Seattle getting a 99 Ranch Market

[jsronce]

Cool news for locals, the former Kmart in Edmonds is going to be occupied by a 99 Ranch Market! I'm pretty sure this is the same store that sells the California mantis shrimps live down south. I've no idea if they'll ship any up, but at least there'll be lots of live mantis food for sale.

BTW, has anyone tried the trick of rigging a mini-fridge as a chiller? Would it provide enough of a temperature drop for a 20 gallon tank? A full-blown chiller is out of my price range.

Jennifer

 

[kmk2307]

What is a 99 Ranch Market? I know I have heard about people successfully making a mini fridge a chiller. Good luck if you make one.

Thanks,
Kevin

 

[jsronce]

From what I've read, 99 Ranch Markets are sort of grocery stores, with a large selection of fresh produce and (more importantly) live seafood. Others on this board have posted about finding mantis shrimps for sale at these stores in California. I'm hoping the newspaper was right about this. I drove down to the old Kmart this week and there was no notice on the building yet about it being sold. :-(

I've thought more about using a mini-fridge, and think I'll hold out for a chiller. We don't have central heat or air in our apartment (only baseboard heaters), and the temp can vary more than 15 degrees between winter and summer in our bedroom. Since a fridge-chiller wouldn't have a thermostat, it would keep dropping the temp even if the room's cooling had reached the perfect temp anyway. Just too unstable. Does anyone have a solution for something like this? Besides buying a chiller?

Jennifer

 

[Ananda]

I think IceCap has a temperature-triggered fan...?

And a window air conditioner would probably be cheaper than a chiller.

 

[jsronce]

Yeah, but this is my bedroom we're talking about. No way am I keeping it at 65 degrees!!! :eek2: It hits that in the winter and I pile three comfortors on my side of the bed. Plus, our electric company raised rates almost 50% last year, and are talking about raising them some more (thanks to California and Enron our electric costs are sky-high). In the long run, an expensive chiller will cost less than a window AC unit.

Ah well. Looks like we'll just have to shell out for a real chiller. Time to look at the job listings again.

Jennifer

 

[Ananda]

Doh! Forgot those were the ones that wanted *cool* water.

Here's an alternative idea, though I have no clue how cost-effective it might be. Look for used seafood holding tanks -- like from a restaruant that's closing, for example. Marineland makes them. http://www.marineland.com/products/prod_comm_liveseafood.html

 

[jsronce]

Wow, those are NICE systems! I don't think I want to know what they would cost new....

Thanks for the tip - I'll be keeping an eye out for any restaurant or grocery store closings.

Jennifer

 

[traveller7]

Picked up 2 live seafood systems on ebay....

Picked up 2 live seafood systems on ebay....

Over the years I have picked up two from ebay for less they $300 dollars, one still in use and one that needs plenty of work. Overall a neat project, but not exactly quiet.

Good luck.

 

[Brimarbio]

I've been looking to get back to Cold water systems for a few years now but I'll tell you, when I got into the actually scientific side of chillers made from fridges it didn't work out. The BTU's on a mini fridge just don't cover the needs of a cold water system. Another concern is that a fridge is not very energy efficient and with the cost of energy out your way Jennifer... I've seen plans (I'll try and find the link again for you) for a conversion of a regular window AC converted into a chiller but if you're not a wiz at plumbing and electronics it seems quite a daunting task. As was mentioned before Ebay is one place to check, look for lobster tanks or the like and you can normally find one or two, the trouble with them is A: they're heavy, and B: since they were simply a holding tank they aren't usually much to look at and can be noisy! The last option, and perhaps the best is to simply check ebay for chillers. You may luck out and find a good one for a decent price. Best of luck, and if I see anything out your way I'll be sure to send word.
Brian

 

[jsronce]

Thanks!

Jennifer

 

[Elmo18]

JSRonce, yo dude I'm in Edmonds now

- Elmo

 

[jsronce]

Cool! It's great to have another mantis-keeper up here. Did you just move up here? Have you attended any PSAS meetings?

Jennifer

 

[johnqx4]

the problem with using a mini fridge for a chiller is this. what do you use for the tubing.

now, we (for people) would copper (does not rust and is a good conductor of heat). for your conversion, obviously you cant use copper. Plastic tubing doesn't rust, but it is avery poor conductor of heat (i.e. your water would't get too cool) and therefore you would spend a bunch on electricity to get the performance you need. Stainless steel fits the bill (although it will still rust...unless it is TOP grade) and that would be expensive...

i'm by no means an expert, but i thought i would pass that along as food for thought...

hth,

jg

 

[RogueCorps]

Hi Jsronce,

Here's a
probe chiller that I came across that claims to be able to lower the temperature in a 10 gallon tank 6-8 degrees F, and it's pretty small. Looks pretty good for small tanks such as Nanos and Mantis species tanks.

hth!

-Rogue

 

[jsronce]

Thanks! I think I remember seeing those for sale on ebay, too.

Jennifer

 

[grampus]

I went to a 99 ranch market in Monterey Park about a month ago. no one in the entire place had the faintest what a mantis shrimp was... or spoke enough english to offer help. considering the drive, i was a little ticked off. i sounds like it's an item they get in very infrequently if at all at that location.