Temperature according to Dr. Shimek
- Thread starter Highside
- Start date
Both my tanks stay around 80-82. I've never seen them lower than 80. In the summer, It's impossible to keep my upstairs cool...the AC would run 24/7. The tanks stay around 84. So, this is good to hear. I missed Dr. Shimek as I didn't make it to the swap til around 2:00.
Steve
Steve
Fanof49ASU
Premium Member
I'm not sure what my goby would think about 82-84. :furious:
Angela Short
New member
Certain gobies like Catalinas like colder temps in the 70's so I think it totally depends on where the animals/corals you are keeping are collected from.
My tank runs above 80 a lot ( especially when my fan is off by accident ) and yes I have a uninstalled chiller but thats a thread about Angela being lazy..... It's even a drop in style....
Anyways my stuff seems kinda stressed when it gets in the 84 range but I haven't had any major problems with the higher temps IMO. I have plenty of problems but not from the 80-83 temps I routinly have. One thing I have learned is everyone has different opinions on how to run tanks (even the folks with PHD after their names) and lots of different methodes work for different folks. I think if your tank is doing good at 80 then why mess with it? Also if it sits at 84 you have no room for the inevitable heater getting stuck on or your AC going out in summer before you are in real trouble before you realize the problem.
My tank runs above 80 a lot ( especially when my fan is off by accident ) and yes I have a uninstalled chiller but thats a thread about Angela being lazy..... It's even a drop in style....
Anyways my stuff seems kinda stressed when it gets in the 84 range but I haven't had any major problems with the higher temps IMO. I have plenty of problems but not from the 80-83 temps I routinly have. One thing I have learned is everyone has different opinions on how to run tanks (even the folks with PHD after their names) and lots of different methodes work for different folks. I think if your tank is doing good at 80 then why mess with it? Also if it sits at 84 you have no room for the inevitable heater getting stuck on or your AC going out in summer before you are in real trouble before you realize the problem.
coralphreak
In Memoriam
Corals actually do like warmer water, but 80% of the fish we keep do not. 82-84 is the optimal temp for corals, but 74-78 is the optimal for fish. When fish get hot, they can swim into deeper water, in our tanks, they cant. Corals can tolerate 90+ degrees for short periods of time and also being exposed 90+ degrees outside of the tank for hours like when there is a low tide.
Corals at low tide in Fiji
Corals at low tide in Fiji
Pickupman66
New member
82 during the summer time here. 78 during the winter, but I may bump it up.
crumbletop
New member
Re: Temperature according to Dr. Shimek
I keep my tank right at about 79. It fluctuates daily about 1 to 2 degrees. Things seem to be doing fine at this temp range (growth and color). My only real concern with bumping up to 82-84 would be that any error on the high side could push things way high. So at my current temp range, lets say I have some kind of temp control failure that leads to a 7 degree rise (like maybe the AC goes out in the summer and my fans fail) -- That would put me at 86 degrees or so. A 7 degree rise would put the high end over 90 for the other range. This may not be a problem for the corals -- but it gives me a bit more peace of mind to run the lower range. There are many who run temps a bunch higher, though. Also, the comments above about fish are apropos.
Also, there is a school of thought that wider temp swings in tanks (like those that occur on several reefs) help the corals to better cope with temp spikes. C_stowers does research that involves the kicking in of various proteins in organisms as the temp rises that cause cell death. There isn't really a need to keep super tight control over temp swings, but as stated above I like to keep away from the edges. One of the problems in our reefs is we most often have organisms that come from different areas and have different "optimum" environments for growth and color. The aquarium is more like a compromise than an ideal environment, IMO.
I keep my tank right at about 79. It fluctuates daily about 1 to 2 degrees. Things seem to be doing fine at this temp range (growth and color). My only real concern with bumping up to 82-84 would be that any error on the high side could push things way high. So at my current temp range, lets say I have some kind of temp control failure that leads to a 7 degree rise (like maybe the AC goes out in the summer and my fans fail) -- That would put me at 86 degrees or so. A 7 degree rise would put the high end over 90 for the other range. This may not be a problem for the corals -- but it gives me a bit more peace of mind to run the lower range. There are many who run temps a bunch higher, though. Also, the comments above about fish are apropos.
Also, there is a school of thought that wider temp swings in tanks (like those that occur on several reefs) help the corals to better cope with temp spikes. C_stowers does research that involves the kicking in of various proteins in organisms as the temp rises that cause cell death. There isn't really a need to keep super tight control over temp swings, but as stated above I like to keep away from the edges. One of the problems in our reefs is we most often have organisms that come from different areas and have different "optimum" environments for growth and color. The aquarium is more like a compromise than an ideal environment, IMO.
DMBillies
Active member
I doubt 2 degrees is going to do much. I do believe that keeping too tight of a control on temperature will lead to the corals being unable to cope with larger temperature swings when they do happen... and I think I've seen this in action with temperature related tank crashes. Anecdotally, yes, but it makes a lot of logical sense to me. 32 degrees feels a lot colder if it was just 60 the day before as opposed to if it was only 40.
From his first talk (the night before the swap), more than learning what might be important about laminar or turbulent flow and harnessing that, I have a much better sense that feeding is incredibly important. I've seen this in my own tanks as well, but we are constantly balancing feeding enough with not polluting our tanks. I intended to ask him how he kept his water clean with that many brine shrimp going through it, but it slipped my mind when I actually had the chance. I imagine the half-ton of salt just means that he does a LOT of water changes.
The talk the day of the swap made me really think about pH and alkalinity from an "optimal vs. natural" standpoint. First of all, our tanks are being subjected to the same concentration of atmospheric CO2 that the oceans are (probably slightly more). We can't do anything about the atmosphere (assuming your house and tank room are vented), but we should be able to do something about the resulting tank chemistry. The general consensus seems to be that it is perfectly acceptable to run your alkalinity a little high (up to about 10dKH, maybe a tad more) to allow a buffer zone, but how high is too high? Should we be going farther?
From his first talk (the night before the swap), more than learning what might be important about laminar or turbulent flow and harnessing that, I have a much better sense that feeding is incredibly important. I've seen this in my own tanks as well, but we are constantly balancing feeding enough with not polluting our tanks. I intended to ask him how he kept his water clean with that many brine shrimp going through it, but it slipped my mind when I actually had the chance. I imagine the half-ton of salt just means that he does a LOT of water changes.
The talk the day of the swap made me really think about pH and alkalinity from an "optimal vs. natural" standpoint. First of all, our tanks are being subjected to the same concentration of atmospheric CO2 that the oceans are (probably slightly more). We can't do anything about the atmosphere (assuming your house and tank room are vented), but we should be able to do something about the resulting tank chemistry. The general consensus seems to be that it is perfectly acceptable to run your alkalinity a little high (up to about 10dKH, maybe a tad more) to allow a buffer zone, but how high is too high? Should we be going farther?
just dave
11th in '11
Some years ago I heard Dr. S present the same arguments at a MACNA conference ( Kansas City IIRC) and at that time the idea was not very well received as the ideal temperatures advocated by most for reef aquaria were in the mid 70s. I have kept many reef tanks in the lower 80s for a number of years with no ill effects. I think it is worth mentioning that at higher temps. one needs to make sure that oxygen levels are adequate and realize that metabolic rates increase , as does bacterial activity, and decomposition. I've also had many systems in which the temperatures swung beyond ( daily and seasonally )what is considered as being ideal. I think that stability is helpful when new animals are introduced as they are already under some degree of stress and a stable environment probably helps them adjust easier by allowing them to spend less energy on having to cope with wide swings in parameters. As they settle in and adapt this seems to become less of an issue.
I know that some of Ron's ideas have been criticized by many (even by some of his peers ) and that there are many methods in our hobby that seem to produce successful results. Remember, we are keeping ocean animals in aquarium's, we are not keeping miniature oceans in aquariums even though we'd like to believe that we are. So be cautious when attempting changes because changing one thing frequently effects a number of other things and not always in a desirable fashion.
I know that some of Ron's ideas have been criticized by many (even by some of his peers ) and that there are many methods in our hobby that seem to produce successful results. Remember, we are keeping ocean animals in aquarium's, we are not keeping miniature oceans in aquariums even though we'd like to believe that we are. So be cautious when attempting changes because changing one thing frequently effects a number of other things and not always in a desirable fashion.
waynesworld
Premium Member
yes I agree with you Dave and also the way you adapt them to your tank makes a difference I think if you take any animal and slowly adjust his temp over time he will get use to it. Look at how some people live up north. Also a little hibernation may bee good for our stuff.
Mikeyjer
New member
I have to agree with this one!!! Animals learn to adapt in different conditions. Just like my Macaw for instance. The lady that kept him before kept the room above 80 degrees, that's too hot for us to live in. She raised him since he was a baby and he was 5 years old when we got him. The lady said he must be kept in that type of condition. I disagree!!! He have learned to adapt in my house kept at 70 degrees, even a bit on the cooler side during summer time. It does not bother any of my birds as long as you don't get the room too cold, otherwise they can catch cold. I've raised birds for years living in the same temperature as me and I haven't lost one yet to coolness of the house. I believe as long as we kept our tanks at a average temperature, corals would do fine. I have kept my 55 at 74-76 for about 3 years without any issue, but after added MH's and after moving, they've been maintaining at 78-80
TheFishGuyLLC
New member
I've got a 225 with softies and lps that stays around 70F. Yep, 70F and without a chiller. Haven't noticed any ill effects, xenia grows like gangbusters and the 3 headed frogspawn is bigger than my head, shrooms reproduce like mad at all levels of the tank, two types of Candycane coral, a kenya tree and some big green palys. Yellow tang, chromis damsels, and a big domino damsel all doing fine too. Been thinking of adding a heater but I'm afraid to screw it up.
