who has a 180-300 gallon tank without a dehumidifier?

[Bonsai Boi]

My goal is too move up to either a 220 or a 300gallon tank when i get a house in the next year, or two. I haven't decided wheter i will want to put the entire setup in the basement, or just the sump. Whatever route, i want to keep my electrical costs as low as possilble. I want to avoid a dehumidifier if it's possible. Moisture in the air is a large concern though

Is there anyone who has a tank of this size without running a costly dehumidifier?

 

[HarrsCars]

Hello Bonsai Boi,

Our tank is 300 gallons and I have another 300 in the fish room down below it. I do not have a dehumidifier but we live in a dry desert area in Eastern Washington. My gauge says a have never been higher than 34% in the tank area and the room is usually less than that. Where are you located? I think that would make a big difference.


Good luck
Mike

 

[Fitchguy]

I have a 450 with 150 gallon sump, all I use is an A/C unit ported out the back of the house. A/C controls humidity and cools the tank! Kill 2 Bristleworms with one Stone! LOL

 

[phobos2deimos]

I've got a 240 in the garage, no issues but it is a very large room ~ 1200 sq ft.
I mainly keep the airflow in the stand and canopy constantly moving.

It's like boating - some people think closing everything down will keep mildew/damage down, when the opposite is actually true. Keep the air moving and no problems.
Personally I wouldn't worry about humidity in the house until the 700 gallon total range.
You can also run a covered sump if it's a concern.

 

[Bonsai Boi]

I'm in central Ohio. The summers aren't too bad, but the winter months are what I'm concerned about. I will be moving into a house within the next year, or so and want to upgrade tanks when i do. I live in an apartment right now, and the humidity my 120gal creates scares me to go any bigger.

 

[carnut]

I have a 300, wife has a 150 and a 75 fresh. We run a whole house air exchanger and still get moisture on the windows when it's really cold. We are in southern ontario. When iit's cold you'll know how moist your air is.

 

[Bonsai Boi]

I started doing some reading. Are air exchangers the best when it comes to humidity? Are they expensive to run, say compared to central AC?

 

[rxinc]

De-Humidifiers are best for humidity, Air exchanges keep the air moving and mixes with outside air and in my case my first level air returns. I have a 220 gal on first floor with a 100 gal sump below in the basement in my furnace/ utility room. I now added a 400 gal tank to this area too. I had a big humidity problem even before the 400 went in, despite a portable ac unit and multiple fans scattered aruound. So I put in a whole house de-humidifier just for the basement and the HRV (heat recovery ventilator- one type of air to air exchanger) and its much better.
The problem I had was not in the winter, in fact, now it is too dry in the basement ( humidity at 33%) b/c of the furnace running a lot ( i am in chicago) or in the heat of the summer with the house a/c runnigg, but on those nice days where there is no heat or a/c going. Then the basement air was static and moist until I made the changes above.

The exchanger is much cheaper than an a/c unit, mine cycles the air 6 times per hour and uses the existing ductwork.