How Screwed Am I?

RyanG

RyanG

Reef enthusiast
So here in lovely Western New York we are going through a heat wave that is and will be setting record temperatures for the near future.

I came home from work today and my water temp is at 91 degrees up from the normal of 80! It had been seeing a 4 degree fluctuation from day to night that being 80 to 84. The few mushrooms that hitchhiked their way in were flourishing(along with hair algae:grumble:) at the 84 degree high so I didnt worry about it too much. So now that my water and live rock are simmering how screwed am I? Am I going to lose all of the bacteria and hitchhiking life IE dozen or so mushrooms, 2-3 either ricordia or fuzzy mushrooms, sponges(TONS OF THEM!). Any chance of it killing this damned hair algae?

Another thing, It it normal for a skimmer to stop skimming at an elevated temperature? Mine is doing just that...NOTHING! haha. Thanks for any help reassurance, advice, telling me the cold hard truth. Thanks.
 
They may be OK if they aren't at that temp for an extended amount of time. The fastest way to lower your temp without a chiller is get some fans blowing across the top of the tank and the sump. The quickest way to cool your water is thru evaporation.

Good luck.
 
Ive got two huge fans blowing on it now. Its supposed to be like this for the next few days at least...im screwed!
 
I had similar prediciment a few weeks ago when my ac died. I had fans pointing to the tank and sump. I also added ice packs to the sump, everything survived. Good luck to you. Oh and the hair algae will survive as well :grumble:
 
NewbReefer said:
like ziplock bags you can also use pop bottles filled with frozen water and put em in the sump.
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YUP!! Or use 1g milk jugs full of frozen water and put them directly into the tank. It won't get too cold--the heater will kick in and keep the temps from falling too low.
 
With it being mainly just live rock that was purchased mainly for the coraline and bacteria that is what Im most worried about losing. Will the high temps kill that too if left unchecked?
 
Possibley...the neighbors are going to think IM nuts. AC in a greenhouse(I am now aware that greenhouses make bad storage areas for live rock hard lesson Numero Uno learned...was dumb place to set it up but its all I had. Big regrets now!
 
RyanG said:
Ive got two huge fans blowing on it now. Its supposed to be like this for the next few days at least...im screwed!
Click to expand...
I'm getting the same weather you are. Supposed to be in the 90's this weekend here in PA.
I have 3 fans in my canopy and 1 big fan blowing over my sump now. I normally keep my tank at 80. Today my tank went to 80.8 and I have 3 175w MH's in the canopy. If fans can't help you may have to get that out of the greenhouse or end up with rock soup. You will get nowhere fast using ice. Evaporation is the fastest way to cool the water without using a chiller. Take a peek at this.
 
Even my planted tank is whacked out temp wise it got to 86 today which it has never gotten above 82. Time for a HVAC estimate, want forced air coal furnace anyways. Might as well look into central air.BOO
 
elevated temps will kill coral first and fish second. You are OK with a spike for a day or two, but consistent exposure will be the death of everything for sure. A window A/C unit may be your cheapest option as opposed to a chiller. If it is a money issue, buy an ice block from the local grocery store and ice pick it down to manageable sizes for your gallon zip-lock bags to drop in the sump. Cut down your lighting cycle as well. fans across the water will help too. Good luck

-Doc
 
I used the ice in the bottles and it did bring the temp down. When it was where I wanted it I took out one of the bottles. Kept it at the temp I wanted until lights went out. Then I removed bottles and put back in freezer for next time.
 
Have you put shade cloth or white wash on your glazing yet. You need to cut down on solar gain. Green houses (during the summer) usually have their glazing either painted with a paint made out of lime and water or have a cloth thrown over them that cuts the sunlight. You can hang a couple sheets so that their ends are in the water and hang the rest up (by cords or ropes) and spread them out then blow air past them to evaporate the air from them. They will stay wet by wicking water up from the water containers. This will cool the room air which will in turn take up air from the containers. An even more effective method would be to use a power head to pump water up from the rock container to a piece of perforated pipe that allows the water to run down the cloth and back into the container. The water making it back to the container should be 5 to 9 degrees cooler than it started out as, and the water lost to evaporation would be carrying the heat out through your vents with fans or through your door with a fan hopefully. (Look mom a ghetto cooler) When I was a kid we would hang wet sheets and blankets in or basement every night all summer, open the basement windows then crack open our bed room windows upstairs. Cool moist air would rise from the basement as it warmed and the warm air would go out the windows lowering the house temperature.
 
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I now have a wet tent(White bed sheet) over the tank and ice bottles in the freezer going to try both methods and hopefullly save some of the stuff.
 
ccCapt said:
They may be OK if they aren't at that temp for an extended amount of time. The fastest way to lower your temp without a chiller is get some fans blowing across the top of the tank and the sump. The quickest way to cool your water is thru evaporation.

Good luck.
Click to expand...

Today it hit 100 and indoors a hair below 90. I have small but strong fan blowing right on the water and the temp is holding at 82 and I have not turned on the a/c yet! I also closed the blinds and curtains to keep direct sunlight out. We also open windows at night to let cool air in. I got the fan for $12 at office depot.
 
Well with the two fans, wet tent(lack of direct sunlight) and extra powerhead blowing out of the water like a small fountain I only achieved a high of 84 which is close to normal fluctuations. Im happy enough!

Fatman I am completed in debt to you for saving my ass on this one! It is GREATLY APPRECIATED~
 
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