temp changes again!

[reefD]

i want to move to the islands.....yes its hot! but the temp doesnt change so much. i use a/c to keep tank cool. but when it is cool i lower the a/c...no problem but then it warms up and before i notice it my tank does with increased temp. im a beleiver of stability in ever form and living in the north east(hot summers and cold winters) doesnt help! just venting guys...LOL

 

[Rainer Feyer]

Hi ReefD,

Actually, since I switched over to T5's, I don't have all the temp problems anymore (heat, that is). It was Ken668 who first introduced me to T5's and I have not regretted it since! As for heat: I only have a big temp fluctuation when my wife forgets to turn the AC on (she is usually cold and does not mind the house being 88 degrees and higher!). I do increase the heater setting to 84 during the summer so the fluctuation isn't so much.

Now, speaking of moving to the islands: I've been thinking about Panama, believe it or not! Hear a lot of good things about the place - I was there with the 82nd Airborne at the end stages of the Canal crisis and it was NOT nice then

Of course, one never knows when the political tides change again over there

 

[reefD]

the islands !!!! yesssssssssssss! lol....i use high heater setting tactics in the summer too. its a good idea to maintain stability.

the key word is stability. stable high temp is better than 80 -84 swings daily. a constant high temp(of course too high is TOO HIGH, but mid 80's is ok as long as oxygen saturation maintains) is stability and thus naturally effective in maintaning healthy life. good advice rainer

 

[Cruella]

dave give me a call stranger. miss our talks and I have alot to tell ya.

 

[WinkeyWoneye]

Not trying to bash anyones opinions here...but dont you think the temp swings in the ocean are probably much more drastic than one would ever see in a properly working tank? The water temp on a natural reef will go up by a few degrees thruout the day if the suns beating down on it. Plus if you get a big wave that comes crashing into the reef from way out yonder..I'm sure that water from the wave is much cooler than the water within the reef. Which would then cool the reef in areas somewhat quickly.

My tank temp is about 81 in the day with halides on and SLOWLY drops back off to 79.8 after the halides turn off..summer and winter alike... I would much rather the 2 degree temp swing than cranking my heater and bringing temps much closer to overheating status. Just my opinion though...everyones entitled to there own

 

[ChrisBuono]

Much like the chemistry of the ocean, I've always assumed that water temp was pretty much the same throughout a region. Essentially, the water is churned up enough that there would be no difference in temp within a given area.

But...

Dan's logic makes sense too. Reefs do often result in calmer waters on the land-side of them. If there's less churning and the sun's beating down, I can see where differences might occur.

Having said all that, I keep my tank between 78 and 80 degrees F using a single temp controller to drive my heaters and chiller.

 

[reefD]

yes its true ! reefs do experience temp swings. but the issue here is stability so other issues dont attack. in the ocean fish are extreamly less prone to ich. in a tank it happens and temp is directly related. I guess what im saying in a perfect wolrd temp swings arent a big deal but in our not so perfect replica's of the ocean ( our tanks) they can produce opportunistic conditions for bad things to happen.

 

[WinkeyWoneye]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10763001#post10763001 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefD
yes its true ! reefs do experience temp swings. but the issue here is stability so other issues dont attack. in the ocean fish are extreamly less prone to ich. in a tank it happens and temp is directly related. I guess what im saying in a perfect wolrd temp swings arent a big deal but in our not so perfect replica's of the ocean ( our tanks) they can produce opportunistic conditions for bad things to happen.

I will agree with that! I just like the tank to have that cool down period at night, that way I KNOW the tank wont overheat the following day. It scares me to run the heater's temps up that high.

 

[Rainer Feyer]

I also strongly agree with ReefD.

Many things we do in our tanks is not because we duplicate the ocean, but we have a small space to work with (some are lucky, like Vin etc who have huge tanks )

Also, don't forget that: in the ocean, animals/ corals select where they want to be/ can survive. If an area has too much temp swing, only those will survive who can handle it. You don't notice it in the ocean because, well, you don't watch them all. In our tanks we even miss copepods when they don't show up!

Another example is algae: We don't get rid of it because it is bad, we get rid of it because we don't like the looks and because it takes over areas of our tanks. It does the same in the ocean, but we don't care because we give our attention to the areas that are not taken over.

I just had a battle with red hair algae and cyano for 6 months (shows you that I don't know what I am talking about)- I finally have it almost controlled!