermodynamics at work.
RobbyG,
These units do not perform the same as a chiller, but a designed for a market that wants to control tank temp without the drawbacks of a traditional chiller. On the test I have performed so far, I have had not problem under normal instances of them having a 10F to 12F temp drop. When outside temps are more, I am sure it will not give the same pull down, but neither will a traditional chiller. They both work the same in that instance. The hotter it is, the more they have to work. They need to be sized properly according to tank size, average air temp, along with the amount of heat being introduced in the tank.
I will post the results of the high temp test about mid-week. Do you currently run a chiller on your tank? Maybe you can measure intake air temp and exhaust air temp for me also?
I noticed that also Bean and another problem is that any kind of power conversion AC to DC or DC to AC gives another big hit in lost power.
If you don't believe that one folks just use one of those killawatt meters on a 12 volt power supply that is powering an Inverter that's running a pump.
Then plug the pump straight into the 110V through the Killawatt and see the difference in power consumption. On mine it was like 180 Watts Direct and something like 270 Watts via the Inverter. That extra 80 Watts is being consumed/lost by the Inverter and 12 volt DC supply.
The power rating is of the AC/DC Converter, so if it is labeled at 120,260,300,500w, that is the max power the unit consumes to operate the controller, Peltiers, Fans, and the Converter. It is a different situation than you are trying to explain. It is more similar to the way the Tunze uses a DC motor for their stream pumps. It is inverted from AC to DC, not DC to AC. A typical chiller still pulls more wattage, and amps than the Ocean Geotronic does. Regardless of power loss in the AC/DC conversion.
Do they have a titanium heat exchanger? or what material is it made from ,you know salt water will eat just about anything. can they be mounted on top of the canopy?
The heat exchanger is made of Aluminum Alloy 6060-T5. That has been tested by RTM Breda Independent labs that no, not even incipeint, corrosion and / or erosion processes inducing surface damage were detected affecting the wet inside surfaces of the aluminum alloy extruded heat exchanger, operated in both fresh water and in sea water, integrated in a riff aquarium.
A copy of this report is available in pdf form for anyone that is interested. Just shoot me an e-mail.
Yes they can be mounted on top of a canopy as long as there is 4" on each side of the lateral air intakes(both sides) and 6" of clearance above the air output.
The Power unit is typically remote mounted away from the unit.
The Ocean Geotronic is not a traditional chiller, if they were, then there would be not need to offer them for sale into a small market that is already saturated with chillers. They are a niche product that fits the needs of most average aquariums. They are not made for every situation, but are very effective for what they are designed for. They are compact, lightweight, silent, and easy to install. The Peltier's have over a ten year life span with no service needed, just clean dust off the heat sink as needed.
It is understandable to doubt a new product in this hobby, but as more units are sold, you will notice that more and more positive reviews will be coming forward. If they did not perform, the I would not be investing in the money to import them into the US. If you have any specific technical questions, just lmk and I can get the info relayed from the engineers in Italy.
