the university of maine has an out door coral farm and its cold there. I will try to find a link
the university of maine has an out door coral farm and its cold there. I will try to find a link
CR Member
Originally Posted by spsreefer
Have you checked if its under a greenhouse?
Most that I see if its cold, they greenhouse it with insulation, but warm I have not seen any secrets on keeping the water cool for cheap.
55 Gallon. One year old, and looking SUPER.
Its in a greenhouse. I have seen people bury 40-50 feet of hose underground and plum it into the system to use the cold earth to cool water.
CR Member
You would do best to contact some guys that have run greenhouse prop systems.
I don't believe the aluminum radiator plan will work. Saltwater is a corrosive, after all. Running water through it 24/7 can't be healthy for your livestock. I can't think of a single thing I've ever put in my tank that was made of aluminum in 9 years, and any aluminum brackets over my tank usually were pitted just due to salt creep.
I've too thought about a greenhouse in my backyard. What I'd love to do is have a couple of very shallow grow out trays, and then plumb that back to a huge sump in the house. My thoughts were similar to yours, in that the inside air is so cool the water wouldn't require a heavy chiller. However, the massive sump inside the house would add to the indoor humidity and probably deterioration of my home.
Using geothermal methods can work if your plumbing isn't too insulated. Most PVC and tubing tends to insulate itself, and the transfer of heat isn't easily achieved. What I've read mentioned how you'd have to have super long serpentine plumbing buried. One project was considered, and those with greater minds applied some mathematics to predict a realistic outcome, and that one needed something like 2 miles of buried pipe.
Fans can work in your favor to cool the water/greenhouse - but humidity in Florida will limit that effectiveness.
You might ask Anthony in his forum if he has some suggestions, since he used to run a greenhouse business.
CR Member
Do you know Dick Hilgers? He's in Florida now, but was from Madison, WI. He's in the process of starting an aquaculture/farming adventure too. He's a great guy with a lot of practical experience and is NEVER at a loss for words
He has a site.. let me find it.
Dave
><((((
CR Member
Here it is:
www.theculturedreef.com
Tell him I said hello...
D
><((((
CR Member
Melv im going to research about aluminum a bit more before I get into it. From my understanding though aluminum corrodes at an extremely slow rate because of its oxide coating it creates to protect it self. Also when full immersed in water (which the inside will have a continuous flow) its even slower! But I have to look up more information when i have the chance.
55 Gallon. One year old, and looking SUPER.
Registered User
what about snow and rain and stuff like that you better cover that thing up good
:smt069Bobert:smt029
On the road of life only question the important things and youll find the road gets smoother up ahead:iroc:
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sounds out of the ordinary thats for sure ... but very cool
:: hummer :nemo
1.) You do want to keep out as much dust, dirt, leaves, etc. as possible. In my greenhouse I am going to use nylon window screen over the shutter air intakes to minimize things coming in.
2.) Shade cloth and fans will go a long way along with large aquaria to minimize temperature shifts.
3.) Aluminum is bad.
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issu...y2003/chem.htm
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