Robert Boukari
New member
I live in Florida and as the summer approaches, I am worried about how I am going to keep my tank cool. Any input is appreciated.
Keeping a biocube cool?
- Thread starter Robert Boukari
- Start date
Depends on your tank, and how hot/cool your house is, but if you have a top on your tank (biocube/nanocube/etc) you can set up some fans like Homer1475 did in this picture (eggcrate for a shelf and then the fans hooked up blowing down into the rear chambers):
I'm in Dallas about to have my first summer with the BC32, so question is top of mind for me as well.
So far the highest I've seen it is 81.5, but it normally stays under 80. I haven't tried leaving the feeding door open yet or external fans.
I haven't installed my retrofit LEDs eyt but when I do, I'll be keeping an eye on it. I also have my old stock fan that I could set up for cooling if needed, thanks to another member here.
So far the highest I've seen it is 81.5, but it normally stays under 80. I haven't tried leaving the feeding door open yet or external fans.
I haven't installed my retrofit LEDs eyt but when I do, I'll be keeping an eye on it. I also have my old stock fan that I could set up for cooling if needed, thanks to another member here.
homer1475
New member
Was going to post my setup, thanks reefwreak!
I could drop temps by as much as 20 degrees with those fans. Worked great and never had a temp issue even when the house got up to 100F. When things got real hot, I would leave the front door open and could drop temps even more.
Simple DIY with a 12V wall plug, hooked up to an apex controlling the on/off cycles.
I could drop temps by as much as 20 degrees with those fans. Worked great and never had a temp issue even when the house got up to 100F. When things got real hot, I would leave the front door open and could drop temps even more.
Simple DIY with a 12V wall plug, hooked up to an apex controlling the on/off cycles.
ineedhungry
New member
I live in Arizona. I have a 200 gal tank. It's been pretty warm lately. I have a vornado fan just blowing across the top and it seems to be able to cool perfectly. Granted it's pretty dry here, it will be interesting to see what happens once monsoon season comes and the humidity goes up. I can't stress enough how a simple fan blowing across the water will keep the tank at the perfect temperature. That being said I have it controlled by an Apex just as if it was a chiller.
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BlueReefMan
New member
Cool the macro
Cool the macro
Great discussion. The concerns are well placed, and make me think of what's happening outside our aquaria.
I do aquaculture in the FL Keys (56' ocean side, 40 million gal) and I have seen 90 degrees there. The larger fish head offshore to deeper waters, but the majority of creatures have to tough it out, it gets pretty quiet there in late summer/fall. The existing reefs, inshore, get hit harder.
We all need to be supporting carbon fee / dividend bill now advanced by old guard republicans. You know it's serious when these guys get busy, hope the job to eliminate fossil fuels happens sooner vs. later, enough with the game of "chicken."
The reefs and S Fl will be our very notable losers.
Cool the macro
Great discussion. The concerns are well placed, and make me think of what's happening outside our aquaria.
I do aquaculture in the FL Keys (56' ocean side, 40 million gal) and I have seen 90 degrees there. The larger fish head offshore to deeper waters, but the majority of creatures have to tough it out, it gets pretty quiet there in late summer/fall. The existing reefs, inshore, get hit harder.
We all need to be supporting carbon fee / dividend bill now advanced by old guard republicans. You know it's serious when these guys get busy, hope the job to eliminate fossil fuels happens sooner vs. later, enough with the game of "chicken."
The reefs and S Fl will be our very notable losers.
bkwudzjeep
O|||||||O
Agree with above... I have a small desk fan blowing into mine and it lowers the temps 1-2 degrees, but the amount of water that evaporates increases. An auto topoff is really helpful and a controller really helps with keeping water temps consistent.
No, you'll still see a daily fluctuation with the lights and other equipment coming on and off, not to mention your house still probably fluctuates temperature even with the AC on, but yes, leaving AC consistent will minimize changes. I still get a 3-5 degree swing with consistent room temperatures.
What's an ice prob and a dual thermostat box? That sounds interesting !
I just upgraded my stock LEDs to the Steve's LED drop in, and the average temp in my tank went up 1-2 degrees.
fishdip22
New member
I usualy start runing my lights late at night early am when it cools off a little
Iceprobe is a peltier electric chiller, so it's a small plate that one side gets very hot, and goes outside the tank, and has a big heatsink and fan on it. The other side gets very cold, which goes into a ceramic probe that you put in your tank. You can either drill the tank to put it through, or install the iceprobe in a HOB filter box and have the water run through the HOB.
The dual thermostat is just a thermostat that you put the heater and chiller (or iceprobe) on (it has 2 plugs, hopefully clearly marked), and a controller that knows which is which. You set the temperature on the controller, and how much variation you want, and it will turn on either the heater or chiller depending on which is needed to get the temps where you want them to be.
I've used the Ranco double stage controller (dual heat/cooling control) and single stage, and I really liked them. They're solidly built. the problem is the price. You're almost better off buying a cheap Reefkeeper lite controller that will control temperature, lights, monitor pH, etc for around the same price.
