# Tank Temperature unstable. Help needed fast plz.



## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

Hi.

Ok, at the moment, my heater is OFF. The last few days, I've noticed my tank temperature fluctuating enormously. I have no doubt it's because of the weather, recently we've been getting many 20C+ days. My room, for some reason, absorbs more heat than any other bedroom in the house (I believe due to the fact that I'm above my garage, which basically acts as a giant oven). It used to be a real problem for my sleeping at night too, but I invested in a large fan (which works wonders btw).


My tank is normally at a comfortable 25C, which is suitable for all my fish. However, the last few days, it's been going up to 28, to 27, 26, back up to 28, down to 27 etc.. I'm reluctant to turn on my tank light because I fear the heat it generates will simply exacerbate the problem. I have no clue what to do. I dropped a tray of ice cubes (made from RO water) into the tank, and it did indeed drop the tank back to 25C within several minutes. However, within a half hour, it was back up to 27C. Currently it's stable at 27C, but I fear it will rise, and I'm not here most of the day, I don't like the idea of a potential disaster happening in my absence. I've left the door to my bedroom open to let the heat out, and some cold air from the rest of the house in, but it doesn't seem to be working at all because of my garage. I do not want to put my fish through this roller coaster ride.

I've heard talk of 'water coolers' on this forum, essentially air conditioning for fish. Any more info on this perhaps? Other suggestions?


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## Falina (Feb 25, 2007)

I'm not sure about this - I'm going to try and look it up and get back to you but if it's only going up to 28, and presumably this is during the peak times of the day, I'm wondering if this is even a problem.

Presumably in the wild the lakes/rivers that fish live in will heat up during the day, and cool down at night anyway in which case I wouldn't imagine this being a problem at all because it would be natural.

I'll see what I can find and get back to you.


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## Falina (Feb 25, 2007)

Matt:

From another forum I found an article on something similar to your problem:

It is important to realize that there is no one specific temperature for each species of fish but rather a temperature range. This range takes into consideration the water temperatures at the time of year a species is collected, optimum breeding temperatures and other weather-related influences on water temperatures. In the wild, fish commonly move through different pockets of water that vary in temperature from each other. For example, a fish can move from a shaded area along the bank of a stream to a brightly lit area, with a difference of as much as 4 degrees Fahrenheit between them. Yet, the fish suffers no ill effects. New hobbyists are often so set on keeping exact temperatures in their tanks at all times that they fail to recognize that fish in the wild are well-adapted to small changes in temperature. 

The concern about fluctuating temperatures is understandable, of course. Many fish disease are brought on by the stress of sudden drops in water temperature. These include white spot disease, shimmies and other maladies. What aquarists should keep in mind is that problems will start if temperature changes are extremely sudden and drastic. Fish in the wild adapt readily to smaller changes in temperature, which occur as a result of various environmental factors relating to the weather. Indeed, sometimes small shifts in temperature can induce some species of fish into spawning. 

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It is upto you whether you feel the temperature differences are somethign to worry about. If it is just going up and down with the time of day/brightness of the sun, personally I wouldn't worry.

Maybe another member will have something to say about this?

HTH


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## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

I had taken natural temperature tolerations into consideration, but the heat range for my Cories are 21C - 26C. It's going well above 26C. I understand it's not too big of a problem now, but it isn't even summer yet, so I would like to know ways to counter this issue which will inevitably be needed in the future. Also, the frequency of the fluctuations are what I'm concerned about.

I've decided to freeze a water bottle, then float it in my tank. The current will distribute the cold efficiently. I shall see how this works.

Thanks for the reminders, Julie.


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## Falina (Feb 25, 2007)

Freezing a bottle of water might help. I hope it does.

Not knowing where you live, it was difficult to say whether this problem would get worse but if the weather is to get hotter then you do seem to have a problem.

Unfortunately I can't help, living in Scotland, this is one problem I will never face, I don't even think they sell water coolers here.

I hope you get your problem sorted out.


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## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

Well the bottle of water idea didn't work. The whole bottle thawed within five minutes and the the temperature barely changed.

I live in Ontario, Canada. Yes, it's Canada but we have bloody hot summers. Last year we saw 30C+. Who knows what will happen this year, it will probably be another hot summer because it's late Spring and we're already hitting 25C.


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## Falina (Feb 25, 2007)

Is there no information online about water cooling systems? 

I am sure I have hear another member here having used one, I will try and find the post and see if it says anything useful. Or you might come across it if you're searching for similar posts.


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## fish_4_all (Nov 13, 2006)

The best thing you could do would be to get a chiller and an inline heater and set it all up with a digital thermometer that controls them all and regulates the temp exactly where you want it. This way you could actually set up cooling and warming periods to simulate the natural temperature fluctuation in nature. 

Aside from that, a couple small fans that create waves on the surface of the tank will serve as a descent cooler. Egg crate can be used as a cover to allow the air to cool the tank but help keep fish from jumping out.


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## Firebelly girrl (Feb 7, 2007)

I know what you are talking about. I don't have central air, and last summer my GOLDFISH tank was in my bedroom (that is on the backside of the house with the sun beating on it all day) The tank reached 32C/90F during the day, and would cool off somewhat at night. It was light this all of june, july and august, and part of may and september, and all the goldfish lived until not long ago with some disease from introducing a carnival fish to the tank =( 
I have no idea how goldfish made it through, I think it may have shortened their lifespan from what I've read, but I wont know that now.


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## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

My cheap dad refuses to turn on the AC, says it's too early. My mom tells me to move it to the basement (yeah real stupid), and everyone else just laughs and says ''They're just fish''.

Imagine how they'd feel without their precious air conditioners. 


I really need to do something. The temp is no longer in the green, it's rising up to 30C now. My heater is unplugged, so it's not my heater malfunctioning. I've opened my windows in my bedroom because the temp is dropping to 14 tonight so hopefully it'll cool my tank nicely.


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## hamdogg08 (Feb 18, 2007)

Turn a fan on and point it at the surface of your water. Maybe that'll help.


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## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

I can't just do that. My tank is elevated roughly 5 feet off the floor. There's no way to mount a fan. There's no way to just keep it pointed at my tank at the angle I need. I can't just remove my hood due to some custom modifications I made to it for my top dwellers. I've considered your idea already, it's just not practical at the moment. 

I can only hope my room cools off soon. Ice cubes did work last night but it was a mere temporary solution and the temporary shot back up like 30 mins later.


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## hamdogg08 (Feb 18, 2007)

Tell your dad to turn on the AC, and that you'll pay for it. You can also try to find an old AC unit on craigslist/ebay/clasifieds and then just run it in your room.


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## fish_4_all (Nov 13, 2006)

You don't need to point the fan at the water. A fan simply running against the glass that is blowing colder air will help to cool it off. Even a fan directed at the bottom will help.


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

fish_4_all had the right idea with the chiller, but if that isn't an option, then there is still one recourse, though it will be a pain in the but and take up some time. *Small* water changes frequently and add a few air stones, being sure to remove any solid cover from the tank and replacing it with something like the egg crating that fish_4_all mentioned. Please don't put ice cubes into the tank again. You were lucky this time, but for many species of fish, the sudden extreme change in temperatures in pockets around the tank can cause the body to go into shock and cause almost immediate death. Water changes, water at a cooler but not "cold" temperature, never more than 5 - 10% at a time, and if the weather is real warm, maybe multiple times in a day. The biggest concern with that type of temp fluctuation is going to be lack of oxygen. Warmer water holds less oxygen. If you can increase the oxygen intake without overdoing it, you should be ok. Air stones in various areas of the tank where the bubbles break the surface will act as a cooling agent. Mind you, this won't completely solve the problem by itself, but combined with the water changes, should see you through until you can afford the chiller.
Good Luck with it! If you need ideas for chillers, let me know, I'll get you some links to browse. I would need to know how big the tank is and what fish are in it to gauge which ones would be best and reasonably priced... [/i]


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## xxthrwitdwnxx (Apr 23, 2007)

get a water chiller my friend who lives in texas has the same problem he got one of the inline heaters and a chiller with a ranco temp controller or if im not mistaken u might be able to use a regular heater but it solved his problem


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## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

I did try pointing my large fan that I use at the tank to keep the warm air away from the tank, but it didn't work, it ran throughout yesterday and the night, nothing has changed. Turning off the light has helped, it dropped about a half degree. 

Thanks for the heads up about the ice cubes. My Betta was acting kind of jumpy, I figured it may have bothered him a bit but I didn't know it could kill my fish. I never would have even considered it had I known that.

It's warm outside today so we'll see how it goes. I turned on the AC since my dad is at work, so maybe my fish can get a break.

I knew that I would have to increase aeration so I siphoned maybe a half inch or so of water from the tank last night before bed, so the hang-on filter now creates a longer waterfall, creating far more bubbles than before. It seems to have helped my fish a lot, their gills aren't moving nearly as fast as they were yesterday.  

Thanks for the help guys.


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## hellow (Apr 28, 2007)

I have an idea. If you have a small spare fan and a spare wire or two this will work. Also, you must have a tank hanging filter. First, bend the wires into a hook to fit around the top of the fan without the blades hitting the fan and also, at the top, bending the wire into a hook. Then, hang the fan onto the filter by the back of the filter.Then plug it in, plug it in!


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

Please don't try that last idea... hang on filters are not strong enough to support the weight of any type of fan. That would be very dangerous and could cause multiple problems... like a fan falling into the water... electrocuting your fish, possibly you, and could even start a fire.


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## MattD (Apr 25, 2007)

I hadn't planned on it, although thanks anyways for the help hellow.

Well my A/C seemed to have helped. I let the A/C run throughout the night, left my hood open, and it has returned to just under 26C. My heater is still unplugged, because it doesn't seem to be leaving this position on the thermometer. I'll set it back up anyways to heat up from a lower temp just as a backup in case my house suddenly chills too much.


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## hellow (Apr 28, 2007)

I was talking about somthing the size of a cpu fan.


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