hello,

I am finally considering the purchase of an hydroponic chiller for my res. Temperatures rarely exceed 70, but I have to be sure....Algae is my arch nemesis. Does anyone have a favorite brand or type? Yes I know polar bear chillers work really good...they also cost twice the amount of others and appear to have a monopoly in the hydro market.

Are aquarium chillers any different? I am loooking at Coralife chillers, Jbj and sealine. Any thoughts? I plan to go for about a 1/10th hp size to save on electricity while providing a 20 degree temp drop.

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FIRST HARVEST 900 LB, 1 candle light, 1 orange used to simulate the sun. 3 plants IN 23 DAYS!!!. IM THE MAN

I got mine on ebay.

.

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Hydro Nutrient Challenge
Aero Space Shuttle

kickass earl, I was hoping you would check this thread out. I think I remember you having one of the more expensive 1/4 or 1/2 hp chillers. Do you think 1/10 hp is adequate for a 40-50 gallon res? I only need cooling power of about 15-20 degrees.

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FIRST HARVEST 900 LB, 1 candle light, 1 orange used to simulate the sun. 3 plants IN 23 DAYS!!!. IM THE MAN

I have a 1/4 hp Polar.

I only have a 20gl rez.

After I insulated my rez,
the chiller was much more efficient.

I am going to move the rez and the chiller
into their own space
to further isolate them from the heat.

The chiller puts out heat like an airconditioner.

I am going to move my chiller,
and then build a wall
to channel the heat away from the rez,
which I am also going to isolate from the grow room,
to make everything more energy efficient.

I think you could buy a cheap window unit
and duct it into your rez,
and that would lower the temp
just by blowing cold air
over the surface of your nute solution.

I can get used 5000btu window units
for $50-75 in my neighborhood,
I'm sure you can find the same.
Check the yellow pages under "appliance, used"

Just don't use any copper tubing in your rez,
cause the nutes will react.

The really nice thing about the chiller
is the thermostat,
which keeps the nutes
within 1.5º of your setting.

But I wouldn't worry about getting too cold,
some hydro farmers in Canada,
are running solution temps as low as 50ºf,
without chillers.
(wouldn't that be a bitch)

.

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Hydro Nutrient Challenge
Aero Space Shuttle

ou can check out pacifis coast chillers their kinda pricy though

hmmm, well price is not 2 much a factor, but I refuse to spend over $350 on something I may OR may NOT need. Earl I would use your suggested method, but don't want to start cutting holes in my res. My temperatures appear to be extremely variable. I feel that a chiller would be able to keep me at 68 all the time without venting the room, dumping ice in my res or some other dumbness. Thanks for u guys helps and ideas. Has anyone seen a significant jump on a power bill using a chiller? They are not technically on all the time...so cant be that much more power r ight?

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FIRST HARVEST 900 LB, 1 candle light, 1 orange used to simulate the sun. 3 plants IN 23 DAYS!!!. IM THE MAN

It was the last thing I bought for my hydro system,I was like you couldnt see paying so much for a water chiller.well now that I have 1 it would of been the first thing I bought.your plants are going to love it,and your system will stay cleaner longer. I have the polar bear one. its like having a hot sunny day and then diving into a florida fed spring. refreshing!

i bought the 1/5 polar bear which claims to drop an 80 gallon tank 10 degrees.i currently have two 25 gallon resvs.i ran a T out of both the in and the out to try and chill both resvs with one chiller.i changed the tubing to a 3/4in hose and im running the out from the resv and a short return back in to the top.i turned on my chiller and nothing happend.no water will suck in or out.do i need to prime the chiller with more water?dose the upgrade in hose slow down performance?do i need to have the resv alot higher than the chiller?right now they are on the same level.the chiller is outsibe my chamber and has plenty of ventilation.do i possibly have a bunk unit?the lights come on but it doesnt apear to be trying to take water in at all!please respond soon

I think you need a waterpump to recirculate the water.

Could be wrong tho.

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my-first-grow-journal

lol, i'm pretty sure most chillers, especially those over 1/10th hp have their own pumps. I would love to be corrected about this though.

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FIRST HARVEST 900 LB, 1 candle light, 1 orange used to simulate the sun. 3 plants IN 23 DAYS!!!. IM THE MAN