temperature fluctuation

[redseven]

hi, im waiting for my tank to cycle, and im having a problem with controlling my water temperature. i dont have a chiller, right now i can lower my water temperature to around 76 f with a fan. through the night and morning, the temp stays around 76 f, but in the afternoon it can go as high as 80 f. is that a bit too much fluctuations? im not running my fan 24/7 because im not sure on how much water it can take out from evaporation from my 40 g tank, and how it affect salinity. im feeling like my tank need a constant top off. what is the normal amount of water you guys have to replace in a 40 g tank? thanks for reading.

 

[crazydante23]

You should pick up a controller for your tank. You can set your fan to turn on and off at a certain temp. I let my tank chill at 80-81 deg during the summer. I go through 5g of ro a week

 

[TheBluefish]

Same here but I have a 60 gallon.

 

[mistalanious]

i have mine at 82 and if it goes 1 degree over it goes back down.. chiller that is..

 

[coral diver]

First what kind of light are you using?

second its normal for the water to be higher than the air temperature you can just use a regular timer set it from noon to mid evening a lot cheaper than the temp controller

 

[redseven]

i am running 2 95w power compact. right now its not on for more than 3 hr/day since im still cycling my tank, well, that's what i was told. so, the 4 degree is too much of a fluctuation? im going to look into the controller. im also goin to try and run the fan from 3 to around 7 to see if it bring the temp fluctuation down. thanks for the responses.

 

[Wes]

4 degrees isn't too much, especially when cycling a tank. Many shallow water species tolerate much more than that daily. An auto-top off would be my first investment along with a timer for the fans... best would be ATO + controller if you can swing that much $ (~50 for the ATO, ~$100 for the controller)

 

[redseven]

well. having the fan on in the afternoon help a bit. now the swing happen within 78-80 f. my next question is, is that good enough for the tank when the cycle is done?

 

[Bekindtoyurbuds]

yeah thats right where you want the temp

 

[silverarrow27]

Degree difference is terrific. My 10 gallon right now is around a 2 or 3 degree difference night to day. I'm afraid for winter to come around.

 

[redseven]

really? i think winter is easy.. cause heating up a tank is easier than cooling a tank

 

[silverarrow27]

I always have a hard time with winter and heaters in general actually. Moreso bad luck with heaters because they always break. Otherwise, for a nano especially...you don't keep an eye on the heater and I may have boiled fish one of these days.

Then again ignore me, I think I'm just a bit traumatic from winter experiences in the past...

 

[redseven]

man, i hope none of my heater does that