Tank at 90 degrees!!!! Advice??

[Dischirm]

I just came home from work and my tank is at 90 degrees (F). NOT GOOD! I usually keep it at about 80 degrees!


It is a 100 gallon acrylic tank with about 150 pounds live rock and 100 pounds sand. I have a 12 inch Goldentail and a 4 inch Queen angel with a 3 inch Maroon clown and a 2-3 inch Dwarf lion and numerous cleaning crew. My fish look ok..... but i need to cool it down!! I have pulled the lids off to get air on water surface and I alwys have a fan blowing on the lights (2 36 inch compact pcs with total of 4-96 watts bulbs)

Any advice appreciated on right way to cool it down!!! Especially about future keeping cool, I need to keep the tank covered due to the eel!

Thanks
:

 

[artful-dodger]

First, verify that the thermometer is accurate. Figure out what caused the temp spike. If this is a stuck heater, replace it with two smaller ones. Use high quality heaters only.

If it is a first day of hot summer weather (I've been to Sacramento) then you have a bigger issue...you may need to buy a chiller or run AC when you're not home. Neither is cheap.

Your lighting is certainly not extreme for that size tank. If today is the first day this has happened then that certainly isn't the main problem (but does contribute). Some pumps transmit a lot more heat to the water than others...another contributing factor. Acrylic tanks do insulate better than glass so it will be slower to cool down once the source of heat is identified and removed.

The high temp (by itself) isn't as dangerous as swings in temp. I'd suggest bringing it down to about 85 (the high end of reasonable temp) tonight and then gently/slowly lowering it back toward 80, assuming you can maintain the 80 full time. If it swings upward during the day to 85 and then back to 80 over night, you would do better to keep it at 83/85.

Cooling with the fans is good. Be prepared to replace a lot more water than usual if you emphasize evaporative cooling. You can also float Ziploc bags of ice cubes in the sump for even faster cooling. Just don't go too fast.

 

[Dischirm]

Yeah, i think it was the days temperature, got to over 90 degrees outside, but I do have a Aquaclear 110 that runs really hot, so I have unplugged it. Still has a Rio 2500 running the filter and 2 maxi jet 1200's so I think the flow is still fine. It is down to about 88 now (house AC running) so I think I will just let it cool with ambient air, and keep an eye on it.

Thanks!

 

[Sk8r]

Fan underneath, fans above open tops, no lids. You may have to get a room airconditioner. Some very desperate people have reversed their day/night cycles to even out the heat input to the tank and conserve.

 

[Dischirm]

Reverse light cycle... very interesting idea. Will have to think about that, might be the idea I was looking for!

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Re: Tank at 90 degrees!!!! Advice??

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7342890#post7342890 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Dischirm
Any advice appreciated on right way to cool it down!!! Especially about future keeping cool, I need to keep the tank covered due to the eel!

Thanks
:

Cover the tank with light diffuser (eggcrate) and weight it down so you'll have evapoartive cooling but the eel still can't escape. Run a fan across the top of the water.
Ditch any water cooled pumps for fan cooled ones.

 

[Don424]

Lights off, fans on, check your pumps..........if they're hot maybe they need replacement do to malfunction and use the ice cubes in ziplock bags.

 

[stykthyn]

what kind of floor do you have? I have my sump sitting on a tile floor and it has lowered my temps by around 4-5 degrees. Your best bet for long term control is to go to home depot and buy a mini fridge. coil silicone or plastic tubing inside the fridge and drill a hole through the side. run the hose through the side and seal the gap with silicone. Now all you have to do is figure out what kind of pump you will need based on how fast you want the water to chill through the fridge. The faster it moves the warmer it will be, slower = cooler. This is also a great place to keep your fish food/vitamins, and other addatives

 

[MBuck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7345053#post7345053 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stykthyn
what kind of floor do you have? I have my sump sitting on a tile floor and it has lowered my temps by around 4-5 degrees. Your best bet for long term control is to go to home depot and buy a mini fridge. coil silicone or plastic tubing inside the fridge and drill a hole through the side. run the hose through the side and seal the gap with silicone. Now all you have to do is figure out what kind of pump you will need based on how fast you want the water to chill through the fridge. The faster it moves the warmer it will be, slower = cooler. This is also a great place to keep your fish food/vitamins, and other addatives

That is an awesome idea!! It would work as a chiller, and look nice, could sit right next to the tank, put your fish food in it, so the "fridge" in the kitchen doesn't smell like clams and fish ( I have a puffer) and stick a couple beers in there for game time/ race day!!!!

What a novel idea!!

 

[stykthyn]

stick a couple beers in there for game time/ race day

yeah I keep beer in mine too, its in a cabinet next to my couch

 

[PuffersKick]

Get a couple of fans to blow down on the WATER SURFACE and your tank will cool down in no time. Aiming the fans at the lights won't accomplish much.

 

[waterfaller1]

Attach 2 fans to the canopy, make sure surface of water is agitated. I added a 900 MJ w/ a mod to my 75 thinking it would increase the temp, and it brought it down. That is another thing to consider....1200 MJ's put out alot of heat. If you replaced them w/ 2 X modded 900's you would have more flow and alot less heat. Replace the internal return pump w/ an external one....like a Blueline{Rio's are risky anyway}. My blueline pulls only 40 wts...vs over 100 wts for my previous 9.5 MD.

 

[km133688]

put an air conditioner in the window to keep the temp in your fish room where you want it. Easiest way. Good luck, Kevin