Cooling Fans

[bane]

Just wondering if those cooling fans (say 6 fans) will effectively lower the temperature of the water ?

Or does it just cool the surface ??

[nakazoru]

Yes, it cool the whole tank by some 2deg, max 3deg.

[don]

yes it does,but watch out for evaporation,,,

[bane]

Yes, it cool the whole tank by some 2deg, max 3deg

So in some ways it is a poor man's chiller yes ?

Let's just say for only soft corals it'll be ok ?

yes it does,but watch out for evaporation

Elaborate please ?

[pop]

I think AC fan will be better than the DC fans(6 fans). More powerful. U just need one or maybe two. I personally using just one.Could keep the temp down to 26 degree during these few weeks of raining seasons. Meaning the actual temp in tank will depends on the ambient temp, but definitely will be lower.

The cons will be evaporation, temp fluatations (26- 28.5), a little bit of noise from the rotating(bearable).

Else its still the cheaper form for cooling the tank.

[bane]

But will it cool to an extent when I can keep other stuff than mushies and polyps ??

Anyone tried ....

Was intending only a FOWLR tank ..but getting snagged on corals .....

Dun really want to buy an expensive chiller cause might move house = new tank soon ..

[leochngyh]

I use fan to cool my tank with mushy. yesterday room temp is higher and tank temp also rise until 29°C. So far my mushy still ok.

[iantoh]

hi there bane.

i think the ability of fans to cool down your system's temperature also depends on its heatload. if you have a whole lot of pumps and lights, youll find that the fans will not adequately cool down your water temp to allow you to keep the more temp sensitive corals. If however, your system is akin to a 2ft setup with just, say, T5 lightings, and one wavemaker pump, then the six fan set like the oceanfree ones will do a decent job of cooling your temp down to 28-29 degrees, which ought to let you keep most corals, bar acroporids and other sps.

i used to keep a goniopora specific tank using just a six fan set for temp control. if you can afford it though, plumping for a chiller might be the better long term solution.

cheers,

ian

[bane]

If however, your system is akin to a 2ft setup with just, say, T5 lightings

Erh my tank is a 4 x 1.5 x 1.5 .....

Only one airstone-driven skimmer and using FL lights ....

Like I said ...was supposed to be a FOWLR ...

But now I keep seeing nice corals ...........

Have alot of polyps and mushies currently ...but looking for more diversification .

Think I really need a chiller ?

[nakazoru]

Erh my tank is a 4 x 1.5 x 1.5 .....

Only one airstone-driven skimmer and using FL lights ....

Like I said ...was supposed to be a FOWLR ...

But now I keep seeing nice corals ...........

Have alot of polyps and mushies currently ...but looking for more diversification .

Think I really need a chiller ?

Seriously, it all depends on your current temperature. My QT is near the window and the tank is constantly cooled by natural wind and evaporation id higher than my Main tank cooled by fan. But of course I have no lights at the QT.

Corals don't really complain on lights or temperature or flow but the will slowly deteriorate over time. Like my frogspan, one polyp just melt without knowing the exact reason.

If you stick to the high temp, some coral but not all may not do well.

[cci[RR]us]

Sometimes you do not need that many fans. For my 2 feet I'm using a 80mm fan running at 40% capacity (5VDC instead of 12VDC), and I am able to achieve maximum cooling (26 deg).

As long as the air above your tank is moving, evaporation should be optimal. You do not need strong wind hitting the water surface.

[May&Bruce]

Remember that using fans will signficantly increase your evaporation rate, and they do not really provide any temperature control...they will just reduce the water temperature down 1-2 degrees lower than it already is. This maybe is ok for smaller fish only tanks with a low lighting heta load, but as iantoh said, a chiller might be a better option in the long term.

[JeffL]

what are the brand u guys are using? I am using Sunon. big and powerful but very noisy....can lower ard 2 degrees

any silent but effective brands to recommend?

[tttour]

I have a used fan to sell, should be 6".