Tank Temps...

[dustinc]

I would like to know your tank temp in your SPS systems? I have a new setup that is creeping up to 83 and trying to decide if I need a chiller or not. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[dunc101]

I think most people keep there tanks around 78-82. I personally keep my tank 78-80. 83 is probably getting on the hot side. Have you tried a fan in your sump? That does the trick many times and is a whole lot cheaper than a chiller!

 

[o2manyfish]

83 is okay, but the problem is if something goes awry there is no margin of error. If the sun shifts and hits the tank, the heater in the room gets left on, a pump gets calcium buildup and starts running warm.... any of these things could increase the tank temp and then you are getting into a danger zone.

Fans and evaporative cooling are quite efficient and effective. Locate a controller that can turn on the fan(s) at 82 and buy yourself a little leeway.

Dave B

 

[keithrett]

I have my tank set for 82.5 degrees. (It sometimes dips down to 80 but never gets hotter than 83)

 

[Allmost]

used to keep mine at 78.

this summer .... been hot here, and I have not been home much, temp is about 82-85F. on my main SPS reef.

my other SPS tank is running at low 70c, [room temp about 74-75] slow growth in this tank but can be water quality related.

 

[Keithcorals]

I like mine at 78
I've run it at 80-82 and that worked about the same but I like having the extra few degrees if something goes wrong.

 

[dan-in-gr]

Hi, I have mine at 78 to 80 F, at 80 chiller turns on and brings it to 79 which is middle of my range. If it gets to 77, my heater kicks on and brings it to 78, so basically 78 to 80 is my optimum range. Mid summer, I ran it 1 degree warmer than above and then reset my Neptune controller for current temps. Everything is doing great.

One thing that will really help is to have a fan higher above the tank and blowing directly on the water. I have a 16" fan on a high bookcase blowing downwards on tank water (3.5' from water) and it is a real help on the warmer days so my chiller kicks on less or none at all, I run dual 250 Mh and 4 T5's.

 

[Sosa29Reef]

how much temperature fluctuation is ok from lights on to lights off?
I am at 82 lights on and 78 lights off no heater right now...

 

[bskiba]

83 is okay, but the problem is if something goes awry there is no margin of error. If the sun shifts and hits the tank, the heater in the room gets left on, a pump gets calcium buildup and starts running warm.... any of these things could increase the tank temp and then you are getting into a danger zone.

Fans and evaporative cooling are quite efficient and effective. Locate a controller that can turn on the fan(s) at 82 and buy yourself a little leeway.

Dave B

O2MANYFISH? that is a name from the past. Do you still have tanks? I remember you from here and reeffrontiers.

 

[chris s]

how much temperature fluctuation is ok from lights on to lights off?
I am at 82 lights on and 78 lights off no heater right now...

I think the accepted range is 2 to 3 degrees swing is ok with less being better. Four degrees is pushing it. Stability is the key. When I was running halides my tank would range from 78 with the lights off to 82-83 degrees at the end of the light cycle. I never lost anything but since switching to led's and keeping the temp stable at 78 everything seems happier and growth is very consistent. Consider a fan to increase evaporation and help keep temps down but keep your ATO full.

 

[o2manyfish]

Bskiba,

Yep still me. I am down to a 400g display tank which is part of an 1100g system. Coral wise the display tank has only had corals in it since the beginning of the year.


Sosa29Reef - Fluctuation is definitely a less is better situation. But with 60% of my water volume outside, somedays the swing is 5-6 degrees. Fish and corals are stable. But if I could cost effectively narrow down the range I would.

Dave B

 

[divewsharks]

i run mine at 80. But each summer for a couple of weeks it will get quite hot and my tank will get up to 83-84. Never any issues.
My apex turns off some of my lights at 82deg.

 

[turbosek]

I use a chiller to keep mine at 82. I wanted the chiller to run less often. Everything seems fine. I also use the AquaController to shut ff my MH lights is the temp gets above 83.

 

[Dog boy Dave]

Bskiba,

Yep still me. I am down to a 400g display tank which is part of an 1100g system. Coral wise the display tank has only had corals in it since the beginning of the year.


Sosa29Reef - Fluctuation is definitely a less is better situation. But with 60% of my water volume outside, somedays the swing is 5-6 degrees. Fish and corals are stable. But if I could cost effectively narrow down the range I would.

Dave B

Welcome back man, I still have some stuff I bought from you 10 years ago.

 

[REEF SMAC]

Mine goes from 78 to 82 quite often. Never seems to much of a problem.

My controller shuts off my MHs if the temp makes it to 83.
It's only happened about 3 times in 4 years.

 

[Bugger]

75 DEGREES hands down why run the risk of over cooking from the retailer to your house. Coral reefs have run at this tempputure for thousand of years. when your in the ocean the water is never 82 if youve ever been you should notice it

 

[Crazyfingerz]

Hmmm this is interesting. i am in a similar position but just dat running my chiller is expensive so my tank hovers at 83 most of the times and maybe eve 84, but everything looks fine. i have mainly softies n a few LPS

 

[NTSdude]

I think the key is stability, either way you run you tank in the 76-78 or 80-82s, if you adjust you controller a degree or 2 hotter in summer days, it should be ok.

 

[divewsharks]

75 DEGREES hands down why run the risk of over cooking from the retailer to your house. Coral reefs have run at this tempputure for thousand of years. when your in the ocean the water is never 82 if youve ever been you should notice it

Are you saying that ocean temperatures are never 82deg? As that would not be correct, it is quite common for shallow water (less than 100ft) to be greater than 80deg depending on region and time of year. I have personally been scuba diving in 86deg water in the Gulf of Mexico. When I go diving in Honduras this fall I expect the water to be in the high 70's- low 80's.

 

[chessmanmark]

Plus you may notice a few slight differences between your tank and the ocean.

My tank has been hitting 84 every night. With tank raised corals it's never been a problem.