Aquapod Overheating

[clovis829]

I just bought a new 12g Aquapod about 3 weeks ago. It has the two Dual Color SunPaq compact florescent lamps. Untill recently the temperature has been running steady at about 78-79 degrees F. The other day I came home after it being on for about 6-7 hours and the temperature was up to 88 degrees! Fortunately I do not have any fish or anything too sensitive in there yet, but this is not a good problem to have. I immediately turned off the lights and opened the lid and let a fan run over the top to cool it down, but it still seems to heat up to the mid 80s, even if the light has not been on for that long.
Has anyone else had this problem and if so, how have you fixed it?
I would love any advice I could get! Thanks!

 

[frewl]

I yanked out the pump first a formost and replaced it with a MJ900. What kind of heater are you using. One thing to check is that is the fan turning when the lights are on.

 

[clovis829]

I have a 50W Stealth heater.
This is the one the fish store recommended.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=12060">http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=12060</a>

Can you keep your temp. steady with the MJ900 pump?

 

[kevin]

different pumps add different amounts of heat to the water

 

[frewl]

Well what is the pump rated for in the AP12? I got a AP 24 that I replaced with a 900 I just read AP. but switching it with a MJ of about the same flow rating is usually less then the pump that comes with it. I know that they are extreemly inefficent.

 

[frewl]

I thought I saw that on Nano-reef.com.

The stock pump is rated 160GPH running at 13W.

The MJ900 is rated at 230GPH running at 9.5W.

The MJ600 is rated at 160GPH running at 7.5W.

Therotically you could use the MJ900 and get more flow with less heat or the MJ600 for the same flow and get even less heat.

I hope this helps. And if you have a major spike like that I would check the pump see if its pumping or even if there is something binding on the impaler. The only thing I don't like about the steath heater is that it doesn't have a on off light. But I would change out the pump regardless of the flow issue.

Just a question did you unplug the heater when you opened the top and have the fan on it?

 

[clovis829]

Thank you so much for the information!
Yes, I unplugged the heater.
I do regret getting that heater b/c, like you said, it does not have a light. I was going to try to see if the heater dial was off, but I am not able to do that without the light.

 

[vettesarebest]

you could try grabbing it to see if it is on. Thats what I do.

 

[frewl]

I love my stealth heaters that's the only grip I have with them but then its a good thing too if you have aggressive fish that like ot attack the heater light.

It sounds to me that the pump is the problem since you still have the heating problem with the heater unplugged.

What do the temps look like with the lights out and just the pump running?

 

[tsciarini]

Maroons15 wrote: you could try grabbing it to see if it is on. Thats what I do.

:ahh:
Depending on the heater, <u>you could burn yourself</u> badly very easy this way.
Do not touch a heater that might be on. Just look at the water around the heater... you should notice a "ripple effect" around the area by the heater. It looks similar to the ripple effect that you see when you add fresh water to salt water.

 

[reeferjw]

Speaking from experience Tony? :shades:

I agree, I really like the stealth because it isn't glass, but no light is the trade off. I will use them as I upgrade to bigger and bigger and bigger tanks.... Don't tell the wife!

 

[clovis829]

without the lights on, the past few nights it has been 79 degrees F, I would love it if I could keep it there!

 

[sammy33]

I think the aquapod comes stock with only one fan. You can add a second fan to help with the heat. I think the board on the AP12 actually has a second socket to add a fan (I may be thinking of the AP 24?).

You can also experiment with flipping the fans to blow in or out or one doing each. I know that having them blow out seems to make them wear faster but it does pull the heat.

It was warmer for a day or two in the afternoon recently. You may have less heat if you run your lighting at night when it is cooler. This helps in the summer as well. Also consider if your power company charges for peak and off-peak hours. Off-peak usually starts at about 7PM so you will save a bit on your electric if you run your lights in the evening.