House 74 degrees, tank 81, what's wrong?

duganderson · 05/09/2013, 04:34 AM

I have a nano cube 28 with the two stock return pumps running continuously, one Koralia 425, Jagar 125 w heater, ranco temp controller and stock PC lights. My house is 74 degrees and my tank was 81 degrees this morning. The light on the heater indicated that it was NOT on. The lights were not on this morning. I did not have this problem last spring/summer.

Why is my tank water so warm?

How do you check if your return pumps or Koralia 425 are going bad and giving off heat?

What would you check?

My ranco temp controller has been giving occasional error messages indicating it may be going bad but the thermostat on the heater should take care of that anyway, right? I'm going to replace the temp controller but I think something else is wrong.

Thanks in advance

mcgyvr · 05/09/2013, 05:25 AM

all pumps give off heat.. How much? Well yours give off enough to warm a 28G by 7 degrees over ambient. Could be totally normal IMO.. 81 isn't bad necessarily but a properly placed fan directed at the surface of the water helps more than you would think.

jaa1456 · 05/09/2013, 05:33 AM

When I had that tank I had the same problem, I just propped the lid up slightly so I could get some air movement, it fixed the problem. I used a piece of plastic similar in thickness of a wooden chopstick.

duganderson · 05/09/2013, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

81 isn't bad necessarily

What is the max temp I want my tank at? I have two clowns, firefish, RBTA and softies, a couple LPS, and one SPS.

Also, I did notice the intake slots on the Koralia 425 were moderately plugged with "grapes" that had fallen off of my Red Grap macro algae so I just cleared them off.

dkeller_nc · 05/09/2013, 06:14 AM

If your tank is 81 degrees and your room air temp is 74, you're definitely going to have an issue this summer unless you want to pay a lot in house/condo air conditioning bills.

Troubleshooting:

Unplug your heater. Many heaters can fail "on", and the light won't be illuminated.

Check your temperature measurement device. The best way to do this is with a high precision thermometer, preferably a mercury one. If you don't have one of these, buy another inexpensive battery powered digital one and check it against your current one.

If both of these items check out OK (i.e., your tank temp doesn't fall when you unplug the heater, and your temp measurement is OK), then the next thing to check is whether the PC lamps are adding enough heat to cook your tank. PC lamps & ballasts get very hot (I have a 20 gallon nano with 3 of them over it), so prop your hood with a chunk of wood or some folded paper so that it's at least 1/2" open all the way around the perimeter.

If propping your hood open results in a significant temperature fall of at least 3 degrees, you need to install a fan, preferably in the hood. If that's not possible, go buy a $15 vortex fan from Home Depot and set it up so that it blows through your sump/cabinet. That will get you by for the summer, but you may wish to consider going to LED fixtures long-term.

indyjaco · 05/09/2013, 06:40 AM

On my Biocube I have to prop open the back cover and it helped. If that doesn't work I would get a small PC fan to help increase evaporation which would lower temps.

duganderson · 05/09/2013, 06:47 AM

Thank you everyone for your great tips and ideas. This forum rocks!

duganderson · 05/10/2013, 06:11 AM

I cleaned the intake slots on my Koralia 425 that were moderately plugged with "grapes" that had fallen off of my Red Grap macro algae. By the afternoon, the tank was back to normal temp without any other changes.

Would a Koralia with moderately clogged intake slots heat up a lot and possibly cause this?

dkeller_nc · 05/10/2013, 06:18 AM

No, that doesn't make any sense - the amount of heat the pump puts in the water is constant, regardless of whether the flow is blocked or not. And the amount that a 425 adds to a tank is miniscule - 3.5W.

However, not having the water movement may have considerably slowed the heat transfer out of the tank (both from slowed evaporation and slowed conduction through the tank walls), so that would make it seem like having the pump blocked is putting more heat into the tank.

Diamond Jack · 05/10/2013, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaa1456

When I had that tank I had the same problem, I just propped the lid up slightly so I could get some air movement, it fixed the problem. I used a piece of plastic similar in thickness of a wooden chopstick.

+1 on this. Your tank temp seems pretty normal range for a nano of that size. The lights sitting right off the waterline can heat things up pretty good. I bet you see a 1-2 degree difference propping hood slightly open to get some cooler air in. Did the same thing on my nano.

neuro · 05/10/2013, 10:32 AM

I find it hard to believe that your pumps could possibly be putting out that much heat without some sort of additional factors causing it. Maybe it's the hood.

Squidmotron · 05/10/2013, 11:34 AM

Have you verified with multiple thermometers? Or check that your controller temp is accurate.

I have had a wide variety of thermometers inexplicably fail and consistently report either high or low temperatues (after running correctly for months). One time I panicked, because the temperature it was reading one day just dropped 5 degrees. Turns out the thermometer failed, though, and not any heater.

PikkaGTR · 05/10/2013, 01:24 PM

I would do they least complicated solution and check the thermometer first
I had a digital one fail and read 95 but my heater read 79 so i panicked and went to my FW tank for a cheapo mercury $1.99 and it read 79 so new thermometer fixed the problem
GL

05/09/2013, 04:34 AM	#1
duganderson Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 569	House 74 degrees, tank 81, what's wrong? I have a nano cube 28 with the two stock return pumps running continuously, one Koralia 425, Jagar 125 w heater, ranco temp controller and stock PC lights. My house is 74 degrees and my tank was 81 degrees this morning. The light on the heater indicated that it was NOT on. The lights were not on this morning. I did not have this problem last spring/summer. Why is my tank water so warm? How do you check if your return pumps or Koralia 425 are going bad and giving off heat? What would you check? My ranco temp controller has been giving occasional error messages indicating it may be going bad but the thermostat on the heater should take care of that anyway, right? I'm going to replace the temp controller but I think something else is wrong. Thanks in advance

05/09/2013, 05:25 AM	#2
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	all pumps give off heat.. How much? Well yours give off enough to warm a 28G by 7 degrees over ambient. Could be totally normal IMO.. 81 isn't bad necessarily but a properly placed fan directed at the surface of the water helps more than you would think. __________________ Who me?

05/09/2013, 06:40 AM	#6
indyjaco Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Indianapolis Posts: 726	On my Biocube I have to prop open the back cover and it helped. If that doesn't work I would get a small PC fan to help increase evaporation which would lower temps. __________________ Jacob SCA 120G RB 48 V2

05/10/2013, 11:34 AM	#12
Squidmotron Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 675	Have you verified with multiple thermometers? Or check that your controller temp is accurate. I have had a wide variety of thermometers inexplicably fail and consistently report either high or low temperatues (after running correctly for months). One time I panicked, because the temperature it was reading one day just dropped 5 degrees. Turns out the thermometer failed, though, and not any heater. __________________ .................................................. Current Tank Info: 210 Gallon "Mixed Reef" Tank (84 inches wide)

05/09/2013, 05:33 AM	#3
jaa1456 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: NJ Posts: 1,145	When I had that tank I had the same problem, I just propped the lid up slightly so I could get some air movement, it fixed the problem. I used a piece of plastic similar in thickness of a wooden chopstick.

05/09/2013, 06:14 AM	#5
dkeller_nc Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Central NC Posts: 5,062	If your tank is 81 degrees and your room air temp is 74, you're definitely going to have an issue this summer unless you want to pay a lot in house/condo air conditioning bills. Troubleshooting: Unplug your heater. Many heaters can fail "on", and the light won't be illuminated. Check your temperature measurement device. The best way to do this is with a high precision thermometer, preferably a mercury one. If you don't have one of these, buy another inexpensive battery powered digital one and check it against your current one. If both of these items check out OK (i.e., your tank temp doesn't fall when you unplug the heater, and your temp measurement is OK), then the next thing to check is whether the PC lamps are adding enough heat to cook your tank. PC lamps & ballasts get very hot (I have a 20 gallon nano with 3 of them over it), so prop your hood with a chunk of wood or some folded paper so that it's at least 1/2" open all the way around the perimeter. If propping your hood open results in a significant temperature fall of at least 3 degrees, you need to install a fan, preferably in the hood. If that's not possible, go buy a $15 vortex fan from Home Depot and set it up so that it blows through your sump/cabinet. That will get you by for the summer, but you may wish to consider going to LED fixtures long-term.

05/09/2013, 06:47 AM	#7
duganderson Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 569	Thank you everyone for your great tips and ideas. This forum rocks!

05/10/2013, 06:11 AM	#8
duganderson Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 569	I cleaned the intake slots on my Koralia 425 that were moderately plugged with "grapes" that had fallen off of my Red Grap macro algae. By the afternoon, the tank was back to normal temp without any other changes. Would a Koralia with moderately clogged intake slots heat up a lot and possibly cause this?

05/10/2013, 06:18 AM	#9
dkeller_nc Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Central NC Posts: 5,062	No, that doesn't make any sense - the amount of heat the pump puts in the water is constant, regardless of whether the flow is blocked or not. And the amount that a 425 adds to a tank is miniscule - 3.5W. However, not having the water movement may have considerably slowed the heat transfer out of the tank (both from slowed evaporation and slowed conduction through the tank walls), so that would make it seem like having the pump blocked is putting more heat into the tank.

05/10/2013, 10:32 AM	#11
neuro the cat did it Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: bay area Posts: 976	I find it hard to believe that your pumps could possibly be putting out that much heat without some sort of additional factors causing it. Maybe it's the hood.

05/10/2013, 01:24 PM	#13
PikkaGTR Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 50	I would do they least complicated solution and check the thermometer first I had a digital one fail and read 95 but my heater read 79 so i panicked and went to my FW tank for a cheapo mercury $1.99 and it read 79 so new thermometer fixed the problem GL