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ice probe pros and cons?


andy-Eco-tank

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Hi all I'm looking at what i need to get in to CRS one small tank for the time been but the one wall i see that ill hit is cooling i have found ice probe that would work with what size tank i'd like to use.

 

my question is have any of you used one and is there any pros and cons to help me make my mind up?

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How much do you need to cool the tank by? A drop of One or two degrees celcius can be easily gained by removing the glass lid of the tank and/or adding a fan to increase air movement and evaporation (but does require regular top-ups of the water, preferably with RO).

If you need to drop the temp further, my advice would be to use an aquarium chiller. The vast majority of reports seem to be that they are efficient and reliable.

The ice probe just seems like too big of an unknown for me. However I'd be very interested to hear your experience if you decide to go with it.

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Tank temp in my house would sit round 26 to 30°C with no lighting so I would need a drop by 3 to 7°C the tank size I'm looking at is round 20L stand alone.

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Yeah I had a look at this type of thing in great depth early last year, I was looking at releasing a cheap all-in-one chiller for small tanks & found it to be very ineffective at higher temps. I was getting a best case drop of 3°c on the various types of peltiers, heatsinks, fans & pumps, I just couldn't get them to be effective & still keep the retail price under $50-$75. I guess, as with anything, if you spend the money you could get it to work, but then why wouldn't you just get a normal style chiller for a few dollars more, & that comes with a warranty. :D

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Yeah I had a look at this type of thing in great depth early last year, I was looking at releasing a cheap all-in-one chiller for small tanks & found it to be very ineffective at higher temps. I was getting a best case drop of 3°c on the various types of peltiers, heatsinks, fans & pumps, I just couldn't get them to be effective & still keep the retail price under $50-$75. I guess, as with anything, if you spend the money you could get it to work, but then why wouldn't you just get a normal style chiller for a few dollars more, & that comes with a warranty. :D

What is the cheapest chiller available for 20 to 30L tank and how much would it go for.

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Yeah, investigated this option in detail too, and for the type of chiller it is, and the $$$, it wasn't a efficient option. As advised above, during the summer periods, I left the lid off the tank, and had a fan running ....works perfectly. Some of my nano's (20-25lt) have a Resun CL-85, which I purchased on special for approx. $180....works wonderfully.  Some of them even have heats as well as chills.....:-) 

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 Some of my nano's (20-25lt) have a Resun CL-85, which I purchased on special for approx. $180....

 

That IS cheap.

Where did you buy it?

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