Water Temperature

[Seth S.]

Hello,

I am having a bit of difficulty keeping the water temperature steady in pretty much all my tanks. I have reached the point where I don't even have the heaters in them because they never turn on. Anyone have any ideas on how to keep water temperature steady? Doesn't have to be perfect, but within like a range of +- 1 degrees.

I have heard a regular fan aimed at the top of the tank would cool it down, but I can't take the lids off. Many of my fish are "jumpers", I have seen one fish in particular escape countless times.

 

[maggie thecat]

What kind of fish do you have?

Many keepers only use heaters during the winter months. That's fine. Fish often have seasonal temperature preferences.

Tell us more about the situation and it will be easier to determine if you need a cooling system in place.

What is your house temperature, for example. And do you run AC?

 

[Seth S.]

One tank in particular that I would like the temperature to be steady is a 20g long that is housing a puffer, lower jaw poly, and 3 cory cats.

I live in an apartment and have no control of the heating situation. There is an AC unit in the living room, but is on the opposite side of the room.

I took off the heaters as I never have seen the tanks drop below 72 degrees. This past winter I have seen it as high as 84 degrees in one tank.

The situation is the same for all the tanks pretty much, so if one is figured out. I could probably apply it to the others. All tanks hold a potential jumper.

 

[maggie thecat]

So what is your optimal range? Knowing the specific types of puffer, cory, etc would help determine the tank's tolerance for temperature swings.

 

[Seth S.]

So what is your optimal range? Knowing the specific types of puffer, cory, etc would help determine the tank's tolerance for temperature swings.

Be nice if it were around 75-77 consistently. Specific species, it is an Schoutedeni Puffer, Delhezi Bichir, and panda cory cats. They should all be happy within that range. Delhezi I know would prefer it a bit warmer.

 

[maggie thecat]

Short of adding a chiller, I think trying to regulate the ambient air temperature is your best bet. If your fishroom is getting outrageously hot, then it will effect your water temperatures.

Short term solutions for dire situations include running fans over blocks of ice or using frozen cold packs in ziplock bags, but those will cause potentially large and detrimental temperature shifts.

So work on that. Then if need be, you can reinstall your tank heaters.

But do keep in mind that fish are used to seasonal shifts. You may be experiencing less of an issue than there is.

 

[Seth S.]

Short of adding a chiller, I think trying to regulate the ambient air temperature is your best bet. If your fishroom is getting outrageously hot, then it will effect your water temperatures.

Short term solutions for dire situations include running fans over blocks of ice or using frozen cold packs in ziplock bags, but those will cause potentially large and detrimental temperature shifts.

So work on that. Then if need be, you can reinstall your tank heaters.

But do keep in mind that fish are used to seasonal shifts. You may be experiencing less of an issue than there is.

Don't have a fish room per se. I got the main tank in the living room and the rest in the "dining" room.

Seasonal changes are nice and all, but would prefer just a little bit of control over the temperature. A steady range would be preferred over drastic changes like adding an ice pack. I don't want the puffer to get stressed from frequent changes, let alone any fish.

how big of a fan would I need anyway to reduce the tank a few degrees?