Heater/Chiller control

[CHUCKSD]

Hello again,
You guys had no clue how bothersome I could be:)

I want to know how you guys control your heat?

My current setup is a titanium heater with remote thermostat.
It is set at 77 degrees. I have a large fan that comes on via timer simultaneously with my larger power compacts.

This system works but it is not efficient at all. The heater ends up fighting the fan. What I want to do is have a probe linked to a controller (like a heater / chiller controller) that would turn on or off a device when a set temp is exceeded. So basically something that will turn on the fan when the temp is to high but turn it off when it is not exceeded... The heater already maintains the temp I just need to hit the high end.

thanks again
Chuck

[Lunchbucket]

get a dual stange Ranco temp controller (http://diyreef.com/shop/index.php?cPath=68&osCsid=418f3b3eab542febe75142bc28e39dfe) you can either get the wired and sealed one for $130 (http://diyreef.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=68&products_id=212) or get the one you can wire yourself for $109 (http://diyreef.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=68&products_id=265)

i never rely on the temp of a heater..it can be terribly innacurate. and the fan on while you have the heater on is a PITA...i've fought w/ that before too.

if you get the one you wire youreself ask Travis about it...he has done it. you can wire up a whole powerstip to the cool side or the heat side or do idividual outlets on each one. the powerstrip comes in handy for multiple heaters and fans can be plugged into the strip.

i have used one they are great, Travis uses one, Grant has one.

i use my aquacontroller w/ X10 moduals. they are sometimes scary w/ some peoples set ups. mine has never had a problem but i am gonna look into looking getting a direct connect for it so i don't have any problems

hope that helps buddy
Lunchbucket

[Travis]

Hi Chuck,
Good topic, especially since summer isn't too far away.:)

I use 2 Ranco digital temp controllers. One came with my chiller and the other was purchased from the same place that Lunchbucket linked to above. The one with the chiller is a single stage and the other one I bought is a dual stage. I wired the dual stage with a separate powerstrip for each stage. I have it set so that if the temperature drops below 77 degrees, my 2 heaters will turn on until the temp hits 78. If the temp hits 79, my sump fans will turn on until the temp falls back to 78. With this controller, the heater and fans never run at the same time. This is all I need for the cooler 8 months out of the year.

When it starts getting warmer outside the fans cannot always bring the temp back down to 78 alone. That is where my other Ranco controller comes in. If the tank temperature rises to 79 my chiller comes on until it falls back down to 78. With this type of setup, it is the most energy efficient for me because only my fans are used to bring the temperature down from 78. The fans use very little electricity compared to my chiller that guzzles 13 amps. The chiller only comes on when the fans cannot handle it alone.

Also, in the spring and fall, I also have a DIY dual window fan unit that I also hook up to the dual stage controller so that whenever the sump fans turn on, the window unit also turns on. Then when it is really hot outside, I have a portable 13000 BTU air conditioner dedicated to the tank room to help keep the ambient temperature at acceptable levels.

This was probably more information than you needed but I thought it might be useful at least for someone else that might read this thread.

Here is a DIY page I put on my website that shows how I wired my dual stage Ranco controller:
http://sio.midco.net/cdshelton/website/DIY/Ranco-dual-stage/ranco_dual_stage_temperature_con.htm

[Lunchbucket]

ask and ye shall recieve :D

Lunchbucket

[creslin2]

ah, temperature control. Now THIS is something I'd be very interested to learn more on. Currently, during the hot months, I just turn on the AC and let the heaters bring up low temps if it gets too cold. However, I have one AC unit in the living room, and it does not evenly cool my apartment. I have 1 tank in the office and one in my bedroom. I accidentally shut the door one day and the 3 fish in my hospital tank got a bit too warm (around 85 in the tank when i got home!! :eek1: ) So, when it comes down to it, using the AC to keep the tanks cool is horribly inefficient, but it's a fine excuse to keep it cool inside.:cool: Travis, I see you talking about a chiller for your tank(s). What can you tell me about it's setup and how it's hooked into your system?
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[creslin2]

does anyone else have suggestions/problems with heat in the summer? solutions? suggestions? I'm all ears. The only thing I can say is that having 2 freshwater tanks and a fledgling brackish tank, these are all fairly self-contained, there is no water exchange or reactors or anything like that. And speaking of cooling off, my damn cat has decided he must snuggle, and do it NOW. He's laying on my lap with his head resting on my arm, while I try to type this out. If he weren't so cute doing it, I'd boot him off. But then he'd get sulky too. *sigh* Well, I'm off to bed for now, I think.
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[Travis]

Haha creslin2, my dogs do the same to me. They like to sit on my lap while I type and mess me up. I don't know much about FW and brackish. I'm not sure how dangerous it is if the temp gets high. With any SW tank, I recommend a chiller or at least some fans over the sump or display. I don't like to rely on the home A/C as these are always likely to fail at some point. All it would take is it to fail for one hot day in the summer to start what could lead to a total tank crash.

Here is a link to my chiller setup: http://sio.midco.net/cdshelton/website/DIY/Outdoor-chiller-housing/outdoor_chiller_housing.htm
Let me know if you have any specific questions about it. One thing you have to be careful about with a chiller is that they put out a lot of heat. So it can be counterproductive to locate them in the same room as the tank.

[creslin2]

thanks for info on your chiller setup, travis. not practical for me, but good to see. Could you have multiple tanks set up to run off the same chiller? Or would that mean sharing water too?

And that damn cat is on my lap again, happy as can be. *sigh*
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[Travis]

Unfortunately, you would need to have all the tanks connected to run off the same chiller.

[creslin2]

hm. kinda thought so. Not exactly something I want to do. Although, with tanks as small as mine are, at least it wouldn't overload the system. :rolleye1:

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