Still Baffled over Temperature Fluctuation

bmallia82 · 05/08/2006, 01:35 PM

So after monitoring my Tank for the weekend my temperature still varies from 77 degrees - almost 82 degrees.

I have a 95 gallon wave tank w/ 8x54w T5 light fixture. The lights are on brackets about 10 in above the water. Any suggestions, and I cannont afford a chiller at the moment. I am not really looking fwd to getting one at all. Any help would be great. Thanks

xlayedoutx · 05/08/2006, 01:47 PM

Have you added any fans.

Sk8r · 05/08/2006, 01:55 PM

This is one of the futziest things to stabilize.
1. get your lights on a timer, so that heat input never varies.
2. never trust a heater thermostat, and get two thermometers; if they agree, it's a miracle, and 1 degree at 84 degrees is the difference between a thriving reef and one at 85, dying and bleaching.
3. get a stubby pillar fan and maybe link it to your light timer, or maybe get it going 24/7 depending on your particular tank...rock and water 'conserve' the heat or cold, and getting it cooled at night will mean a few degrees' grace during the heat of the day.
4. on a particularly hot day, either crank the airconditioning or at least open the door to the sump and add more fans. so the flow increases. Impossibly hot---some people have put icebags next to their sump. I have personally theorized about creating a saltwater 'swamp cooler' with a fan, a smallish pump, and a drip column, but I'm not sure how efficent it would be, also the added problem of salt creep.
5. if you don't have central air, and in NY probably not, one of those rollabout airconditioners that vents hot air out a window is a good fallback. They cost 300-500 which is still cheaper than many chillers, and have the benefit of keeping you cool as well.

angelsj247 · 05/08/2006, 02:26 PM

my temp always goes up a couple of degrees when its hot out.. maybe that could be causing it

bmallia82 · 05/08/2006, 02:55 PM

Thanks guys, I think my next step is to get a fan moving across the top of my tank.

I have central air and my house is at a consisten 68 degrees.

mike89t · 05/08/2006, 06:07 PM

My tank goes from 79-83 degrees with my home AC set to 78 degrees. I have 600W of t5 lighting over my tank which heats it up during the day. I set my computer to turn off the lights if my temp reaches 83.5 just in case. Actually your tank should be fine as long as you keep it below 86 degrees.

On the natural reef temperatures vary through out the day as the sun heats the water and the tides rise and fall.

A fan blowing on you sump with help with evaporative cooling if you want. Just make sure to watch your water level.

m3rcury · 05/08/2006, 10:19 PM

do you have a cover on your tank? i had a heat problem with MH lights on my 40g. i bought a canopy to keep the fish from jumping out and then took the cover off. i also added a small 5" fan i got at home depot to blow across the surface of the water. now, my temps stay pretty constant.

the evaporation went up, but i got an automatic top off unit to deal with that.

i don't run a sump, but i know having more circulation across the top of the water can make a big difference. also, if you have a canopy, is it ventilated well? if your apartment is a constant 68 degress, then you appear to be trapping heat somewhere. i can't think of why it would be that high if your ambient temp is relatively low.

PatMayo · 05/08/2006, 10:27 PM

If you raise the temp a little to say 79 degress with your heaters then the difference will be smaller. I doubt that the temp will raise beyond what it already has.

You state your tank was just started. I would hope that you don't have much in it yet. How long are the lights currently on and can you reduce that time?

Regards,

Pat

bmallia82 · 05/09/2006, 07:41 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by PatMayo
If you raise the temp a little to say 79 degress with your heaters then the difference will be smaller. I doubt that the temp will raise beyond what it already has.

You state your tank was just started. I would hope that you don't have much in it yet. How long are the lights currently on and can you reduce that time?

Regards,

Pat

I have 3 chromis, 1 yellow tang and an algae blenny in a 95 gallon tank. I have been extremely Patient w/ this process. So I am not moving to fast.

Light hours I can prob reduce.

9 30 atinics go on
11 daylights come on
8pm daylights go off
9 30 atinics off

Kurt03 · 05/09/2006, 07:58 AM

what other pumps do you have in your system? is the top of your tank closed? is the top of your sump closed? I think a 14 degree diffrence in your room temp and tank temp is pretty high. Maybe a pump is dirty and needs cleaning, do you have any mag pumps?

rcbones · 05/09/2006, 08:56 AM

I have two 4" box fans blowing air across 6 110watt VHO bulbs. One fan comes on when the actinics come on and the second fan comes on with the daylights. Just 1 box fan isn't quite enough.

9:00am actinics on
12:00pm daylights on
7:00pm daylights off
9:00pm actinics off

I also put two 3/4" holes near the top of my canopy so hot air has a chance to escape out of the canopy. ie give the hot air a place to rise out of and cool air will fill in.

My house is kept between 69F and 73F. I have 2 150watt heaters set to 81F.

My tank stays at 81F + or - 0.3F.

05/08/2006, 01:35 PM	#1
bmallia82 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: NY Posts: 242	Still Baffled over Temperature Fluctuation So after monitoring my Tank for the weekend my temperature still varies from 77 degrees - almost 82 degrees. I have a 95 gallon wave tank w/ 8x54w T5 light fixture. The lights are on brackets about 10 in above the water. Any suggestions, and I cannont afford a chiller at the moment. I am not really looking fwd to getting one at all. Any help would be great. Thanks

05/08/2006, 01:47 PM	#2
xlayedoutx Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Clovis Ca Posts: 383	Have you added any fans. __________________ I may be new but I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night. Current Tank Info: 40G Breeder with built in overflow, (2) Hydra 26HD’s, (4) T5’s, BM Nac 3.5 Skimmer

05/08/2006, 01:55 PM	#3
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	This is one of the futziest things to stabilize. 1. get your lights on a timer, so that heat input never varies. 2. never trust a heater thermostat, and get two thermometers; if they agree, it's a miracle, and 1 degree at 84 degrees is the difference between a thriving reef and one at 85, dying and bleaching. 3. get a stubby pillar fan and maybe link it to your light timer, or maybe get it going 24/7 depending on your particular tank...rock and water 'conserve' the heat or cold, and getting it cooled at night will mean a few degrees' grace during the heat of the day. 4. on a particularly hot day, either crank the airconditioning or at least open the door to the sump and add more fans. so the flow increases. Impossibly hot---some people have put icebags next to their sump. I have personally theorized about creating a saltwater 'swamp cooler' with a fan, a smallish pump, and a drip column, but I'm not sure how efficent it would be, also the added problem of salt creep. 5. if you don't have central air, and in NY probably not, one of those rollabout airconditioners that vents hot air out a window is a good fallback. They cost 300-500 which is still cheaper than many chillers, and have the benefit of keeping you cool as well. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

05/08/2006, 02:26 PM	#4
angelsj247 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Joliet, IL Posts: 866	my temp always goes up a couple of degrees when its hot out.. maybe that could be causing it __________________ 2 perc clownfish, 2 peppermint shrimp, astrea, turbo, & nassarius snails, 20 lbs Live Rock Current Tank Info: 20gal FOWLR

05/08/2006, 06:07 PM	#6
mike89t Premium Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chandler, Az Posts: 1,889	My tank goes from 79-83 degrees with my home AC set to 78 degrees. I have 600W of t5 lighting over my tank which heats it up during the day. I set my computer to turn off the lights if my temp reaches 83.5 just in case. Actually your tank should be fine as long as you keep it below 86 degrees. On the natural reef temperatures vary through out the day as the sun heats the water and the tides rise and fall. A fan blowing on you sump with help with evaporative cooling if you want. Just make sure to watch your water level. __________________ Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach that person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks. Current Tank Info: Sold my 150G reef tank. :^(

05/08/2006, 02:55 PM	#5
bmallia82 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: NY Posts: 242	Thanks guys, I think my next step is to get a fan moving across the top of my tank. I have central air and my house is at a consisten 68 degrees.

05/08/2006, 10:19 PM	#7
m3rcury Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Madison, WI Posts: 325	do you have a cover on your tank? i had a heat problem with MH lights on my 40g. i bought a canopy to keep the fish from jumping out and then took the cover off. i also added a small 5" fan i got at home depot to blow across the surface of the water. now, my temps stay pretty constant. the evaporation went up, but i got an automatic top off unit to deal with that. i don't run a sump, but i know having more circulation across the top of the water can make a big difference. also, if you have a canopy, is it ventilated well? if your apartment is a constant 68 degress, then you appear to be trapping heat somewhere. i can't think of why it would be that high if your ambient temp is relatively low.

05/08/2006, 10:27 PM	#8
PatMayo Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Seattle Posts: 2,843	If you raise the temp a little to say 79 degress with your heaters then the difference will be smaller. I doubt that the temp will raise beyond what it already has. You state your tank was just started. I would hope that you don't have much in it yet. How long are the lights currently on and can you reduce that time? Regards, Pat __________________ 90 AGA Megaflow (Setup 1-24-06) 120 Lbs. Liverock EuroReef RS 100 Skimmer 2 X 150 MH 2 X 96 watt PC Actinic 2 Clarki Clowns (31 months old) 1 Niger Trigger (Owned 6 months) 2 Tunze 6055 PH Current Tank Info: 90 AGA Megaflow To Be Mixed Reef

05/09/2006, 07:58 AM	#10
Kurt03 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Ohio Posts: 3,602	what other pumps do you have in your system? is the top of your tank closed? is the top of your sump closed? I think a 14 degree diffrence in your room temp and tank temp is pretty high. Maybe a pump is dirty and needs cleaning, do you have any mag pumps?

05/09/2006, 08:56 AM	#11
rcbones Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 50	I have two 4" box fans blowing air across 6 110watt VHO bulbs. One fan comes on when the actinics come on and the second fan comes on with the daylights. Just 1 box fan isn't quite enough. 9:00am actinics on 12:00pm daylights on 7:00pm daylights off 9:00pm actinics off I also put two 3/4" holes near the top of my canopy so hot air has a chance to escape out of the canopy. ie give the hot air a place to rise out of and cool air will fill in. My house is kept between 69F and 73F. I have 2 150watt heaters set to 81F. My tank stays at 81F + or - 0.3F.