So, it's that time of the year again.
I have a 40 Breeder that I can't quite figure out how to properly manage. I had it up and running, but it just wasn't aesthetically pleasing enough, so I tore it apart. Now, I'm coming up with ideas that will hopefully diminish the issues with the old.
Among them is this: How to cool the water.
I pour cold, freezing water, about 10-15 gallons in. After about two days, the water is warm. I want a small unit that can cool the water at least enough that fresh water fish can live comfortably.
I've been looking at heatsinks, PC fans, Peltier units, Water Chillers, Ice probe, and now I have a crap ton of questions on each.
Heatsinks. The glass lets heat transfer pretty well; I would think that I could just wrap the whole water section in metal fins and it would air cool, no?
PC Fans. Regardless, I'm going to have something in there to push/circulate the air. Placing a computer fan in there closer to the water should technically cool it, right? I mean, I doubt it's going to be of significant difference, and it will probably catalyze evaporation, but it should still work, no?
Peltier units. Now, from what I understand, these generate electricity based on heat differentials. One side is cool, the other side is hot. The greater the difference, the more electricity that is generated, right? Shouldn't I then be able to just put IN electricity and get a hot side and a cold side? Having enough area covered could significantly cool the water if I just slap one on the side of the glass, no?
In a more complicated setup, would a Peltier be able to simultaneously heat a rock (from underneath) and chill the water surface (from above. and as cold water is more dense than warm water, the entire body would then be cooled, technically)? Obviously there are a lot of things to consider, such as how to cool the hot side (with heatsinks and fans, most likely) and how to properly transfer cooling to the water without damaging the unit itself. Regardless, would it be possible?
Water Chillers. Pretty sure it's just a cooler with a copper coil, and ice around the coil. Wouldn't the copper rust or oxidize or something? Is it safe to use copper on water that's going into the aquarium? And if it IS safe, wouldn't the crap in the aquarium build up in my coils (even if I use the output from a filter)?
Ice probe. While this seems to be effective, the unit is ridiculously expensive for what it does. Is there no way to replicate it in some way? And let's say I did have the money for it (like $135), would using more than one decrease the temperature more, or would it only make lowering it to said temperature quicker?
Personally, if I had the resources, I would go about it like this. Have the output from the external canister filter change from one large hose to multiple standard aquarium hoses. They would be run through the fans of multiple heatsinks, probably around the entire container, and have fans blowing on them constantly. They would then return that water to the tank. I don't know how well that would work, if at all, but that's pretty much my cheap idea, haha. 10-15 gallons, how do I cheaply cool it without the use of ice? I was wondering what application this might have:
Extreme Cooling - Peltier Cooler - YouTube
Water Cooling Method
Linear Mode
