My water temp gets up to 93F, what fish can I get?

[NoMoreGoldFish]

I've almost finished cycling my 30G planted tank now, and was originally going to buy some cardinal tetras and Denison's Barbs for it but when I tried sticking a thermometer in my tank today it reads 93°F. It would probably get up to 95°F on a hot summer afternoon. It's summer now, and in winter the water could probably get as cool as 60F.

Wikipedia says that cardinal tetras and Denison's Barbs prefer water temperature in the 70°F to 82°F and 65°F - 79°F range respectively. So my tank is definitely too warm for them.

I'm willing to get an aquarium heater for the winter, but getting an aquarium chiller is out of the question because they're either too expensive, too big or too noisy.

So my question is, what kind of small fish with a low bio-load can survive in a temperature range of 70°F-95F°? (I can raise the lower end to with a heater if I need to but I can't lower the high end).

Thanks in advance, your opinion will be much appreciated.

 

[jeffp]

where is your tank that it gets up to 95F?

 

[Bubble_B0y]

that's really WARM.
your fish will be frying and cooked!

I know saltwater fish prefer warmer temperatures. But i'm not sure how high...95 is really high (even for humans in summertime! LOL. People use air conditioning for temps that high).

 

[bruinsbro1997]

95???? How are you measuring the temp?? Is it a thermometer that stays on the glass or a thermometer that is inside the tank?

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

It's one of those old school glass thermometers with red dye. I stuck it inside the tank with a suction cap so it's not touching anything except the water.

The room I keep my aquarium in isn't air-conditioned, so that's probably why it's so warm. I have a small tank (30G) so the water temperature usually fluctuates according to room temp within a few hours time. It's a pretty warm day today, 92 degrees but when the heat waves hit, it could reach up to 95.

It's weird because right now, the temp in the room is actually only 81 degrees but the water still reads 88. I only have a 40 watt lamp, but it's only 2-3 inches from the water, maybe with the lid on it's heating the water above room temperature.

 

[jeffp]

how can you even stand to go into a room that is that hot? our apartment used to get up to like 85 because the a/c was messed up and even then it was unbearably hot

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

It's not actually a room, it's an area adjacent to the toilet and bathroom. The aircon from the living room doesn't reach that area.

Anyway, any ideas on the fish?

 

[pistolero]

60 to 95 or so is quite a swing. I would suggest if at all possible setting your tank up in a more climate controlled part of your house.

 

[jcolon]

Aside from the temperature swings your experiencing, Denison Barbs should really be kept in a 55 gal at minimum ... they need a lot of swimming room and are best kept in a tank that's 48 inches in length due to their activeness. Your fine for a while if you get juveniles, but they'll get to that 3 inch length quick enough and that's just the half-way point.

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

I can narrow it to 80 to 95 with a heater though.

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

So that's tetras and barbs off my list. What fish can I get? I don't want to get goldfish again.

 

[jcolon]

During winters just keep the temp in the low to mid 70's. As for now, you can run a fan across the surface or the water and or put a bunch of ice-cube in a sandwich bag to lower the temps

 

[pistolero]

That could work. Low 90's could be OK for some fish, mid 90's is pretty warm. It is about as hot as it's ever going to get in most parts of the US right now though. I'd say when / if the water temp gets up in the mid 90's yeah I'd use just enough ice do drop it down a few degrees. An easy way would be to get some one liter/16 oz water bottles and freeze them. Drop one or two (or three whatever you figure out you need to keep temps where you want) in the tank in the morning and take them out at night or next morning. Never used it for fish but making beer in the summertime you have to keep a five gallon batch from getting too warm during the day. I kept twice the number of bottles I used and in the mornings take the frozen ones out of the freezer drop them in the water, and put the thawed ones back to be frozen. You would want to take a little extra care to keep them clean / rinse them off I suppose if they were going into a fish tank.

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

Thanks for the advice. But I don't want to only make my fish survive, I want them to live comfortably. If I some day forget to drop a bottle of ice in the tank during the summer, then the tank will turn into a torture chamber.

I might have to leave it as a tank exclusively for plants, or turn it into a saltwater tank which is a shame, because I've been cycling it for a couple of weeks and the freshwater plants are doing great.

Thanks anyway.

 

[jcolon]

So that's tetras and barbs off my list. What fish can I get? I don't want to get goldfish again.

Either fish should be able to temporarily handle temps into the high 80's for a day. You could try the Cardinal Tetras and see how they do, then if you still want Denison Barbs, add them in a month or two when temps get cooler.

Keep in mind Denison Barbs are shoaling fish and do best in a group of 3+ .. the more the better.

 

[NoMoreGoldFish]

Do you think zebra danios and pygmy, dwarf gourami can handle heat better than tetras?

 

[jcolon]

I would think most tropical fish commercially available will have similar temp tolerances.

 

[thras]

I think it would be best to put the tank in a room that stays at a lower temp and put a heater most fish won't live in that temp even fish from the amazon won't stay in that temp for long periods of time

 

[Aquariumkeeper]

i live in FL and even without a heater the tank is warm..... all yr round

 

[tarpon]

I dont think anyones suggested this.
They sell water chillers for aquariums

Edit: nevermind, I missed it because I was skimming. Sorry!