Radiator Cooling?

[vnomus]

Has anyone successfully used a small radiator such as this for passive cooling? (I recently bought this one new for one of my car projects but didn't end up using it.)

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B_XX75xX9K7aNklpQ2xBZkNTcEk&authuser=0

Or is saltwater just too corrosive?....(If so, what do the commercial chillers use as the heat exchanger?)....

I have a RSM C130 that runs a little hot (81 - 83F) that I'd like to cool down a bit without adding the complexity of a chiller and spending 500+. The integrated lid makes adding additional fans problematic.

 

[erb]

I wouldnt use it, there is likely to be metal compounds that will leach into the tank water (lead, copper etc). Use a "designed for the purpose" chiller.

 

[laverda]

Being made of steal or aluminum it is not suitable for contact with salt water. Even if it was you would not get enough cooling using it passively to do any good and could hurt depending on ambient air temperature.

 

[sleepydoc]

+1
Part of the reason chillers are expensive is that most of them use titanium components. Saltwater is too corrosive for the standard materials like steel, aluminum and (for obvious reasons) copper.

If you're having heat issues, invest in a couple fans to blow cool air over the surface of the tank. Much safer, likely cheaper, and quite effective. If you can't put them over the display, putting them over the sump will also help.

I'm not familiar with your specific tank/hood. It looks like everything is sealed up - if this is the case, adding some venting and/or just adding some fans to blow fresh air into the hood could help significantly with heat buildup under the hood. If you do this, use fans to blow air into the hood, rather than as exhaust fans. If you use them as exhaust fans, the salt water will corrode them very quickly.

 

[vnomus]

Thank you all for info/advise...I guess I'll have to hunt for a small chiller....

 

[sleepydoc]

Chillers are expensive to buy and expensive to run. Before you go the chiller route, make sure there's nothing else you can do to reduce energy consumption & heat transfer.

How many pumps and what kind of pumps are you using? Is there any way you can put a fan either on the display or on the simp? What kind of lights are you using? Is there any way to vent the hood better to reduce heat build up?

 

[smedlin]

How many pumps and what kind of pumps are you using?

I've always wondered how much heat in-sump pumps "put out".

 

[sleepydoc]

Well, ultimately, almost all the power consumed gets converted to heat. If you have a submerged pump that's using 100 watts of power, you can think of it as being roughly equivalent to a 100 watt heater. If you have an external pump, it's cooled by the air instead of the surrounding water and it will transfer much less heat. If you have an old or inefficient pump that's drawing 100 watts and you replace it with a more efficient pump that draws 60 watts, it's like turning off a 40 watt heater.

Lights aren't quite the same, as a lot of their heat transfers to the air rather than the water, but there is some direct radiant heating of the water, especially with metal halides. If you have an enclosed hood, they will warm the air in the hood above the tank and warm the water somewhat that way, too. The other problem with enclosed hoods is that they limit air circulation, so not only is the air in the hood warm, it is humid and reduces the amount of evaporative cooling.

I.n general, you can look at things which add and remove heat from your tank. Things that add heat include:
- heaters (duh)
- pumps (submerged add more, but external will add a bit as well). Remember that your skimmer, reactor pump and power heads contribute, too.
- lights
- ambient room temp if it's higher than the tank

Factors dropping the temp include:
- chillers
- evaporation (increased by temp, fans/air flow, decreased by higher humidities)
- ambient room temp

If your tank is too hot, you can either cut the heat going in, or increase the heat coming out. Covered hoods end up being a double whammy - they reduce flow and circulation, reducing evaporation, and they hold heat from the lights over the tank. They can also reduce oxygenation, something that is a problem as temperatures rise.