big chiller for small tank?

shabreeson · #1 11/28/2007, 11:25 PM

I am building my own lighting system that includes a MH being a mere 3 inches from the water surface, I have a 55 gallon with a 20 gallon sump.I was thinking of a chiller fit for a 250 gallon.
A) will the chiller just not be on as often as it would be normally?
B)will I have to put it on a lower setting?
C)will it "overchill" my tank no matter what I do?
D)will it waste energy?

BangkokMatt · #2 11/28/2007, 11:55 PM

The bigger the better. It will come on as regularly but chill the water alot quicker therefore being more energy efficient.
I wouldn't have MH 3 inches from the water. They get really hot and the splash back from the top of the tank could cause you problems. I've heard of MH cracking etc due to cold water splashing on them.

twon8 · #3 11/29/2007, 01:53 AM

you likely won't need a chiller, a fan over the sump or in the canopy would likely keep you around 80. i run halides and t5s, and with enough sump and fans i don't need a chiller.. its an expensive purchase and uses lots of electricity. if you must get a chiller, wait till it gets warm again

shabreeson · #4 11/29/2007, 03:38 AM

thanks for the input it was very helpful

ksouers · #5 11/29/2007, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by shabreeson
I am building my own lighting system that includes a MH being a mere 3 inches from the water surface, I have a 55 gallon with a 20 gallon sump.I was thinking of a chiller fit for a 250 gallon.
A) will the chiller just not be on as often as it would be normally?
B)will I have to put it on a lower setting?
C)will it "overchill" my tank no matter what I do?
D)will it waste energy?

shabreeson: I have the same setup you do, 55 gallon display and 20L sump. I also have 400 watts of metal halides burning in a well vented canopy. We had 3 straight months of temps over 95 this summer and almost 1 month of temps over 100. I have the sump sitting over a vent for the A/C, the tank never gets over 82.

I also second the suggestion to raise the lights off the water, to about 8-9 inches. 3 inches is much too close.

Of course, every installation has it's own advantages and disadvantages. But I think for most installations, with creative planning and design, a chiller is really unnecessary.

IceWish · #6 11/29/2007, 09:08 AM

using that big of a chiller in a small setup might be overkill, it might be ok for your tank but you might shorten the life of the chiller.. The compressor would be coming on and off more frequently and this would put a strain on the unit. With any electrical component the most strain is put on the system when you put it on....this is why most bulbs blow at the time you flick the switch, so the less on and off you have the better for the unit.,

BangkokMatt · #7 11/29/2007, 09:35 AM

It will switch on the same amount of times as a smaller chiller. It just won't stay on for as long.