Cost of Heating Fish Tank in a Cold Room?

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beforenightfalls

185 posts

Master Geek

#62063 28-May-2010 17:16

As winter is pretty much upon us we have noticed our powerbill rocket up in the space of a month. We have 2 large tropical fish tanks, one in our lounge where we have the heat pump or fire going, the other in our laundry that is really drafty and cold. Would it be costing us significantly more to heat the tank in the laundry now that it is cold outside? Should we move it to our lounge area to save on power? Makes sense to do it but as its such a mission has to make a difference with power use.

nickd

447 posts

Ultimate Geek

#335885 28-May-2010 18:28

A couple of things: Is the heater on a thermostat?

If the room is colder then its could be that the heater is on for longer to heat the water, which could be one of your problems. You could figure out the running costs of the heater and see if your increase in bill is within the limits of how much power your heater can use I guess...

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beforenightfalls

185 posts

Master Geek

#335898 28-May-2010 18:56

Yes the heater is on a thermostat, set at 26 degrees C. The room is not much warmer than outside as we have a badly fitted skylight and a really old hot water cabinet that has lots of holes to outside. The heater I think is 150w. I know this fish tank is not entirely to blame for the big increase to power use, winter is here and we've been using heat pump etc, but it does seem the smart idea to move it. I hope the floor is strong enough!

nickd

447 posts

Ultimate Geek

#335904 28-May-2010 19:13

It may not be worth moving it, how big was your increase?

Here is the (dubious) calc that I am remembering: Hours heater is running*kW rating of heater (ie 150W/1000)*$ kW/hr you pay.

So if I pick random numbers: 168 hrs (1 week continuous running) * (150/1000) * $0.20= $5/week

So worst case scenario it will cost you $5 a week for the heater to be running continuously.
Remembering that it's not $5 MORE because you already heat it for some time already.

If my maths is wrong I'm sure someone else will pick up on it if they read this.

JasonDarwin

33 posts

Geek

#335919 28-May-2010 19:50

Where do you want to watch your fish?

Cold laundry

or

Warm lounge

Easy decision for me.

manta

249 posts

Master Geek
Inactive user

#335964 28-May-2010 22:23

If you decide to keep it in the laundry you could sling a sleeping bag / old duvet etc over the tank at night to insulate it; a temperature variation of more than 1 deg C can upset fish and you can then get a white spot outbreak. Your tank temp will see-saw much more in a cold room than a warm room, and the sensitivity of your heater's thermostat will play a part here too.

As far as the weight goes, 1 litre of water weighs 1kg - what size / capacity if your tank?

beforenightfalls

185 posts

Master Geek

#336016 29-May-2010 08:44

power bill went from $180 last month to $310 this month. powershop have put up their prices though by about 2c a unit. we used 500 units more this month but i think its calcuated on about 4 more days worth of power. i know the heat pump is ultimately to blame but trying to save on power where we can. we'll move it, i'm sure we won't regreat it (unless it falls through the floor!).

webwat

2036 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#336381 30-May-2010 21:15

beforenightfalls: power bill went from $180 last month to $310 this month. powershop have put up their prices though by about 2c a unit. we used 500 units more this month but i think its calcuated on about 4 more days worth of power. i know the heat pump is ultimately to blame but trying to save on power where we can. we'll move it, i'm sure we won't regreat it (unless it falls through the floor!).

I presume your laundry is unheated, and insulating too much of the fishtank would turn your fish into some kind of cave-dwelling species. I would start by getting a big wraparound to insulate the hot water cylinder, maybe two of them! If system is really that old, I might prefer pink batts or something flameproof for the hot warer but stick to polyester on the fish tank (not sure how the fish would handle bits of glass insulation getting in the water).

Heat pumps use heaps of power if you leave the doors and windows open. It should have a fresh air intake built into it, but you can work out how much fresh air you need and then work on anything thats leaking heat outside. Do you have insulation in walls/ceiling? Is the hallway directly outside your living room draughty? And a double-glazed skylight might help too! A second fishtank in the living room would compensate for the heat escaping through your skylight, perhaps against a different wall to spread out the weight.

Time to find a new industry!

richms

26418 posts

Uber Geek

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#336436 31-May-2010 03:19

$310 a month is only $10 a day. That's my summer usage. Looks like this month will be $500 at this rate (damn new meter)

I would doubt that a single 150w heater would keep a tank warm enough. Perhaps if it was only a 600mm tank it might just depending on the depth of water and depth (front to back) of the tank.

The recommended heater wattages for tanks are based on a warm room, not a freezing cold laundry.

Deal to the drafts. Get a can of no more big gaps and do all the gaps in the wall if you cant be bothered doing it properly right now (assuming you own. If you rent then do a 10 day notice for the house being unfit).

any air movement will cause the heat to be lost a lot quicker than if the room is still. But you still have the problem that heat rises to the tank acts like a nice radiator making its own draft. I saw it in the lounge here when it was 12? inside between the tank and the wall on the cobwebs. The glass conducts heat really well, thats how those horridly inaccurate crap stick on the outside thermometers claim to work.

Some sheets of polystyrene on the sides you dont see will help a lot. As will sealing as much of the lid as you can to stop airflow thru there, you need stuff all gap to allow for the air to change, and it will reduce water loss thru evaporation due to the cold air heating and then changing as well.

Full tilt on that heater will be $25 a month or so, hardly a deal breaker.

I would blame the heatpump as people don't seem to think about the power they use because they are more efficiant than a resistive heater. $300 a month to be warm and have all the things you use in a house isnt really a hell of a lot IMO. Probably less than you spend just driving around the place.

Richard rich.ms

beforenightfalls

185 posts

Master Geek

#336446 31-May-2010 08:15

we moved the fish tank! so it is in the lounge now so hopefully more efficient heat wise. and the heater we use for it is actually recommended for larger tanks, i'm not sure if is 150w. we own this house and it is well insulated, but the landry isn't. laundry is in the old part of the house that is 100yrs old. hot water cylinder is new so also should be efficient.

$300pm may not seem like much to some but for us its just a bit too much, and we spend a lot of less than that on petrol for 2 cars in a month (about a third) - where are you driving to richms? must be some distance!

richms

26418 posts

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#336666 31-May-2010 16:19

Not driving anything at the momnet, but normally about 400-450 km a month when I was studying and working, more if I was picking up crap I bought off trademe.

Aquariums are expensive things to run. Im thinking of giving up my 6 foot at the moment because it is costing me about $45 a month in power and about the same in food.

Richard rich.ms

beforenightfalls

185 posts

Master Geek

#336707 31-May-2010 17:56

we breed some of our fish so helps to pay for their food. its the catfish food that costs lots!