Question: Chiller Ventilation Help

[iFennex]

Hey everyone. I've been considering getting an axolotl, but would need to invest in a chiller as it can get pretty hot where I live (up to 30 in the tank on bad summer days). I've heard that chillers need a well ventilated area, however, my aquarium is in my bedroom and therefore the chiller would go under my desk. Would this be a problem as the chiller may heat up the room, heating up the tank, therefore using the chiller and heating up the room in an endless cycle? Should I get an axolotl or would that be impossible?
Thanks.

 

[iFennex]

For more information about the chiller, I'm thinking about getting a Hailea 100A.

 

[Hayleyy]

Hey! You absolutely can get one! Glad to see you're weighing up whether or not to get one based on if it is good for the axie
I've got the same situation as you, my tank is in my room. I live in Sydney so it may not get as hot as where you are but I do have ventilation issues.
I have a Hailea 130A and it works great for my 35 gallon. But the chiller does expel a fair amount of hot air, and it is noisy. I turn mine off at night but will run an aquarium fan if it is a hot night to keep the water cool. Does your house have air conditioning? That would help move around the hot air. I don't have air con so I use an oscillating fan near the chiller to disperse the air. You want to keep any doors open while the chiller is running, and maybe the windows too if the air outside isn't too hot. Another thing that will probably happen is there will be a lot of condensation on the outside of the tank. I keep an old "tank" towel either around the tank or under it to catch any dripping water from the condensation. Mine drips a lot on really hot days.
The room will still heat up but so far for me it isn't too uncomfortable, as long as the door is open, fan on and window open. Other things to keep the tank cool is to have either a mesh lid or no lid, leave lights off, no internal filter, a fan on the glass of the tank or over the water.
If you need any help with chillers let me know, I did a fair amount of research before buying one so may be able to help!

 

[iFennex]

Thanks for the advice! An aircon wouldn’t be an option, but I can use a fan to disperse the heat. I just have a few more questions seeing as your model is similar to the one I would consider:
1. How loud is the chiller? I’ve heard conflicting reviews as some people say it’s alright, but others say you can hear it from across the house. Would you be able to hear it from the next room?
2. The chiller would be connected to my canister filter, if I turn the chiller off during the night, will water still flow through from the filter into the off chiller and then into the tank?
3. Is your chiller on for most of the day? If so, how much power does it roughly use? I’d imagine it is like a small refridgerator so I was curious if it was a lot. I believe the Hailea 100A is 144kwh, but I’d like to hear from someone with experience.
I’m sorry if this is a lot of questions, but thank you for all your time and help. :happy:

 

[Hayleyy]

1- It's fairly loud, like a whirring/rumbling sound. I can hear it from the room next to mine but it's not too bad. During the day it isn't too noticeable with all the neighbourhood noise around. I'll try and record some audio for you!
2- Yes it will still flow through, and a canister filter is the easiest way to hook up your chiller as you don't need an extra pump
3- I don't actually know how much power it uses to be honest, I'm lucky enough to not be paying the energy bills haha. But they would use the same as a small fridge as that is basically what they are. I do leave it on for most of the day, but once it has cooled the water it does turn itself off so it isn't running constantly. When it detects the water is one degree or so over what you set it it will turn back on.

 

[Hayleyy]

Hopefully this attachment works. The first 10 seconds was taken in my room. The rest is me walking to the room next to mine. You'll have to turn it up high, maybe use headphones