Temperature issues...

[insidedamo]

Hi everyone,

I am trying my hand at a 20L nano reef tank after getting an ibox nano (skimz) as a gift. I'm still just cycling it with nothing in it yet but have noticed I am having problems with the water temperature.

I am using a dymax vortex W-8 and a dymax W7 fan to try and cool the system. The ambient temperature can be as high as 32C (Non air conditioned room) and with the fans I only manage to push it downto 29C with lights off. With the lights on I get about 30C after 1-2 hours on.

Is getting another fan going to make much difference? Or should I really consider a chiller?

Will the 20L volume of my tank be too small to use a Hailea HC 100A 1/20hp or Arctica 1/15hp. (There is a nano Arctica 1/20hp but nobody in Singapore seems to stock it.)

I have considered the resun CL 150 but there are so many mixed reviews on the internet with peltier effect chillers I am not sure whether I should just avoid them completely.

I would be grateful for any advice from the more experienced nano-reefers with regards to this matter.

[Firestarter]

With such high ambient temperature, I do not think fans alone can sustain in the long run.

Best option would be to invest in a chiller.

Also take a look at why your tank is at such a high temp - remove unnecessary equipment that heats up the water.

What kind of lights are you running on?

Take note that the position of the fan blowing against the water will affect the temp it can bring it down to. Try adjusting the position to get optimal results.

[peacemaker]

An Ice Probe (running on Peltier technology) should be sufficient for your tank size.

[insidedamo]

Thanks for you much appreciated comments.

@ firestarter

I'm running aquazonic T5 with one sun tube and one actinic blue. I also use the overflow chamber as a kind of refugium using the kit 23 LED light to grow a small amount of chaeto and copepods. Iam thinking very seriously about buying a chiller.

@ peacemaker

I had thought of the ice probe also but reading around there appears to be some opinion that a single unit is adequate for 10L only and more will be needed for a higher volume. Also according to the manufacturer it only lowers the temperatureof the water between 3.3 - 4.4 C which at best would still leave me running a tank at temp around 28C to 29C which is a little on the high side for my liking.Have you have had personal experience with the ice probe?

[at97515]

i guess the best option to bring down the temperature will be the chiller. Previously, i tried using fan too but it is of not much use.

[slapper]

The T5 lights emit too much heat. During the day, switch on only the blue tube. It makes a difference. I'm using T5 lights as well, and i turn on the blue tube and one Dymax vortex fan on my 2 feet tank. Managed to keep temp below 30. About 29 on a hot day.

[reef garden]

For such a small tank, a chiller is an overkill. I use a high wattage fan and it helps to lower the temperature by about 3 degrees. The flip side is I have to top up a lot of water everyday. For quick cooling, I find using a frozen icebox or water bottle helps.

[Evolutionz]

my 34L tank have to top up 1 - 1.5L Everyday. and even with a fan running, temp is at 28 - 29C due to recent hot weather..

[fishgeek]

Hi,

I think it depends on what you want to keep. I am using a Skimz 20 as well and I run a the smallest chiller from Hailea on it.

If you are planning to keep corals then I suggest getting the smallest chiller like mine. I have tried Ice probe and fan before but it did not really work for me. The coral growth and color is different when you run a chiller.

[Happy13]

From my experience, chiller is always a better option then fan. First started out with fan but find it frustrating. Evaporation is fast and temperature not consistent.

[reef garden]

Bros, I agree with you on the high evaporation rates and fluctuations of using a fan. For those of you with a small (less than 50 litres) tank setup and running a chiller, what corals eg. lps, sps, do you keep? If there's a power trip, the risk of losing the corals is higher, isn't it?

[jythong]

I have a 34l and is cooled daytime by fan and temp reaches 28-29c but the room is air conditioned at night down to 25c. I am able to keep sps and lps fairly ok. My lights are LED and give out minimal heat.

[reef garden]

I have a 34l and is cooled daytime by fan and temp reaches 28-29c but the room is air conditioned at night down to 25c. I am able to keep sps and lps fairly ok. My lights are LED and give out minimal heat.

What sps do you keep? I thought most sps requires higher light output than what LED can provide? Do you have any lighting supplement?

[jythong]

What sps do you keep? I thought most sps requires higher light output than what LED can provide? Do you have any lighting supplement?

It is 72watts of LED for the 34l tank, which I think is more than enough. Some of the sps got bleached at the side facing the light.

[reef garden]

The temperature issue brought up by everyone is a valid concern for nano and pico setups. I was doing some regular temperature checks recently and these days the highest is 31 deg, which is definitely non-ideal. No wonder some of my Rhodactis mushrooms bleached. I wonder if our bros have a feasible solution somewhere in between fans and chillers. I mean, using the smallest chiller out there that is almost the same size as a pico tank is not a pretty sight.

[Evolutionz]

The temperature issue brought up by everyone is a valid concern for nano and pico setups. I was doing some regular temperature checks recently and these days the highest is 31 deg, which is definitely non-ideal. No wonder some of my Rhodactis mushrooms bleached. I wonder if our bros have a feasible solution somewhere in between fans and chillers. I mean, using the smallest chiller out there that is almost the same size as a pico tank is not a pretty sight.

for a pico tank you can consider Iceprobe or TEM chiller by dolphin.. iceprobe is hard to find in SG though.

[Doraemon]

Hi all, I've temp issue with my ibox too. My temp is 30-31 throughout during recent warmer day. I've a skimmer in the ibox and im considering getting the dophlin MC 788 TEMP chiller. But im thinking how am I going to setup the MC788. I believe I need a pump to pump the water through the MC788 and with the small pump that come with ibox(space constraint) how to fix it? Or get another external pump for the MC 788. Any bro and sis running the mc788 in ibox can advise or any pic to show how it is done? Thanks

I've try cooling fan but it is not practical for me as I'm at home all the while to topup water. If I get chillers from Hailea, how to control the flow of water into the my small tank will it overflow or wave is too big?

[Royston]

I believe I need a pump to pump the water through the MC788 and with the small pump that come with ibox(space constraint) how to fix it? Or get another external pump for the MC 788.

I've try cooling fan but it is not practical for me as I'm at home all the while to topup water. If I get chillers from Hailea, how to control the flow of water into the my small tank will it overflow or wave is too big?

The dolphine MC 788 is running with TEM tech (think cpu chip) it does need a external pump either you can connect with the internal pump via aquarium tube or get another pump(I recommend another pump if you don't want your flow to be worse than pee).

If you tank is not i3 but i5 get a hailea chiller it is more efficient imo & cost less when you want to upgrade in the future. My tank is running Hailea with a separate external pump which helps to give a slight flow in the tank. If the flow is too strong get a adjustable external pump.

[sherman]

Ice probe or any peltier chiller should do the job.

I use ice probe on my pico before and if left uncontrol it can freeze the tank

[reef garden]

These few days, the temperature of my pico tank, the one without fan, spiked at 32 deg. My gosh.

[Patrick]

Using ice probe need to drill a hole in tank? That's what I googled. Which life sell the smallest chiller? I have been searching but none has it. I have a 34l and made a mistake of not installing fan and my mushroom melted and GSP refused to open.

[MarcoVan]

Using ice probe need to drill a hole in tank? That's what I googled. Which life sell the smallest chiller? I have been searching but none has it. I have a 34l and made a mistake of not installing fan and my mushroom melted and GSP refused to open.

Just use dymax vortex fan. Chiller is not a must have for nano unless you're planning to venture further with your 34L in delicate coral species.

Moreover you can replace evaporated water with kalk when you are using fan. It'll save you a great deal of cash on calcium supplements.

[Patrick]

Just use dymax vortex fan. Chiller is not a must have for nano unless you're planning to venture further with your 34L in delicate coral species.

Moreover you can replace evaporated water with kalk when you are using fan. It'll save you a great deal of cash on calcium supplements.

Thanks bro. Can use Kalkwasser in small tank? I just top up di water and do 10% water change using salt water mix once a week.

[diki88]

U can fix the mechanical auto top up at ur return area? Gemsurf have one that would be ideal. U can use mix the kalk with ur di water and pour it in the auto top up. Depending on ur tank's calcium intake and ur evaporation rate since u gona use fan,u can reduce the amount of kalk u mix.

[MarcoVan]

Thanks bro. Can use Kalkwasser in small tank? I just top up di water and do 10% water change using salt water mix once a week.

sure, why not? for such a small tank, abit will be enough. Guideline for me is 0.5 teaspoon to a 1L of water. After that it's just monitoring your kh via kh test kits. If your kh drops by a fair bit then you slowly increase your dosage.

For your size, my guess is 1 teaspoon to 1L is sufficient.