What options do I have to cool down a 20 gallon aquarium

[Day]

I’m not quite sure what my options are for a 20 gallon tank. I cannot find a chiller in budget and even if I did, they’re bulky and I have nowhere to put it, I’ve noticed that evaporative chillers (the fans) do not work either. I used some on a 5 gallon fish tank and there was no change in temperature whatsoever.

I thought about getting an evaporative air conditioner, but saw in reviews from many of these items, that this would not work for a large room, but an office sized room which my tank does not stay in.

Setting up an air conditioner is prohibited in my house this year too

I feel like my only options is gel packs but even then I read that it’s not safe cause it can leak.

What are my options if any??

 

[axolotl nerd]

I’m not quite sure what my options are for a 20 gallon tank. I cannot find a chiller in budget and even if I did, they’re bulky and I have nowhere to put it, I’ve noticed that evaporative chillers (the fans) do not work either. I used some on a 5 gallon fish tank and there was no change in temperature whatsoever.

I thought about getting an evaporative air conditioner, but saw in reviews from many of these items, that this would not work for a large room, but an office sized room which my tank does not stay in.

Setting up an air conditioner is prohibited in my house this year too

I feel like my only options is gel packs but even then I read that it’s not safe cause it can leak.

What are my options if any??

hello! i also have a 20 gallon tank, and while i live in oklahoma (where it gets to be 110f) i am able to keep the water temperature at a stable 65f. i use a USB port clip-on fan from amazon, and it works wonders. i suggest getting a fan with different speed settings as well. i no longer clip on the fan- as i recently built myself a new aquarium lid and don't need to clip it to the side of the tank- so instead i rest it facing down on top of the lid. it works great for me, and i can find the amazon link if you need it

 

[wolfen]

evaporative air conditioners work on the same principal as using fans on a tank (air is blown at a cloth that has water on it, this causes the water to evaporate, as the water evaporates it absorbs the heat from the air causing a cooling affect), when using fans make sure the air blows across the water not directly at it to get maximum effect, also make sure to have dechlorinater water to hand to top up the tank water.
using ice/bottles/gel packs will cool the water but tends to do it too fast risking shocking the tank inhabitants so should be last resort only, any ice containers ie.. bottles/gel packs etc.. carry a risk of splitting so should only contain water that is safe for the aquarium ie.. dechlorinated/tank/distilled/ro water.
a chiller is the only cooling method that will keep the water cold at a certain temperature constantly but are the most expensive method of cooling.
other methods of cooling are.. peltier coolers, these use peltier plates to cool down water as it passes through a small aluminium radiator that is place on one side of the peltier plate whilst a fan is placed on the other side of the peltier plate for cooling, most pre-built units are only suitable for nano tanks although if technically minded can be made for larger applications. another method is using an old fridge/freezer, this involves placing coils of piping into a fridge/freezer and allowing the water to flow through the pipes cooling the water as it flows to and from the tank, there are different methods of placing the piping which make this method quite effective but isn't very easy to accurately control cooling temperature.

 

[Day]

evaporative air conditioners work on the same principal as using fans on a tank (air is blown at a cloth that has water on it, this causes the water to evaporate, as the water evaporates it absorbs the heat from the air causing a cooling affect), when using fans make sure the air blows across the water not directly at it to get maximum effect, also make sure to have dechlorinater water to hand to top up the tank water.
using ice/bottles/gel packs will cool the water but tends to do it too fast risking shocking the tank inhabitants so should be last resort only, any ice containers ie.. bottles/gel packs etc.. carry a risk of splitting so should only contain water that is safe for the aquarium ie.. dechlorinated/tank/distilled/ro water.
a chiller is the only cooling method that will keep the water cold at a certain temperature constantly but are the most expensive method of cooling.
other methods of cooling are.. peltier coolers, these use peltier plates to cool down water as it passes through a small aluminium radiator that is place on one side of the peltier plate whilst a fan is placed on the other side of the peltier plate for cooling, most pre-built units are only suitable for nano tanks although if technically minded can be made for larger applications. another method is using an old fridge/freezer, this involves placing coils of piping into a fridge/freezer and allowing the water to flow through the pipes cooling the water as it flows to and from the tank, there are different methods of placing the piping which make this method quite effective but isn't very easy to accurately control cooling temperature.

I’m looking for an ice pack method. I used a really small ice gel pack yesterday (don’t worry it’s completely sealed off. No way to get through it unless you poke a sharp knife through the thick plastic) and that did absolutely nothing. It melted in an hour. Are there any ice packs out there that can actually cool down a 20 gallon tank

 

[wolfen]

unfortunately that is also an issue with using ice method, either a lot of small packs/bottles are required to slowly reduce the temperature or the packs/bottles are too big and cool it too fast, also there tends to be a lot of ice juggling as as soon as the bottle/pack defrosts the temperature rises again.
using insulation on the sides and back of the tank can help reduce temperature rising due to ambient temperature.

 

[Day]

unfortunately that is also an issue with using ice method, either a lot of small packs/bottles are required to slowly reduce the temperature or the packs/bottles are too big and cool it too fast, also there tends to be a lot of ice juggling as as soon as the bottle/pack defrosts the temperature rises again.
using insulation on the sides and back of the tank can help reduce temperature rising due to ambient temperature.

Yes I was also planning on insulating it. How do you suppose I go about that?

 

[wolfen]

one of the easiest ways is with polystyrene tiles (the type used for ceilings) model shops should also stock polystyrene sheets, another type of insulator is bubble wrap, even the silver emergency blankets can be used.