New tank running at 82 degrees

Hello,
I have a 55 gallon tank with a 29 gallon sump. I added RODI water and salt in the past week. I have a LED light with 54 x 1w bulbs. 2 Hydor 420 NANOs for circulation, a Mag 7 for my sump return pump, an unknown protein skimmer in my sump, and a overflow on the side of my tank.

My concern is, without even turning on the light yet, my tank is running at 82 degrees. I have a read in the other threads about a chiller or fans. I cant really afford a chiller right now and im worried fans will cause a crazy amount of evaporation. Currently my mag 7 is submerged, should I try and elevate it out of the water in the sump and extend tubing from the intake of the pump down into the water, so it doesnt heat the water? The circulation pumps arent turned on, or the light, and the apartment probably sits around 74 degrees.

I will be adding liverock and sand today to the tank and turning on the light and I was just concerned the temp could go even higher.

My 2 next steps were going to be to externalize the mag 7 and consider a small fan on the sump.

Thanks for any help/advice.

-Eddie

 

Try some pc fans. They seem to work fairly well in dropping the temp a few degrees

I have the same pump on my set up. Idk how much heat they displace, but my tank hovers right at 80 ish at the peak of the day. I have my ac turned down to about 71 in the room, which helps a lot.

 

Hi Eddie,

Sounds like you have really thought this out.

The only suggestion I can make is to get an ATO, you can get them much cheaper than chillers and then you can add the fans and not be concerned about the evaporation.

 

ok, I think I'll start with some fans, I wanted to do ATO but the way the apartment is set up, I'd have to run a line across the room. I was going to just add a small amount of RODI water into the sump everyday. Maybe ill just splurge and start my AC to control temp haha. Thanks! Im sure I'll be back soon with more questions.

 

Just remeber, the fans will make evaporation much greater. Your gonna have to top off more.

If the tank is in ts own room, like not in the living room or something, look at a window shaker ac unit. That way you AC the most important part of your house.

 

82 sounds so high running only LED's. Some pumps can seep heat, especially if they are defective so check that. Weigh the cost of running your AC more vs buying a chiller. Surface fans can be really effective and remember ALL cooling units are based on evaporation. Sometimes a fan on the sump and one on the DT is all u need. Don't forget to top off! Good luck

 

Mag 7s often have heat issues. It will get hotter if you remove it from the water and run it externally.

 

Hey acid, how goes it? I had this problem. My heater would come on when my halides were on! Very annoying and dangerous, the thermostat would be set to 79, the MH would raise the temp to 80, and the darn heater would click on, bringing the tank to a cozy 82-3. Screw that heater, I bought a new one.

I remiss, Even with the new heater on warmer days ( Eastern North Carolina ) the tank was still getting hot. So here I am sitting researching the best chiller to buy... Then I came across this -->

Amazon.com: AQUATEK ChillMaster Aquarium Cooling Fan 6 Fan Model (AQT-F06): Pet Supplies

And this -->

Amazon.com: Zoo Med Aqua Cool Aquarium Cooling Fan: Pet Supplies

And I am pleased to say that my 75g tank runs at 79 all day running 500w MH for 6 hours and 4 64w PC for ten hours, in an enclosed canopy. Very happy with these buys. These fans are QUIET, almost 360 degree adjustable, and low watt. They make smaller units aswell.

Only con is the 6 fan unit was a ***** to mount, I had to construct my own bracket.

Try this out brother I'll vouch for it, worked for me, at about 350$ less than a chiller.

 

Thought I should add I have both these fans mounted above the tank blowing across the water in the canopy, evaporation has risen. I'm adding 1-2 g fresh RO every day. That's another con, and the 6 fan unit is NOT as big as it looks.

I wouldn't be to worried about evaporation. As long as you have plain RO water on hand you'll be golden.

 

I been having the same issue, I had my MH lights on several days ago and it got 85 in there, of course the MH light has not been on since, but this is what I been doing with the heat wave were having here, RO water and ice cube trays, the ice cubes cool the water, plus you get your top off to make up for evaporation from the fans that I am also using now.