Chiller recommendation

It's getting to be the time of year when I start wondering if I'm going
to actually buy a chiller. We just had our first heat wave & the tank got to
85 degrees.
Being the cheap ******* that I am I was looking at DIY plans & found
things like the small fridge mod, the old window a/c mod, & even the
dehumidifier mod. Do any of those work (reliably)?
Also, with my price range I think I'm looking a used chiller. Is that a
reasonable choice? Or should I just buy a brand new one? What do I need to
look for when buying a used chiller?
TIA, Steve

Steve, you need to set up the DIY chiller using a window A/C unit. It is in the
DIY forum on RC, and it'll run you about $500 altogether.

I know that is a lot of money, but this will last you MUCH longer than a chiller
we normally buy. Plus the A/C unit is outside and you won't have any noise or
heat issues from a unit in your home.

Let me know if you can't find the thread.

Marc


Steve \"Srfmon\" wrote:

It's getting to be the time of year when I start wondering if I'm going
to actually buy a chiller. We just had our first heat wave & the tank got to
85 degrees.
Being the cheap ******* that I am I was looking at DIY plans & found
things like the small fridge mod, the old window a/c mod, & even the
dehumidifier mod. Do any of those work (reliably)?
Also, with my price range I think I'm looking a used chiller. Is that a
reasonable choice? Or should I just buy a brand new one? What do I need to
look for when buying a used chiller?
TIA, Steve

--
Personal Page: http://www.sparklingfloorservice.com/oanda/index.html
Business Page: http://www.sparklingfloorservice.com
Marine Hobbyist: http://www.melevsreef.com

the average temp of the reefs where most of our animals are collected from is
82 -88.. even in the winter months, only one reef drops below 80 and that is
the great barrier ( we dont get any corals from the great barrier).
If you would keep your tanks at the temp of NSW ( 84ish) a temp swing to 85-87
is nothing.. a temp swing from 78- 87 is a big swing.. the link I would like
to provide is broken ATM but if ya can find aquarium frontiers nov 1997, a
great article by Dr Shimek will have you keeping your tanks at a more normal
temps.. Corals do much better due to the motabilism rates.. I have not seen a
tank that _needs_ a chiller yet.. All summer long I kept my 120 surge/tide zone
in a tin shed with 4x 400 halides over it.. No AC.. Outside temps would average
90 (or higher).. I had the tank set up so fand would come on at 82 and lights
would start shutting off at 87. Lights only went off 2 times all summer, and I
never lost anything. A few properly place fans will do the job, especially in
an airconditioned house.
Good Luck
Rod Buehler
www.asplashoflife.com

the link I would like
to provide is broken ATM but if ya can find aquarium frontiers nov 1997, a
great article by Dr Shimek

Copy and paste

http://216.239.37.104/search?sourcei...che:http%3A//w
ww.animalnetwork.com/fish2/aqfm/1997/nov/features/1/default.asp
Rod Buehler
www.asplashoflife.com

you don't live in north carolina do you
i just had the same problem
tank has been constant 79-80 since setup several months ago
this weekend it was up to 85
back down to 79.5 now
i'm going to put a fan on both the tank & sump before researching chillers

No, I live in Southern California.
That's what I do every year with the fans. I'm just thinking it might
actually be cheaper to run a chiller instead of two fans. And possibly
quieter too!
Rod, you were saying that your tank swings from 82 to 88? In my tank I
have noticed at 83 & above there are some things I can't keep. Pocillopora &
Stylophora are a few I can think of. I have a clam/sps tank.
Mark, are you saying that the A/C mod is better than an actual chiller?
At $500 for the unit you have a good start on an actual chiller (or a good
used one).
Steve


"Shane Kennedy" wrote in message
om...
you don't live in north carolina do you
i just had the same problem
tank has been constant 79-80 since setup several months ago
this weekend it was up to 85
back down to 79.5 now
i'm going to put a fan on both the tank & sump before researching chillers

No, I live in Southern California.

OOOOH

That's what I do every year with the fans. I'm just thinking it might
actually be cheaper to run a chiller instead of two fans. And possibly
quieter too!

not a chance!!! well quieter thats 50/50 if you use good fans and set them up right there
fairly quiet, if you use a cheapo chiller its not. both extremes are possible.

Mark, are you saying that the A/C mod is better than an actual chiller?
At $500 for the unit you have a good start on an actual chiller (or a good
used one).

ive considered that one, this summer I just might endup doing it. but for now ive been
able to get away w/o one, I did run an "actual chiller" at least it was made to be ran on
an aquarium, then grey davis happened! and I went back to fans I do run 2 TEC based
chillers(1 external & 1 DIY iceprobe), there great on small tanks, but not for much over
40gallons


--
Richard Reynolds

I would simply use a good PC fan to blow away heat and suck in cool air. If
need extra cooling, use a house fan to blow directly to your tank.
Central AC or windows AC will run up your bill.

Your temperature should not be swing too much if you have a good heater that
will turn on when temperature drop. My tank temperature constant at 82 - 84
all year round [Northern Cal.].
Most of the tank temperature will have a great swing if it located close or
near a windows or to some heat source.

CapFusion,...


"Richard Reynolds" wrote in message
news:toK3c.14698$PY.2180@lakeread05...
No, I live in Southern California.

OOOOH

That's what I do every year with the fans. I'm just thinking it might
actually be cheaper to run a chiller instead of two fans. And possibly
quieter too!

not a chance!!! well quieter thats 50/50 if you use good fans and set them
up right there
fairly quiet, if you use a cheapo chiller its not. both extremes are
possible.

Mark, are you saying that the A/C mod is better than an actual
chiller?
At $500 for the unit you have a good start on an actual chiller (or a
good
used one).

ive considered that one, this summer I just might endup doing it. but for
now ive been
able to get away w/o one, I did run an "actual chiller" at least it was
made to be ran on
an aquarium, then grey davis happened! and I went back to fans I do run
2 TEC based
chillers(1 external & 1 DIY iceprobe), there great on small tanks, but not
for much over
40gallons


--
Richard Reynolds

"Richard Reynolds" writes:

No, I live in Southern California.

OOOOH

That's what I do every year with the fans. I'm just thinking it might
actually be cheaper to run a chiller instead of two fans. And possibly
quieter too!

not a chance!!! well quieter thats 50/50 if you use good fans and
set them up right there fairly quiet, if you use a cheapo chiller
its not. both extremes are possible.

I live in Southern California as well... The recent heat has me
sweating in my little condo. My livestock is doing okay, but
evaporation isn't cutting it for cooling.

My concern is that I have 250gal total volume. I can't afford to
evaporate 1% or more of the tank volume per day into my 800sf condo
which doesn't have central air and can't have window units due to the
CCR's. 2.5gallons/day in that small volume means moldy paint and
dripping ceilings. If I have a decent sized chiller in the crawlspace
under the condo (thank goodness I'm on the ground floor), I can
probably keep evaporation at or near my wintertime .5-.75gal/day.

A month ago, it was noticably more humid when you walked in the door.
Now, it's much worse. I need my condo to stay away from being
"tropical" when it gets hot.

Looks like a Chiller it is...

Regards,
Ross

-- Ross Bagley http://rossbagley.com/rba
"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature...
Life is either a daring adventure or nothing." -- Helen Keller

"Rod" wrote in message
...
the link I would like
to provide is broken ATM but if ya can find aquarium frontiers nov 1997,
a
great article by Dr Shimek


So tell me why most of what I've seen tells me to keep our tanks around
78-80?