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Cant keep water temp down...any suggestions??

drmunroe

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Hey guys,

im having trouble keeping my water temps down. Just over a week ago i added rocks & sand to my tank to give them places to hide & explore. I also increased the water volume by about 3 times. My tank is 2 x 1 x 1 ft. Prior to the change my temps were about 19-20 celcius - now its sitting around 23-24 sometimes. The weather has got alittle hotter the last week or so but i dont think it should have made that much of a difference...Ive been putting frozen 500ml water bottles in to get the temp down but they thaw out too quickly...
im really worried about summer because my house gets quite warm & if im having trouble now its going to be a nightmare later & i dont want to stress my little guys to death.
Currently i have about 12 juvenile (biggest being about 50mm) & i will be giving some to the local pet shop in the next week or so...
Can anyone suggest something that may help? I was wondering if proper freezer packs would stay frozen longer?...
 

blueberlin

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Hi Dr Munroe,

There is an article on cooling methods on the Caudata Culture page: http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/cooling.shtml

There are also many, many threads on the topic in this forum (just search temperature and/or cooling).

Personally, I have had the most success with closing windows and curtains (to keep out light and heat) during the afternoon and early evening, then opening them nights and mornings - in this way, I was able to get the whole room quite chilly. Living in an apartment, I do not have the option of installing air conditioning in that room.

I found freezing bottles to be an incredible waste of time and energy - for each water bottle in the tank, I needed three more in the freezer, as they melt much more quickly than they freeze. A standing fan blowing across the tank had no measurable effect, although I understand that the little fans set right atop the aquarium seem to reduce temps by a couple of degrees.

Just in case you have them, you should remove any lid from the tank and keep lights out.

Unfortunately, Australians are known for keeping their axolotls in the fridge during particularly hot spells - seems your summers can be terrible.

Good luck,

-Eva
 

jacksonuk

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Look at cooling fans by an aquatics companys called "Azoo". Adding a fan and taking the lid off of my tank has lowered the temperature from an average of 22oC to 17oC.
If you can't find the cooling fans in Oz, the look at hokking something up with computer fans.

Let us know if the fans are available in Oz.
 

drmunroe

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Hey guys, thanks for the responses. Eva i read the article u suggested & i did get some ideas from it. I didnt know about the lids so ive removed one of them. I also bought a little 15cm clip-on fan & attached it to the top of the tank. Will see how much this helps.
Also jack, i did notice the chiller fans & have checked them out. They are available online but my local aquariam guy who imports alot of stuff says he doesnt have any. Apparently they're only good for about a 4 degree celcius change.
Im going to put silver foil on some of my bedroom windows to block out some of the morning sun & heat. I think this will help because i have large windows & the sun hits them in the morning.
Ill report on the fan status in the next day or so...

cheers
 

Neke

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Do fans usually make much of a dent in tank temps in Australia? Is there any point getting a stack of fans and crossing my fingers, of should I just invest in a chiller? It just gets so hot here, I can't imagine that fans would be able to get the temp down enough.
 

coichards

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I dont think that they will lower the water temp by a few degrees but if you had one it would be worth it. Aquarium chillers are not cheap though. I had a quick look on e bay and the chepest was 299 buy it now and the cheapest fan was 20 dollars
 

drmunroe

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yeah i bought my fan from woolies for $12.99. So far i think i have about a 1-2 degree difference which isnt much at all but it is better than nothing! i may need to look at another alternative...
as for chillers, yes they are expensive. My aquarium guy said they're about $300. I have a small bar fridge, mite see if i can rig something up with that...
 

drmunroe

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Looks awesome coichards!!! Mite be just the ticket! Thanx 4 looking it up! Ill check it out in detail & report on what i decide to do. I dare say ill do it as long as i can "plug up" the holes should i choose to use it as a fridge again...
thanks again!
 

Neke

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Any ideas on the how much it drops the temp by? It says it's not as effective as an actual chiller, but would be a lot cheaper and easier than buying and posting a proper one if you already have a bar fridge... without one though, it's only $125 cheaper than buying one of the cheaper chillers I was looking at. Any ideas on what the difference in power usage would be? Thats another thing I'm worried about... blast Australian summers!

Do you guys know much about proper chillers? Do you need a special pump or something to hook it up to - how do they work? Because if there are heaps of extra costs on top, I might just give this a go instead. I actually thought the new thermometer I bought was broken because its reading an average of 25 degrees, but maybe not. A few weeks ago I was walking around in ugg boots and scarves, and now I've got fans in every room and my togs have been pulled out of my closet. It's ridiculous.

Edit: btw coichards, there's one on ebay thats up to $200 in Sydney with a few days left, you might get lucky. Also one near the Gold Coast that has 9 days left, but has started at $50
 

aird3

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I put a towel over the top of the tank and I keep the tank away from direct sunlight, so away from the window. The temperature in my axies tank started to rise a little during last week. I have never let the temperature go up over 20c, so I used the frozen bottle method and floated it in the top of the tank, then I just replaced the bottle as soon as it thawed out with another one straight away. I keep 3 bottles in the freezer, and it seems to keep the temperature down below 20c. I have also added a few ice blocks into the water as well. Good luck with it all. Cheers Carol.
 
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