Cooling Fans....

Hi iv been having trouble keeping my temp down so i was wondering do cooling aquarium fans actually work and have they worked well for you... My tank is around 120 litres does anyone have a tank of a similar size and use a cooling fan that works for it... I found a couple of websites but do you think any of these fans would actually work for my tank...
Azoo Aquarium Cooling Fan

Aquarium Cooling Fan: 4 Fan Model - £20.99 : Forttex

I was considering the 4 fan one on the second website as it has quite alot of info about the fans and its cheaper lol but do you think its good quality and will actually work....

Thanks for any help :happy:

Well I had a 10Gallon with Two single JEBO fans. Each said to cool it 2-4C.
They worked good, till one feel in a broke!....
I got a new 20Gallon tank and bought a big clip on fan used for like a deck.
It cools it fast and keeps it cool. It just looks stupid and ugly.
As for the links you post, Aquarium i heard were good.
I really dont know how big your tank is in Gallons, but Im sure they would wok.
I would get a 4-6 Fan strip on each side of the tank.

It should help you drop a degree or two, some people use one set of fans blowing in the tank and one set blowing out...

How is your temp going? mine is down to 21 but I am getting chiller next week!

Are they inside the tank yet

hi,
I made my own cooling vans out of 2 vans of a computer. I got a juwel rekord 160 and it works perfectly.. however it makes very much noice but it gets my tempeture down with 3 degrees

I got my temp down to 20 C now, i put the filter in a bunch of ice and the temp hasnt gone back up... Not sure if thats the ice doing it or just because it hasnt been as hot.. I havnt put them in yet would they be ok with the temp at 21 C but im just worried incase the temp goes up when they are actually in there but thats why i wanted the fans to keep it down for when they are actually in there..... Dont rub it in tom, wish i could afford a chiller lol

I'm in Reading so I guess we are having very similar temperatures at the moment and I have the azoo 4 fan which does a fairly good job however I finally gave in about half an hour ago and put my little axie in the fridge as the temp keeps hitting 22 and I don't want to stress him out. If your house is fairly cool the azoo fan should do ok but beware it gets fairly noisy when its not brand new any more and over a period of a year mine have started breaking down one at a time.. hope all goes well with your axies

Thanks Gim, my house is far from cool lol, but using the ice is keeping my room and the water fairly cold so i think i might try the fans and the ice see how things go and what anyone else says :happy:

I did find fans working well, i had the 2 fan ebay version for a 60litre tank, but you have to leave them on for long periods, the drop id gradual and goes back up quickly.

I bought a cheap air con unit, which drops the ambient room temerature in minutes, this alone gets the tank in safe levels without fans, maybe to 19.5 - 20 in half hour of getter home from work with the air con next to it.

You can then leave the 2 fan on all day, providing the room is still cool it will be effective. I use the 2 fan over the tank when the air con has been switched off to maintain the lower temp.

Just think that no matter how much warm air you blow on it, without cooling that air, all you're relying on is the slight evapouration achieved.

That evapouration is greatly improved when the air is cooler, and then the tank is easier to sustain.

The air con unit cost me £110 from Argos half price last week. 9000 btu, half hour is enough to take a good sized room from 24 to 20 degrees which will eaisily see your tank at -2 of that. That costs around 5p on the electric bill

If you are going to buy an air con unit you might as well just buy a chiller wont be much more.....19degree is still not ideal

I got it down to 19 C just using the ice in a container around the filter and the fan blowing between both keeping my room and the tank cool... But i couldnt in no way afford a chiller wish i could though... But hopefully can keep thr temp down for now... :happy:

Tbh with u the aquarium ones has an rpm of 2800. That is rather high! U would soon be annoyed with how much surface vibration that is caused by the fan. as for the other one it does not give u the specs so in the end u may end up buying something that is really Loud and may irritate ur axo with the surface current. I just made a tutorial on a diy aquarium fan on the free for all. hope u may read it And see if it is easy for you to make. I need to go back and edit my thread though as I am missing a few pics and some of the pics turned into links. I have a 120 gallon although there is a tank divider but my temps are generally good.

Just in monitoring the usage of fans over the last few weeks I have noticed that my Axie does dislike the vibrations, to a degree, just as he dislikes any vibrations or current but it's a necessary evil and better than boiling.

Tom, I've looked heavily into the usage of these coolers and to me they appear to work very slowly, and getting a vast amount of water down below 19 degrees takes a lot of time, and an incredible amount of energy. To be fair I've only looked at those in the £200 - £300 range.

Most of then have the wattage of a kettle too. If you've found any in that range that you have good reviews for, and will work efficiently please share and I'll be the first to buy

It's a lot easier to cool air than water, it's also cheaper if you use the room anyway, however if you're not home it does at first seem a little inefficient to cool an entire room for a tank, but if you use the room it makes it more comfortable, and it's easier to maintain a lower tank temperature with a lower ambient.

I've done a huge amount of reading recently and the only place I find which specifically references preferred temps below 18 (16-18) is Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity. Now it makes sense that everybody here uses this as guide, but every other sources I've used simply reference the dangers of going about 24 degrees due to the comfortable conditions for bacteria and fungus to grow.

I think from what I've read anything over 15 and under 23 is safe, which temps near 15 sometimes actually causing issues with lack of appetite and slowed metabolism.

My Axie appears most alert and happy to swim about at 20 degrees with no disturbance (bear in mind for the 8 months prior he was sat in a dirty hot conservatory, so maybe he's an exception).

Every chiller I have seen has been quiet efficient, and they need a certain amount of water flow and capacity to reach a certain drop, most give you a 10degree or 5degree drop at a required water volume. I am yet to come across a chiller that mentions ambient air temperature

After buying a air-con unit some fans an air pump and air stone you must have spent about £150 this is not far away from the price of a chiller, and with all these running the efficiency is comparable to a single chiller.

My adults behaviour changes dramatically above 19degree although my juvie seems okay up to 22-23degree. this site and axololt.org are widely regarded as the best care sites for axolotl, so why would you assume they are wrong?

I personally do not like air-con units as I have always had respiratory problems and air con units disagree with my throat anyway, I also have no interest in my carbon footprint or global warming, even if I believed it was real my action's would have no bearing on it. I am sure everyone on here will disagree with me on that but it is my opinion and no amount of scaremongering is going to change it.

If you are happy to keep your axolotl outside the recommended temperature range but under dangerous levels that is fine just don't encourage other people to so so.

Also, the air con unit on argos, assuming I am looking at same one you have has a cooling capacity of 18degree I thought this air temp would keep tank temp below 19degree? especially with your fans

lol, don't throw your toys out.

On reading up ambient air temperature is probably the most important factor with aquarium chillers, without the correct ventilation they will potentially increase the temperature of the tank.

It's also an important factor as the ambient temperature of the room is what the water will always be trying to restabalise too, if that is lower of course the water will naturally be lower.

The air con unit isn't just for the Axie, although has helped, its for more comfortable living conditions for me, and anybody else who comes in, although cooling air in a room to 18 degrees is very difficult and despite what is mentioned on labels I doubt you could or would want to.

With the temp in the room at 21, the tank will be at 19 with fans on.

I agree the site is an excellent resource, but one single opinion on the epitome of correct temperature is not necessarily fact. The very same article mentions under 24 and above 10, which I believe 19-20 etc. are all within.

The article also contains no citations to any relevant studies or research (although many are found elsewhere throughout the site) nothing that specifically shows anything regarding temperature. It is the findings and opinion of John Clare, who is clearly respected and knows his stuff but is just a man.

I was providing real world examples of a situation where I have been able to cool the tank WITHIN recommended temperatures making use of FANS which is I believe the entire point of this thread.

I've given advice to HMAxolotl of what I was able to achieve with fans in the same country, and also how a cheap half price air con unit improved the conditions (although by coincidence) and not as a part of any intended solution.

As you know I have not ran a chiller and the OP has stated that she could not afford one. I had also stated I have found no real viable alternative to my current situation, had been looking at chillers and even requested that if you had found one that's appropriate you disclose it.

I actually want a chiller, I just can't find one that will work to create the correct amount of cooling with a decent flow rate (too fast and you could upset the axie, too slow and the cooler can freeze up or cannot be used to full potential.)

Aquarium Chiller | Everything You Need to Know About Chillers!

As far as fans go...

Aquarium Fan Cooling System Set Chiller 4 fans! - eBay (item 360275571006 end time Jul-24-10 17:45:49 PDT)

Seems to work pretty well according to some of the aquarium guys I know that use them. :happy: