toddmcgill
New member
according to the manufacturer of my chiller which is trade wind not pc, but i would think the principals would be the same, here are some key do's and donts' that they said were critical for proper chiller performance.
1.chiller should be plumbed to draw from sump go through chiller at prescribed flow rate and return to tank, not loop to sump. if you loop to your sump all you are doing is guaranteeing that the water going into your tank is at correct temp,depending on flow rates and such the actual water in the tank could be considerably warmer than the sump water.
2.chiller must be able to breate propperly,in other words must be well ventilated so it has cooler air to pull across the coils.
3.set point on controller should be at least 1.1 degree diffrence between on and off temps to avoid short cycling the chiller which will cause dramatically shortened chiller life.
4.coils must be cleaned on a regular basis,in order to maintain good airflow for peak effiency.
anyway those are a few things they told me when i called to discuss instilation of my 1hp chiller and i did specifically ask if i could just use a seperate pump and loop to my sump, he emphatically told me not to do that,sump volume is usually too small it will be cooled quickly and chiller will short cycle then warm water comes back in frm the tank and it kicks back on, on off on off on off, bad for the chiller ,your tank isnt cooled to the temp you want, and not much benefit is gained,
that was the advice for my particular set up which i am sure is diffrent than yours and perhaps some folks have good luck running sump loop but if you can plumb it t circulat through the tank thts what i would reccomend.
also my set points are off at 77.9 on at 80, all my corals and fish seem to be happy and doing well.
good luck and happy reefing.
1.chiller should be plumbed to draw from sump go through chiller at prescribed flow rate and return to tank, not loop to sump. if you loop to your sump all you are doing is guaranteeing that the water going into your tank is at correct temp,depending on flow rates and such the actual water in the tank could be considerably warmer than the sump water.
2.chiller must be able to breate propperly,in other words must be well ventilated so it has cooler air to pull across the coils.
3.set point on controller should be at least 1.1 degree diffrence between on and off temps to avoid short cycling the chiller which will cause dramatically shortened chiller life.
4.coils must be cleaned on a regular basis,in order to maintain good airflow for peak effiency.
anyway those are a few things they told me when i called to discuss instilation of my 1hp chiller and i did specifically ask if i could just use a seperate pump and loop to my sump, he emphatically told me not to do that,sump volume is usually too small it will be cooled quickly and chiller will short cycle then warm water comes back in frm the tank and it kicks back on, on off on off on off, bad for the chiller ,your tank isnt cooled to the temp you want, and not much benefit is gained,
that was the advice for my particular set up which i am sure is diffrent than yours and perhaps some folks have good luck running sump loop but if you can plumb it t circulat through the tank thts what i would reccomend.
also my set points are off at 77.9 on at 80, all my corals and fish seem to be happy and doing well.
good luck and happy reefing.
