After increasing the water volume of my clam tank to include another 200 gallons my 1/4 hp aquanetics chiller does not stand a chance now that the temperatures have reach the 90's. I live in a restored house in downtown Little Rock and insulation was a distant thought when building in 1903 so I can not rely on ambiant temperature in the house to cool my tanks. I have used chillers for the last several years but with small volumes of water and now that I have increased my water volume my chiller is no match. There is a vitious cycle that has to be considered when using a chiller. The heat exhaust that is drawn off of the water is transfered into the air around the tank increasing the ambiant air temperature. This in turn heats the water that you are trying to cool which causes the chiller to run more, which adds to the air temperature which further increases the tank temperature and so on and on. I will be pumbing the new used 1/2 hp chiller that I just purchased on Ebay on a small slab outside the wall that the sump is located on. I will build a small vented shelter for the chiller and will not have to deal with the heat anywhere near the aquariums. I am confident that this along with a window fan will solve the 85 degree tank conditions that I am currently experiencing. I will post some pictures when I get it plumbed in, in the coming weeks.
lower ambient humidity? If you can lower the humidity in the tank area, temperature concerns could be better. Democrat-Gazette home section had an article a few weeks ago about how most homes buy a "recommended" AC that's "too big" to lower humidity well. Basically, the AC is so strong that it cuts on for 30 minutes, hits the thermostat target, then shuts off, with little effect on the humidity. By purchasing a smaller AC, you'll actually lower the humidity a lot more.
