Decreasing temperature?

[errdivideby0]

I know this seems like a stupid question and it could be me just being impatient but here it goes. A couple of days ago my temperature went up to 80 degrees and it's stayed there ever since. At first i turned my thermometer way down to about 70 to try to get it to decrease and yesterday morning I completely unplugged it but still there has been no change. Now I know that it takes a lot longer for the temperature to go down then it does to go up but it hasn't changed at all. Should I try getting a new thermometer or just wait and see what happens? I want to get my temperature somewhere around 75.

 

[melosu58]

I would leave it at 80. Nothing wrong with that. IMO 75 is too cool. Mine stays between 78-80.

 

[errdivideby0]

So would 78 be a better target? I just get nervous keeping it at 80 that It'll get too hot then and will be even harder to get down, you know what I'm saying?

 

[melosu58]

I know people that keep their`s at 82 or 83 and have great reef tanks. Remember that the main thing is stability. Keeping your temps stable and not fluctuating is the most important thing. If it`s staying around 80 I would leave it alone. You`ll be fine.

 

[errdivideby0]

Thanks for that help! I really appreciate it!

 

[spilzer]

I would also double check your thermometer just to make sure it's not misreading. I've heard of folks who thought their tank was at a pleasant 78 to find out it was well over 85!

 

[Ziggy953]

I agree with double checking!!! You should always have a backup/secondary way to measure your temp.

I also agree that 80 is a better target temp. my tank stays around 80 but occasionally will get to 82 if it is hot in the house.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Along with the "double check the temp" crowd... what exactly are you using to determine your temp? And when you said you turned your heater down to 70 degrees... did it click off, or did it continue to heat... or did the water just stay warm? How warm is your house during the day?

If you really want to bring the temp down, a small fan blowing across the top of the water of the tank will do amazing things. But just make sure you know what your temp is before you try to drop it too much. I also agree that 80 is a good temp... I keep mine between 78 and 80 with no issues.

 

[errdivideby0]

I was thinking about double checking the thermometer as a problem too but today the temperature went down to 78 and I turned my heater back on to keep it there. So far it's holding but only time will tell.

The next time that I go to the fish store (friday) I'm going to pick up a second thermometer just to make sure that the temperature is correct!

Thanks for all of your help!

 

[roka64]

I have found it best to find the highest temp the tank gets (naturally and within proper parameters) and adjust the heaters to that. Mine stays at 80 so that's where I keep my heaters.

 

[errdivideby0]

Thanks for that thought!