Can Aquarium Be Too Warm?
- Thread starter eBenZo
- Start date
I live on the 4th floor of a block of flats, which is the top...convection currents perhaps?
I think my thermometer is working, I got it only 4 weeks ago.
Sun beating down on the roof all day too probably! Your thermometer probably is working, hey, if you're sitting there feeling really hot yourself then it makes sense right? Just thought I'd check in case you hadn't thought of that.
Your problem will probably end tomorrow anyway as it is supposed to rain for a few days I think.
RedeyesUK
Fish Crazy
Before you all go and unplug your heaters, just remember it can get quite cool again overnight...
So check your tank temps first thing in the morning, to see where they are. If they're still overheated, then you're probably good to go. Although personally I just turn mine down a little - in these sort of temps, the heater won't turn on anyway, so shouldn't make much difference if it's plugged in or not (unless it's faulty, of course!
).
So check your tank temps first thing in the morning, to see where they are. If they're still overheated, then you're probably good to go. Although personally I just turn mine down a little - in these sort of temps, the heater won't turn on anyway, so shouldn't make much difference if it's plugged in or not (unless it's faulty, of course!
).ok so....if a fish , say in its natural habitat was swimming around in the nice warm water , say for the sake of my point , 26c , swimming round all day long, when the sun goes to sleep at night does the water temp not drop ?? im willing to take an uneducated guess and say of course it does ....
i mean c`mon a couple degrees temp drop overnight is hardly going to do anything at all to the fish , in fact , id say that it might even feel more at home with very slight temp drops in the hours of rest/darkness ??
just surmising here .....
i mean c`mon a couple degrees temp drop overnight is hardly going to do anything at all to the fish , in fact , id say that it might even feel more at home with very slight temp drops in the hours of rest/darkness ??
just surmising here .....
RedeyesUK
Fish Crazy
Depends on the house.
The flat where I live stays warm pretty much all the time during the summer, so is pretty safe.
The house I was living in before, however, was a sod to keep warm, even in the summer. I'd get up in the mornings and quite regularly hear the central heating stat clicking on and off (meaning a room temp of less than 20 deg)
Probably not dangerous for fish I'm sure, but why keep them too cold, when, as said before, it makes no difference in warm temps whether the heater is plugged in anyway?
The flat where I live stays warm pretty much all the time during the summer, so is pretty safe.
The house I was living in before, however, was a sod to keep warm, even in the summer. I'd get up in the mornings and quite regularly hear the central heating stat clicking on and off (meaning a room temp of less than 20 deg)
Probably not dangerous for fish I'm sure, but why keep them too cold, when, as said before, it makes no difference in warm temps whether the heater is plugged in anyway?
RedeyesUK
Fish Crazy
Agreed, that is a very good question.
I don't have the answer, although I've always read that tropicals 'prefer' at temp of at least 25 deg, so try to keep that in my tanks.
Although of course, there's a big difference between 'prefer' and 'can easily survive in' - I 'prefer' temps of 25 plus myself, but living in England that doesn't tend to happen too much!
I don't have the answer, although I've always read that tropicals 'prefer' at temp of at least 25 deg, so try to keep that in my tanks.
Although of course, there's a big difference between 'prefer' and 'can easily survive in' - I 'prefer' temps of 25 plus myself, but living in England that doesn't tend to happen too much!
Miss Wiggle
Practically perfect in every way
couple of things
firstly heaters are on a thermostat, they will only come on if the tank temp drops, so while you can turn them down, there's no point turning them off and you do just run the risk of forgetting to put them back on.
seoncdly and most importantly, fish can easily handle temps around 30C quite happily, some people do have problems with fish in the summer, what the fish struggle with is not a higher temp, but a lack of oxygen. as the water warms up the oxygen in the water evaporates and there is then less oxygen left for the fish. to handle hot temps don't worry over the temp too much, make sure you get plenty of oxygen into the water. this is achieved easily and effectivley by adjusting the output of your filter so it breaks the waters surface and makes little waves at the top of the tank.
firstly heaters are on a thermostat, they will only come on if the tank temp drops, so while you can turn them down, there's no point turning them off and you do just run the risk of forgetting to put them back on.
seoncdly and most importantly, fish can easily handle temps around 30C quite happily, some people do have problems with fish in the summer, what the fish struggle with is not a higher temp, but a lack of oxygen. as the water warms up the oxygen in the water evaporates and there is then less oxygen left for the fish. to handle hot temps don't worry over the temp too much, make sure you get plenty of oxygen into the water. this is achieved easily and effectivley by adjusting the output of your filter so it breaks the waters surface and makes little waves at the top of the tank.
waterdrop
Enthusiastic "Re-Beginner"
For once, MW is the scientific one.
In a house that is getting hotter than the outdoors, you could consider a simple fan to direct a mild stream of outdoor air at the tank.. couldn't hurt.
~~waterdrop~~
In a house that is getting hotter than the outdoors, you could consider a simple fan to direct a mild stream of outdoor air at the tank.. couldn't hurt.
~~waterdrop~~
Miss Wiggle
Practically perfect in every way
lol, you taking the mickey?!
yeah, simple solution, keep the room the tank is in cool by sticking a fan on a timer to come on in the heat of the day at lunchtime.
waterdrop
Enthusiastic "Re-Beginner"
lol, now its MW the engineer, putting a timer on the fan
(hope the kitten is not sticking in a paw at the ON moment!)
(hope the kitten is not sticking in a paw at the ON moment!)
Miss Wiggle
Practically perfect in every way
lol, don't be mean WD, I may not be the most practical or scientifically minded, but a timer isn't beyond my capabilities!!
actually Ian said todcay he thinks sitting with engineers is rubbing off on me
actually Ian said todcay he thinks sitting with engineers is rubbing off on me
It could hurt your electricity bill!
Seriously can't see a fan doing much good to be honest.
Most rivers have a lot more water in them than the average aquarium does. Due to this large volume of water, and the fact water holds temperature better than air, most natural waterways don't fluctuate very much at all during a 24 day/night cycle. Further to that most aquarium fishes come from tropical areas and the warmer climate also helps prevent temperature fluctuations.
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What temperature is too cold depends entirely on the fish species being kept. Neon tetras are subject to 16C water in their wet season in South America. Even Discus and Angelfish end up in water that gets to 18 or 20C during the monsoon floods. Some species like Bettas & Killifish that occur in small shallow pools can have daytime temps over 30C and during a sudden downpour the water temp will drop to 20C.
Most tropical aquarium fishes should be kept between 18 & 32C with the optimum range around 24-26C, slightly higher for discus.
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For eBenZo
If you live in the UK then your house will be fully insulated. As such the tank temperature would be matching the house's internal temperature. If you have a thermostat on your house heating system then turn it down.
I live in Australia where it hits 40C outside in the shade and our houses are only insulated in the roof. Yet the internal temperature rarely gets to 30C and if you keep the house closed up during the day, then you reduce the hot air getting inside and warming the place up further. Then at night you open it up to allow cooler air in.
If you live in a hot climate then you can also use an air conditioner in the room.
You could also check the aquarium heater because it could be malfunctioning.
LauraFrog
Fish Gatherer
I live in Australia as well in the far north where it's 40 degrees in the shade for four months of the year. The fish are outside (most of them) this is not my choice, my parents will not let me keep more than a few tanks in my room. I only use heaters in winter. I find that even in small fry tanks without lids (~5-10 gallons) the temperature fluctuations don't harm the fish. I use shade cloth to protect the tanks from the sun and they are always under a roof. Leaving lids off in these conditions actually helps because any breeze at all helps to cool the tank by evaporating water from the surface.
If you find that for a significant amount of the time the tank temp is over 32-35 degrees for several months of the year you could consider investing in an aquarium chiller. However they are very expensive, use a lot of electricity, are large, ungainly and carry the side effect of causing condensation on the outside glass. I really think it's not worth it personally - it's like trying to grow rainforest plants in Alaska, you'd spend your whole time out in the garden trying to keep them alive. If you're in those sort of conditions, accept that there are some species (ie white clouds) that you just aren't able to keep.
If you find that for a significant amount of the time the tank temp is over 32-35 degrees for several months of the year you could consider investing in an aquarium chiller. However they are very expensive, use a lot of electricity, are large, ungainly and carry the side effect of causing condensation on the outside glass. I really think it's not worth it personally - it's like trying to grow rainforest plants in Alaska, you'd spend your whole time out in the garden trying to keep them alive. If you're in those sort of conditions, accept that there are some species (ie white clouds) that you just aren't able to keep.
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