Added my refugium... Huge water evap?

So I added my 5 gallon fug yesterday evening... Checked connections and pretty sure there is no leak, set the lights on opposite day/night from tank, and everything looks fine.

When I woke up this morning and checked everything, no leaks that I can see, but there was like 3/4 of a gallon already out of the fug... And it's only 5 gallons. Is this normal for so much more evaporation? Guess I don't really know what my usual is because my 55G DT it doesn't seem like much compared to the regular amount.

Do you all top off that much a day (well like 16 hours)? Or should I be checking for leaks again... And now I'm worried I'm gonna start a fire in my apartment while at work with a hose busting or something lol.

One more thing, noticed that now that I have the heater in the fug, and the opposite day/night... My temp is constant at 81 even through the night- may be adding to the evap instead of the usual 78 it hits at night?

Thanks,
Worried crazy guy.

 

Well, the additional surface area is going to add to evaporation, and so is the heat.

But, is this fuge a Aquaclear type, or a fuge that uses your tank as the (technical) sump?

 

Evaporation is normal when you have an open top tank and or a fuge. I top off about 1.5 to 2 gallons of water per day and that's why I installed a JBL top off system. It's very well worth the money.... topping off manually gets really old, really quick.

I would try and do something about your temperature swing, though.
For example, make sure your home temp is somewhat below from what you keep your tank. If it gets cold at night, make sure your heater is only 1 or 2 degrees at the most. I used to have temp swings from 77 to 80 all the time, and my corals didn't like it very much. Fish could also get stressed under this regime.

So, lets say: If your tank reaches 81 degrees maximum, with heaters off, you should set your heater to keep your temp to 79 or 80 during the colder period, that way the temp swing it's only 1 or 2 degrees.

Look up JBL ATO (Auto Top Off) system with level lock line. It's worth the money. I have a 5 gallon bucket next to my sump and I re-fill it 2 or 3 times a week if it's hot inside.

- Mag.

 

Got it.

It's more of a sump type. I am going to install ventilation in the cabinet for air movement since I keep the doors closed which tends to trap the heat. I think that will stabilize the temp at 80.

I need to check my skimmer to make sure it's not pulling out too much water... I forgot to check it with the new water level in the DT.

I'll check out the ATO. I will be on vacation for two weeks in December anyway so I'll need it for that... And a biiiiig bucket!

 

Well, if the fuge is the sump (by the technical definition, of the "lowest container of water in an open loop system"), then that's where you get differences in water level from evaporation now, not the DT.

 

Yeah. I realize that... It's just more than I thought but I guess it's plausible to get that much for one night.... Just didn't think it would be that much.

*edit: I see where you were going with that... The dt water level. It changed a little with the addition of the overflow box so I just need to set the skimmer level now and forget it because the DT level won't change any more. Thanks!

 

Yeah, I saw what happened when I added my fuge too, and I had to hook up an ATO. It was just too much.

The skimmer thing is the best, though lol. It was such a pain to keep it properly set before.

 

x2 on that. one of my 55g (t5.pc) tanks uses about 1/2 gallon a day, the other 55g (mhx2)uses 1.5g a day.. go figure.