Heat Wave Making The Tank Very Hot..

[Rhiannon]

I live in Melbourne, Australia and we are going through an extreme heat wave, topping temperatures of 40 degrees celcius.

No matter what I do, my tank is getting up to 30 - 31 degrees celcius. So around 86 - 90F

At 6 30am this morning, when hubby got up, he said it was already 32 degrees outside

I have turned the heater down to about 24, but it still keeps going up.

What can I do to stop this heat?

Is this heat going to be fatal?

I have 4 guppies, 1 angel and 1 bristlenose, no deaths or weird behaviour yet.

I have the air conditioning on in here, but the heat outside is so hot, that the air con isnt really cooling the place down.

Please help!

 

[erk628]

Get you a couple two liters fill them with water stick them in the freezer until they freeze and stick them in your tank it will cool the water down. You may only need one or maybe get away with a 1 liter or a 20 oz its up to the size of tank you have.

 

[Rhiannon]

Thankyou for that. I will do it. And what a great idea!

 

[erk628]

NP, heard of the idea from on here, let us know how it works out.

 

[kribensis12]

Turning your heater down isnt going to cool it of if it is a heater. Only use a little bit of ice because it really lowers the temp fast! Also the Angels will really like the 86 degree temp! Hope the rest of your fish survive

 

[tttnjfttt]

honestly, i would turn your heater back on. The heater will attempt to heat the water unless the temperature is below a certain point. For example, if you have it set at 80, the heater will just sit and do nothing unless the temperature drops below that point. The reason to leave it on is to keep the temperature stable over night. High temperatures are less dangerous (atleast for a short period) than dramatic swings.

Other things you can do to help bring down the temperature include leave the hood off, and blow a fan across the surface of water, that makes an amazing difference from the few time i have had to do it. However, remember, slow gradual changes are your friend.

 

[QuotheRaven]

*gasp* ANOTHER MELBOURNIEN (spelling eek!)

Good news is you have an angelfish who tolerate higher temperatures... Bn Plec's are hardy and Guppies not sure.

It is far to hot today tuesday 39 degree's celsius...ARgh!

 

[moeldner]

Last summer here in canberra when it was 40+, my tank (215L) would reach temps of 33-34 degrees. I lost no fish, and you can see what I have from my profile/sig.

I was told about using ice and so on to control temperatures, but I found my temps were fluctuating widely because I could not keep ice in the tank all day/night due to work commitments and being away. (infact I was away from home for 5 days when the heat started last year, so the fish were not being fed and weree heating up dramatically).

I would suggest leaving the hood open if you can, and point a fan at the surface to keep the air moving across the water, I found this helped keep the temp down a few degrees, and you can leave it running all day while you are away from the tank.

Thankfully my new house is insulated reasonably well - so it is actually cooler inside than out. My tank is at 27-28 where it always is.