# hot summer days



## Regalis (Feb 2, 2007)

I have a 90g freshwater cichlid tank and this is the first summer i've hit with it. Normally I try to keep the temp around 78, but lately it has risen to the mid 80s because of the 100+ temps (in San Diego can you believe it?). The tank is most definitely not in direct sunlight and is actually in quite a dark room. The ac keeps the house around 72, but the major problem is we go out of town for 4 days many times repetedly during the summer. When we leave the house my parents of course turn the ac off to save the electricity bill, and we come home to an 85 degree house which brings my tank to around 88-90. Obviously dumping ice in the filter isn't the most practical solution in this situation so I am wondering if any of you know of a great aquarium chiller. I have been looking around and people have told me for a 90g tank I will need a 1/2 horse chiller which will cost me around $1000. Now frankly, I'd rather buy new fish every fall than spend 1 grand on a chiller....can anyone help me out?

thanks for reading


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Not sure why this is posted 5 times but you can do an inexpensive DIY chiller. Get a college boy fridge (the kind that is about 3 cubic feet or so). Coil up as much water line as you can through the fridge. Drill holes in the fridge being careful not to pierce any coolant lines. One hole for in and one for out.  Seal with silicone. Turn the fridge down as much as you can. The water will travel through the coil and cool down in the process.

Drawbacks: 
by far not as effective as a commercial chiller and definitely not as energy efficient.

If your pump fails and the fridge is turned down all the way the water in them may freeze and burst.

Looks kinda stupid to have a fridge in the living room with tubes coming out of it unless you can hide it.

The fridge running will heat up the room more than it already is.


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## skools717 (Mar 29, 2008)

did you post it enough times???


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## under_control (Jan 9, 2008)

There is no way the line could freeze and BURST. Freeze, yes, burst, no.

The water would push out the ends. It goes the path of least resistence.


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## Regalis (Feb 2, 2007)

im sorry i realize i posted it 4 times i didn't do it intentionally....my comp sucks right now so i kept refreshing it and for some reason it posted everytime, never happened before sry....please just ignore the other ones.

the fridge idea sounds like it would work but i don't have one around and they're expensive. Does anyone know what size chiller I need for a 90g?


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

under_control said:


> There is no way the line could freeze and BURST. Freeze, yes, burst, no.
> 
> The water would push out the ends. It goes the path of least resistence.


Open ended pipes can definitely burst. It may just go out the ends of a small section of pipe, but if you have coils freeze regardless of them being open ended they can burst. The water gets slushy to the point that its vicosity prevents it from escaping out the ends faster than it expands. Why do you think they blow out sprinkler lines in the winter if all the water had to do is go freely out the unpressurized open sprinkler heads to relieve itself?


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Regalis said:


> the fridge idea sounds like it would work but i don't have one around and they're expensive. Does anyone know what size chiller I need for a 90g?


They definitely aren't $1000 like the chiller you priced. If you check craigslist you may even get one free. Don't get me wrong, a real chiller is certainly better, this is just a cheap DIY idea.

As far as how big I would guess it depends on more than just size. Temp differential would be a factor as well. You could drop the temp of 90 gallons 5 degrees with a whole heck of a lot less power than you could drop it 15 degrees.


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## Awugod (Mar 10, 2006)

Not sure what your budget is, but here is a brand new chiller for a reasonable price.

http://www.bigalsonline.com/StoreCatalo ... hp_chiller

The DIY chillers are a good route if you are on a limited budget though.


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

i think we have to agree first on what is too hot....there is a whole world of cichlids swimming happily away in temps up to 90 ...they dont die ...they live ...now wether they breed ect is another matter but its not a major issue as far as survival is concerned.


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## kingpoiuy (Jun 9, 2008)

Mount a fan on it. If you have a sump make it bigger. A huge sump with a fan on it wont get above 90 unless your house gets above 100.

I use frozen 2 litre's but that is for when i am not away.


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

misspost


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

tannable75 said:


> Not sure why this is posted 5 times but you can do an inexpensive DIY chiller. Get a college boy fridge (the kind that is about 3 cubic feet or so). Coil up as much water line as you can through the fridge. Drill holes in the fridge being careful not to pierce any coolant lines. One hole for in and one for out. Seal with silicone. Turn the fridge down as much as you can. The water will travel through the coil and cool down in the process.
> 
> Drawbacks:
> by far not as effective as a commercial chiller and definitely not as energy efficient.
> ...


That's a really cool idea.


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

dont have to worry...they will be ok at 90...i know because my fish and just about everyones in my area are living almost year round at that temp...and slightly lower at cooler seasons..

i have put a fan on them to get it down a couple of degrees...but its not like i have lost a tank of fish if i turn it off for as while.


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## mithesaint (Oct 31, 2006)

Wouldn't it be a **** of a lot easier to just give your parents some cash for the electric bill each month, and have them keep the AC at 80 while no one is there? Hooking up a fridge is going to cost them money, and I'm fairly certain that chillers aren't cheap to run either. Just have them keep the AC on, but at a higher level so it doesn't run so much.

my $0.02


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

Also, just FYI. It's been proven that it costs more to re-cool a home after the AC has been off then it would to have left the AC on to maintain the normal or slightly higher temp kept in the home.


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

...you dont need to cool.....they will be ok....hello


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

If the tank water gets to be above 88ish I'd start to worry, and that means cooling the tank.


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

88....yeah...thats my target temp.....if i get that things are ok for sure.


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## under_control (Jan 9, 2008)

zazz said:


> 88....yeah...thats my target temp.....if i get that things are ok for sure.


quit using the god **** ellipsis in every post. If you can't use it correctly, don't use it at all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellipsis


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

under_control said:


> zazz said:
> 
> 
> > 88....yeah...thats my target temp.....if i get that things are ok for sure.
> ...


acctually i never heard of the word before you mentioned it...try and stay on subject or i may think you are trying to flame me.

ps... "An ellipsis can also be used to indicate a pause in speech" from your link on wikipidea...yeah thats what i was doing ..pausing.....ah yes...pausing.


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Sick-Lid-4-Life said:


> Also, just FYI. It's been proven that it costs more to re-cool a home after the AC has been off then it would to have left the AC on to maintain the normal or slightly higher temp kept in the home.


There's a limit to that argument. I'm sure it costs more to re cool a home if you don't run the AC while at work, but if you are gone for several days it surely costs more to keep it cool than it does to turn it off and back on upon return. I'm curious what, on average, the number of hours or days this holds true.


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

It wasn't hours a day of it not running, it was actually days. I don't remember where I saw the study though so I can't give a reference.


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## conoholic (Nov 12, 2005)

mine stays at 86 to 88 EVEN WITHouta HEATER. lol


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## zazz (Apr 5, 2008)

maybe somebody could say for sure at which temp the fish start to have serious problems?

thinking from various posts that a tank that is consistent at a high temp is ok but maybe one that fluctuates from low to high is bad news for the fish.


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Hey Zazz, I would keep using the ellipsis if I were you......never give in......to a punctuation bully..... :lol: :lol:

Reminds me of a little joke: A group from the university of Texas go to Havard to work collaboratively on a project. That afternoon one of the Texans asks one of the Harvard elite "Hey buddy, where's the bathroom at?" The Harvard man replies, "Sir, here at Harvard we do not end our sentances in prepositions." The Texan quickly replied, "Oh, sorry, where's the bathroom at, A*****E!"


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