Temperature poll

[cuffem]

You would be correct on that.

 

[Tom Vick]

I just set up one of those neptune controlers that is supposed to vary the temp by season...it ranges from 76-80.5 F...mostly 77-78 F.

 

[Jerome]

I have in line chiller and keep my tempature at 76.0 - 76.5 brrrr

 

[Craig Manoukian]

Turn that baby down over time , the chiller that is, eh?

 

[cheeks69]

I have in line chiller and keep my tempature at 76.0 - 76.5 brrrr

Wow that is very cool ! Any reason why you keep it that low Jerome ? Have you noticed slower growth levels particularly from your SPS ?

 

[Jerome]

I turned my tempature down from 77-78 when I converted over from an LPS and soft coral tank to SPS as a preventative measure. I been waiting for my cheato in my refugia to slow down in growth before raising the tempature back up. I am finding I kind of like the lower tempature. I think there a lot of advantages to keeping a tank colder.

I know the trend is to shoot for natural reef tempatures, but Eric Borneman says the average of all the reef in his book that were tested was 82 (which is most Indo Pacific corals) but the low in that range was 70. So, what's a more natural tempature?

The main purpose of a higher tempature from what I have been able to find is just to increase growth rates I can be patient my corals are growing well. Interestingly enough Eric Borneman goes on to say in his book that the increased growth rates we see in our tank do not necessarily reflect on natural or healthy coral growth.

Strangely, I am getting very good growth rates even at this low of a tempature.

And after all this is said when I loose some of the nusiance algae growth I am getting (from all the crap that got stirred up when I sucked the sand bed out)and the cheato growth rates slow down a bit, I plan on slowly bumping up my tempature.

 

[cheeks69]

Randy Holmes-Farley:

In most instances, trying to match the natural environment in a reef aquarium is a worthy goal. Temperature may, however, be a parameter that requires accounting for the practical considerations of a small closed system. Looking to the ocean as a guide for setting temperatures in reef aquaria may present complications, because corals grow in such a wide range of temperatures. Nevertheless, Ron Shimek has shown in a previous article that the greatest variety of corals are found in water whose average temperature is about 83-86° F.

Reef aquaria do, however, have limitations that may make their optimal temperature somewhat lower. During normal functioning of a reef aquarium, the oxygen level and the metabolic rate of the aquarium inhabitants are not often important issues. During a crisis such as a power failure, however, the dissolved oxygen can be rapidly used up. Lower temperatures not only allow a higher oxygen level before an emergency, but will also slow the consumption of that oxygen by slowing the metabolism of the aquarium's inhabitants. The production of ammonia as organisms begin to die may also be slower at lower temperatures. For reasons such as this, one may choose to strike a practical balance between temperatures that are too high (even if corals normally thrive in the ocean at those temperatures), and those that are too low. Although average reef temperatures in maximal diversity areas (i.e. coral triangle centered Indonesia,) these areas are also often subject to significant mixing. In fact, the cooler reefs, ( i..e. open Pacific reefs) are often more stable at lower temperatures due to oceanic exchange but are less tolerant to bleaching and other temperature related perturbations.

All things considered, those natural guidelines leave a fairly wide range of acceptable temperatures. I keep my aquarium at about 80-81° F year-round. I am actually more inclined to keep the aquarium cooler in the summer, when a power failure would most likely warm the aquarium, and higher in winter, when a power failure would most likely cool it.

All things considered, I recommend temperatures in the range of 76-83° F unless there is a very clear reason to keep it outside that range.

 

[Craig Manoukian]

Wow, RHF and I are twins! Hadn't considered the dissolved oxygen aspect but it makes sense based on my knowledge of trout streams. Good find Robert!

 

[forestal]

i just installed digital aquatics reef keeper, which is awesome...problem is it says my temp holds steady at 73.4 yikes...my last thermometer broke so havent had one for about a month, but the temp held steady at 79-81 if i kept the top off my canopy...i havent hada chance to get a new thermometer to calibrate the reef keeper.

is this temp possible, and all inhabitants doing well, coral/fish? has me a bit worried so i added another heater, now is 74.5, the ambient temp in the house is in the low 60's (i don't wanna use much oil) so maybe there has been a shift from summer to winter....

 

[Craig Manoukian]

My gut tells me 73.4 is too low for your fish and corals to flourish long-term. There are short-term swings in the natural reef due to storms or changes in currents, but that temperature is outside the range of the 76-83 degrees suggested by Randy Holmes-Farley. I'll bet you get a different reading once you calibrate your temp. If not, raise it slowly, eh?

 

[forestal]

yeah, i am thinking its off too, otherwise stuff wouldnt be doing so well, if it is off, i will definitely raise slowly

 

[Dragon Wrasse]

77-79 in the winter and 79-81 in the summer, no chiller, just fans and heater.......A big 10-4 to "Cuffem" glad to see your 10-97 (97 the area).

 

[cleartank]

Temp controller set to 81 with chiller inline.

 

[mike_cmu04]

have hit 85 on a hot summerday otherwise stays pretty constant 80 degrees

 

[addict]

Well, I voted 80-81, even though my temperature range varies from 79-81 (due to my temp controller's differential). At 79 the heater kicks on to bring it up to 80 degrees, and at 81 degrees the chiller brings it back down to 80.

 

[Craig Manoukian]

At 79 the heater kicks on to bring it up to 80 degrees, and at 81 degrees the chiller brings it back down to 80.

Awesome Dave!

 

[kahunakatz]

At Kahuna Corals I keep the temp between 74.3-75F. I know that may seem low to many of you but the corals love it. Acros and Montis polyp out right away.

Talking with other advanced hobbyists and reading from the Reef Aquarium vol. 3 has lead me to the conclusion that corals actually do better at lower temps. I have seen only positive effects from cooler tanks. Sprung and Delbeck have shown that coral only grow faster in warmer water up to a certain temp and then it can retard growth and lead to vibro spp. infections.

Much Thanks,
Barry
(800) 764-0884

 

[kromebusa]

mine is dropping to about 78.1 through the night, and the day, it gets to 80.2. Just today it hit 81.

 

[leolizard]

Was sitting around 83 but installed some cooling fans in the hood....brought it down to 78

 

[aqujoe247]

Mine stays about 80.7 in the day, 79 at night. Only been set up for 2mo., things will change with the FLORIDA summer temps.