# HUMIDITY from too many aquariums



## cosmic665 (Oct 4, 2007)

Hello;

I have over 13 different aquariums in my 1400sq ft 3 bedroom house. 9 aquariums are in my downstairs living room, 3 in my office room & 2 in my bedroom. I am somewhat concerned about humidity. I believe my house is only at 40% humidity according to my little temperature meter I got from radio shack. Most of my tanks use HOB filters which I believe create a high amount of evaporation since I have to top off some tanks every week with 1-3gallons of water. One of my 55gallon corner tanks with a cascade 1000 canister filter never needs to have additional water added (except during cleaning and water changes).
So the question I have is if I should change out all my old HOB/biowheel filters with canister filters to eliminate excess evaporation (and maybe humidity)? Here is a breakdown of the size of my tanks:

Living room: 
x1 10 gallon tank (hides in the 180's stand)
x1 180 gallon tank
x5 55 gallon tanks
x2 35-40gallon tanks

Office room: 
x2 55 gallon tanks
x1 35 gallon Hex

Bedroom:
x1 55 gallon tank
x1 15-20 gallon Hex

So I have roughly 540gallons of aquarium capacity in my living room. I was told that a large 100-200gallon tank puts off as much perspiration or condensation as 1-2 people. So I wonder If My tanks are creating humidity and moisture problems? let me know your thoughts.

Thanks
-Cosmic


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## Sick-Lid-4-Life (Mar 22, 2008)

Where do you live ? Unless the humidity is causing mold or a musty smell I wouldn't imagine it would be too much. Personally I use a humidifier in my room because dry air makes my nose bleed (I know, gross) LoL


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## cosmic665 (Oct 4, 2007)

I live in the pacific northwest where there isn't a whole lot of humidity. Still, my house has an air exchanger in it probably to battle an issue with old stale air? I'm not 100% sure...


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## geoff_tropheus (Feb 13, 2003)

You can cut down a lot of evaporation from your tanks if they have good sealed lids/glass tops/ hoods.

I have canisters on nearly all my tanks, and I trim to fit the backsplash pieces of my glass tops to almost a exact fish for the canister hoses to go thru, and it helps tremendously.

HOB's might be very difficult to cut to fit, and there would still be some areas not sealed well.


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## cosmic665 (Oct 4, 2007)

My guess is that the waterfall effect that HOB's create is speeding up evaporation and condensation. I am not 100% positive, but I would like to confirm with others. I know that I get almost no evaporation with my 54gallon tank with a canister filter.


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## Sick-Lid-4-Life (Mar 22, 2008)

I use HOBs on my tanks. I lose very little due to evaporation.


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## F8LBITEva (Nov 9, 2007)

Im sure the water entering the tank from the HOB is going to be the cause for most of the evaporation. Like others said I would make sure your tops are tight except for the spots you have equipment hanging on the back.


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

Up until recently I had 1,000 gal of aquariums spread throughout my home. The humidity did stay high enough to make my fiancÃ©â€™s hair poofyâ€¦ but not bad enough to grow mold or mildewâ€¦

I had 800~1,000 gal of aquariums in 3 different residences, each one for one yearâ€™s time. I never had a humidity issue beyond poofy hairâ€¦


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## Vincent (May 7, 2004)

40% humidity is not something to worry about. When it rises above 50% or so you may have problems.


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## justshoe (Mar 13, 2008)

I have the same issue. However i am in a first floor ground level apartment. single bedroom with about 300gallons worth of tanks. I had major humidity issues, i went to best buy and picked up a dehumidifier for about 125 bux and i stay around 25-30% humidity now.


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## bentcountershaft (Nov 23, 2007)

justshoe said:


> I have the same issue. However i am in a first floor ground level apartment. single bedroom with about 300gallons worth of tanks. I had major humidity issues, i went to best buy and picked up a dehumidifier for about 125 bux and i stay around 25-30% humidity now.


Did you notice an increase in the amount your tanks evaporated after that? I run a dehumidifier in basement and I'm wondering how much it will affect by open sump.


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## cosmic665 (Oct 4, 2007)

What can I use as a good lid/seal replacement on my lids? Most of my tanks have an opening in the back for the HOB filter which is the default cut-out from the lids which came with the tanks. I wonder if the opening is too big. I don't think my tanks are leaking, at least I don't see any stains in my carpets.


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## spotmonster (Nov 23, 2006)

I have most of my glass lids cut exact in the back.

My 90 is running a canister and very tight cut outs for everything. The 90 has almost no evaporation.

I have a 55 in the same room running 2 HOB's and it needs a top off within 1 week. Having cut outs as small as possible will help a lot, but they can never be as tight as running canisters. Of course you are looking at crazy $ to switch them all over at once. Why not switch over the 180 1st and see how much it helps you out?


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## walleye (Aug 20, 2007)

I redid my 75 gal now I have very little evaporation. I got new back strips from That pet place.
http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/14479/product.web
I replaced the hinges and backstrips. it really sealed up the tank. I cut out only what was needed for the hob.

Steve.


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