Cooling in the aquarium - Aquarium technology

The heat wave is rolling! But too high temperatures can unfortunately lead to problems in the aquarium.

The warmer the water, the less oxygen is bound and bacteria multiply faster. This is especially problematic for shrimp that live in cool, oxygen-rich, bacteria-poor streams in nature, such as the bee shrimp (Caridina logemanni), tiger shrimp (Caridina mariae), bumblebee shrimp and others.

In hot conditions, oxygenation should be increased using an oxidizer, bubbling stone, or diffuser, and care should be taken to quickly remove food debris or other organic waste from the aquarium. Regular water changes are important, which may be somewhat larger and/or more frequent. At high temperatures or heavy precipitation (e.g. during thunderstorms) many water companies treat the tap water with chlorine, silver etc. against bacteria - which is highly toxic for shrimps. If the tap water has been chlorinated, let it run over a shower into a bucket and let it stand for a day so that it can outgas. Tap water treated with silver should not be used and, if necessary, osmosis water and hardening salt should be used.

At high temperatures more water evaporates from the aquarium than usual. If you want to top up, you should make sure that only pure water evaporates and the minerals remain in the tank. If you fill up with tap water, the water in the tank will become harder and harder. Therefore, you should always choose demineralized water or osmosis water!

Temperatures in the aquarium can be lowered as follows (individually or in combination):

1. Keep cool/cool the apartment
Does the room with the aquarium have air conditioning? Problem solved. If not, you may be able to ventilate well at night or in the cool morning hours and close the windows and lower the shutters during the day. Lower apartments or basements are also cooler.

2.Lighting from
Conventional aquarium lights heat the water. Over the hot hours, it is recommended to turn off the lights above the aquarium. You can light overnight or leave the lights off completely for a few days. This will not harm the plants.

3.Lids on
aquariums with covers can be left open over the hot period. The water will cool down due to evaporative cooling. Shrimp and fish aquariums should be covered with aluminum mesh cut to fit from the hardware store. For crayfish and crabs such a light grid is no obstacle, here the lid must unfortunately remain closed.

4.Ice
Cool packs, ice cubes or frozen tap water in a plastic bag or PET bottle bring cooling. If you freeze bottles, you should leave the lid open when freezing and do not fill the bottle completely, otherwise it will burst. If you do not want tap water in the aquarium, close it before putting it into the aquarium. Ice cooling is not suitable for aquariums that are alone during the day, as refilling is needed more often.

5.Fan/Fan
A fan pointed at the water surface (make sure it is stable!) will lower the water temperature by up to 3 or 4°C. Alternatively, an experienced hobbyist can install PC fans in suitably sawn boards or Plexiglas panes. The air flow is also directed to the water surface.

However, water and electricity are not a good combination unless you know exactly what you are doing. Such coolers are also available ready to buy - a safer and usually more elegant solution.

JBL ProTemp Cooler x200 +

JBL ProTemp Cooler x300 + 

JBL PROTEMP CoolControl 12V