How do you heat your holding water?

[Bass]

Hi!

Probably just an old topic I missed?
Anyway, I really think my daily w/c % is inadequate, and want to raise it from 5gal/day to at least 10 or 15.
Tomorrow I want to get a medium bin, some particleboard, set of trolley wheels, and a handle to cart it.

My wife, Lesley, is in “But… we’ve got a mortgage now!” mode, and already plans to kill me to save the money it will cost for the above gear. I’m fearful that she’ll come good with the threat if I admit the needed +300w LFS heater will probably be an extra $150 AUS on top.

Has anyone tried a better system to bypass the expensive LFS stock heaters, and built an economical (ie. “Significant-Other pleasing”) solution to the mass heating problem?

[April]

hmmmm..... i know your fish supplies over there are costly.but surely theres cheaper heaters than 150!!!!!
seeming its not with the fish it can be a lower quality one. and how big is your container? maybe a lower wattage?
how about solar heat? you guys have plenty of it.
::)

[DiscusJeff]

Keep your container covered. You might not need 300 watts.

[ronrca]

I use 45G barrels for aging my water. I fill the barrels up using hot and cold water that match the temp of the tanks already. This way I dont have to have lots of heaters. All I have is a 200W heater to maintain the temp until the next water change.

If your only doing max 15G a day, all you need is a 100W heater. Rule of thumb is 5W/G!

Storage containers can be bought a Walmart. I just bought a 45G container for $20cdn. Sweet! It even had wheels on one end plus a nice lid.

[Jason]

make an emersion heater out of junk electric parts, PM Rod lewis maybe he could help you as I dont know what the different components are called down there, plus I think his mum made him go to electricians school.

[ronrca]

Really? COol! Rod needs to post this in the diy section so we all can see if and learn how! ;)

[angel12]

This might be a stupid idea but ill give it a go why dont you either boil the water using the aged water already in your holding tank via a kettle or microwave some ... the amount of water you will need to raise the temp to an acceptable level will not to be to large I know that you are ageing your water but surely with such a small amount of water being added to the 15 Gallons it wont make a massive diff to the PH ... its just my twopence worth I may be wrong no doubt someone will post if I am

HTH

:)

[Smokey]

Yea, but every thing down-under is 240 volts .... and the cycles run backwards ... or is that a day ahead. lol ;D ;D ;D 8)

Smokey

[rickk]

Hey Bass
I'm not sure on gal to litre conversion, 10 gal is I think approx 4 x 12 litre buckets, Run a hot bath and place the buckets of preped water in the bath 10-15 minutes should do it.

Also a glass heater will cost you between AU$40-AU$50 and a steel one about AU$70 from a LFS

Rule of thumb I use is 1litre to 1Watt

Hey Smokey: defenitly a day ahead LOL

[Tristanyyz]

Finally, an opportunity to show off my reservoir. 2-55 gallon solid plastic containers with lids and on wheels, that are rectangular, and dont buckle!

I made a couple holes and ran a piece of tube between them and siliconed it in there as an over flow. The RO water just trickles in all day, its heated by two 250watt ebos.

All pumped out by a 950gph mag pump.

[pops]

how about some hot water heaters from some older tanks?
just a lil 2 cents[us]worth. ??? ??? ???

[lesley]

::) Hey Smokey, whatever way our cycles run, it's the right way!! lol.

Re April's bright (:sun:) idea, has anyone heated their water using solar - but not via the hot water heater. I am loath to use ours since with all the strange murky water that has gone in during our continuing drought I feel that it must be near the stage where it could stand alone without the tank to hold it up!!! I have wondered if you could heat water with yet another container beside the ageing water that has a large (massive?) salt concentration which, in theory, should heat water and then have piping from this maybe wrapped around or immersed in the ageing water?????

Okay guys, you can now roll around the floor laughing at this dumb idea!!

[April]

LOl not sure rod wants to teach electrical stuff. water and electricity dont mix. hence no longer an electrician. well he is...but plays with fishies instead.
i will point him to the post.
ok ours run in a loop...theres dont. right?

Nice Pair there Tristanyyz, ive got just about the exact setup, same tubs and all, just they're next to my bed ;D and gotta love a mag drive for moving the water

I have 150w heater in each, brings up 45 gallons from 70 to 86 in the 24 hours between wc's, id think a 50w would be more than enough for warming up 10 gals at a time.

[April]

must be a canadian thing. as i also have those exact containers. lol
got them at canadian tire.

[Smokey]

Gentlemen and Ladies: yes their is a much better way to heat and maintain water temperature. No electricty needed.

AND ever home has one!!!

Smokey

[Jason]

I made a solar powered water pump set-up for a lady here, really easy and cheap.

12 volt water pump-pulled it out of my motorhome
solar panel from canadian tire
boat battery, and a few other odds and ends.

I imagine if you lived someplace warm and sunny, use the same type of set-up, instead of powering a water fountain like the one I made, use the pump to push water through a black poly pipe solar collecter, add a heat exchange coil, temperature sensor, couple solenoids, it could easily heat up a few water barrels.

[Rod]

Hi guys

The heating system i used was a stainless steel heating element from a hot water urn and this is plugged into a thermostat that is normally used in the horticultural industry for heating flower beds. These have a range right up to 40c and the model i used can handle 10amp (2400watts in aussie electricity). The pic below shows the thermostat and the heating element connected to the sump of a central filter. All up cost is about $150, but when i was running a central filter that could handle 5000l with ease.

Another tip if you intend to run a few tanks is to have an electrician wire into a different power tarrif for the heating circuit. In my case i get my heating power for 35% of the cost of normal electricity, only snag is i loose power on that circuit for 3 hours each day. That won't be a problem as long as the room they are in is well insulated to keep the heat in. I guess living in a warm climate helps too.

Sorry the pic doesn't show the heating unit so well, i'll take some pics of the components and post something in the DIY section next week.

Rod

BTW bass, if you probs finding a cheap heater i.m. me and i'll send you down one at the right price. Should be able to do it for under $40.

[Rod]

Geeezzzz, forgot the piccy ;D

[Jason]

Rod to the rescue! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

anyone ever try to recover heat from your waste water?

[daninthesand]

Hi Jason.

Recovering heat form waste water is something i've contemplated a few times. When I finally finish my drip sytem, I plan to collect all the overflow water from the tanks into a collecting barrel. In that barrel will be a long coil of the 1/4 pvc tubing I will use to run the cold feed water to the drippers. I plan to adjust the length of the tubing in the barrel to get the most heat out of the waste water as I can.

I have experimented with this on a rudimentary level and it seems to work rather well. The best part is that no pumps, solenoids or electricity are needed.
When (and if lol!) i get this going I'll send pix.

Daniel

[limige]

a freind of mine suggested using an old hot water heater, for the whole fishroom!

run a closed loop system and use thermostats and seliniods to open the flow of hot water to the storage tank or fish tanks, just use some tubing as heating elements.

i'm keeping the idea in the back of my head but i'm reluctant. it would save a ton of money in the long run but would be a pain to setup.

[nalah]

Bass - havent read entire thread yet,but where on earth do you shop. a 300W via aqua heater is ONLY $20.00. most expensive brand 300W is still only around $75.00.

look at these two companies .i havent checked their prices yet.
www.aquaticlifeaquariums.com.au (http://www.aquaticlifeaquariums.com.au)
www.aquaria.com.au (http://www.aquaria.com.au)
and then there's Trans Aquarium in Canley Vale.. talk to Amy.her via aquas are20.00.
also,ALWAYS have a quick look on www.ebay.com.au (http://www.ebay.com.au) pet section.

[lesley]

Smokey,

OK I'll bite!!

::)??? ??? ??? ???

[Smokey]

Actually, Limige has already mentioned it. lol

It is very simply setup. And you use your conventual hot water heater.

It is the same technology used in heating floors. Warm water..

The bacis method is ... tap into the hot water outlet pipe .. as small adapter, from any hardware store.
Using the new toxic free water potable hose ... run a line into the sump, storage barrel. or even into the aquarium .

I f the hot water tanks is in the basement and your tanks are on the floor above ... a pump is not necessary. The natural convection of the hot water will circulate the warm water.

The most expensive part will be the digital contol box. You set the desired temperature, set the probe in the water to be heated ... and wala ... constant warm tanks.

since the hot water heater is always on , why not use it.

and no water is wasted. A full loop returns the water to the hot water heater. If the hot water heater and your tanks are on the same floor ... a small, inexpensive pump will be needed.

The cost, in Canada, is about $400.00, total. This setup may be a little to much for a single small tank. It is great when mutil tanks and sumps and storage barrels are in use. No more electic heaters needd.

Smokey

[nalah]

LOL Smokey - when you say WALLA! do you perhaps mean
Voila

[Smokey]

NOPE, I mean YEA HA !!!

[Bass]

Great info everyone! :D

Ok, I built my trolley system last weekend. First attempt was a failure - Turns out that my power-head hasn’t got the guts to keep water-flow up once the pressure in the bin drops to a point.
So, I’ve changed my idea to a simple little permanent set-up, with concealed hoses running behind the tank.

Here’s a quick little sketch I did tonight, so nobody need suffer my attempt at explaining.
Could anyone tell me what sort of pump I would need and what kind of hose?
The hose lengths will be ~3m/10ft from bin to pump and 1.5m/5ft from valve to tank.


Ps. Please, no questions about the Sheep. All I can say at present is that allegations of the Government granting me in excess of 15 million dollars, based on these plans, are grossly understated..

[Smokey]

O.K. for what it is worth - you will need a pump that will produce an adequate flow rate at a specified head height.
Some pumps claim 200 gph - this is at 0[zero] head heigth. Look for a pump which will produce 200 gph [ or whatever] at 10 feet head height. or better.

I like the submeragable pumps , supreme brand, to mention one. they are tough and reliable. MPO. A model 500 would do fine. They already have the threaded in/outputs.
Hose size - I went out and bought a very good 100% - 3/4 inch, 50 foot, rubber lawn hose - $50.00[w0w] ; or just pick up some food grade hose from your local hdware store.

Suggestion - throw in a tee / and a valve, between the pump and three way ... and you would be able to syphom water from the tanks ... for a water change.

Nice setup, Bass

Smokey

[April]

LOL Bass. i love the sheep growout tank. can you send me a baa baa black sheep?
i use a magdrive pondpump. they work great. you need to make sure it will pump at least 7 feet up. they have different sizes. if you can get them there...
and if you can...better find a store with alot cheaper prices than the one your finding 150.00 heaters from. ::)

[Bass]

April, no problem. I have a new batch of little lamb frys just hatched. But there’s only one black sheep in the batch.

Did you want them cooked first? I can whip up a great Lambs Fry Casserole.

Btw, I did end up getting a VIA for ony Aus$32. I think my delusion of $150 was based on a JA.

[Smokey]

O.K. - VIA - not familar that brand. $32.00 seems resonable. How well does it work ? Is it doing the job, you expect ?

Smokey

P/S. I will have mine bbqed, with lime .

[Bass]

Via is a junky brand made in China, Smokey. It does a great job for a holding bin though! :) I put a 300w in an 80litre. It brings the water from 14c up to 29 in about 2 hours (is starting Winter here in Sydney. In summer it would take about 3 minutes!). Normally I age the water 24, but wanted something that could do it quick in case there was ever an emergency. Have also started using an old 800l/ph submersible pump last night. I’ve had it for over a year, but decommissioned it as I was sus that it was trying to electrocute me.Do you know how to check if it’s leaking voltage into the water? Besides... “Stick your finger in and see if you survive” ;)

[April]

Bass i will take my baa baa black sheep on the hoof please. bottle fed so it will go for walks with me. and a leash and collar also. surely i can sneak it in my apartment on the 5th floor. i will groom it in a poodle cut. : ))
glad you got that all worked out bass. : )) winter eh? is that like a cold 25 celcius? brrrrrr.....i say. lol. thats our summer.

[Smokey]

O.K. - Listen up here>>>> It is June the 6th ... Step outside you can see your breath. Yup , it is still "COOL" up here. The bears are coming outa hibernation and they are hunger ... and mean ... and nasty .... and they smell... Well so would you if you had not had a good "dump" in 5 months !!!!!!!!!!!

One good thing ---- it has not snowed in 7 days, now !


Bass - well, you could try your tounge... Always worked for me. LMAO ......

AHHHHH - if you get a tingling feeling, when you put your hand in the water ... yup, it is leaking stray volts. Could be a crack in the chord.... AHHHH don't worry - it's only 240 v. Not like it will kill ya....hahahahaha ... dump the pump.
It's not good for the discus...


April, you just quite fooling around with THEM thar sheep, eh, Or we will START refering to you as "MARY - MARY" !!!!!
Just what the world needs ... lol.

Smokey

[Smokey]

O.K. - Listen up here>>>> It is June the 6th ... Step outside you can see your breath. Yup , it is still "COOL" up here. The bears are coming outa hibernation and they are hunger ... and mean ... and nasty .... and they smell... Well so would you if you had not had a good "dump" in 5 months !!!!!!!!!!!

One good thing ---- it has not snowed in 7 days, now !


Bass - well, you could try your tounge... Always worked for me. LMAO ......

AHHHHH - if you get a tingling feeling, when you put your hand in the water ... yup, it is leaking stray volts. Could be a crack in the chord.... AHHHH don't worry - it's only 240 v. Not like it will kill ya....hahahahaha ... dump the pump.
It's not good for the discus...


April, you just quite fooling around with THEM thar sheep, eh, Or we will START refering to you as "MARY - MARY" !!!!!
Just what the world needs ... lol.

Smokey