Chiller with a pump, or with a filter

[Wzierbovsky]

I see that a lot of hobbyists pair up the chiller with the external filter, with the outflow of the filter going in as the inflow of the chiller. I'm pretty new to canister filters and chillers.

My original intention for a new 3 feet tank I'm setting up is to have the two separate; i.e. have a pump just for the chiller. But I'm starting to have second thoughts now. Specifically, if the chiller is driven separately by a pump, are there any long-term damaging effects to the chiller if it's water inflow comprises unfiltered water?

The only advantage I can think of for separating the filter from the chiller lies in maintenance of the filter. Are there other advantages besides this?

Thanks. )

[vinz]

My personal take is that the inside of the chiller is difficult to clean. So better to pump in filtered water.

[Wzierbovsky]

Yea; I was thinking about it today and thought it'd make a lot more sense for the chiller to have filtered water at the inflow. I ended up hitting Neo Kim Suey LFS and buying a Rena XP3 that I'll pair up to the chiller later.

[Wzierbovsky]

Got another question.

I've just checked Bioplast for their Hailea chillers, and the only model they've got in stock now is the HL-300A, rated at 1/4 hp. For the Rena XP3 filter I've just bought and will be pairing to the chiller, the rated outflow is 1350 litres/hour. But according to the box specs, the outflow after I've crammed in media will be around 730 lph.

The Hailea chiller's rate of flow spec is on the other hand 1000-2500 lph. Will there be an issue if the inflow into the chiller is lower like this? I'm OK if the filter is slightly less efficient; I'm just concerned if there'll be any long term damage of the unit.

Thanks!

[vinz]

If the flow is too slow, the water will chill to the desired temperature very quickly. The thermostat will switch off the chilling. But very very soon, the thermostat will swtich on the chilling again because water coming in from the tank is too warm. Then off again... then on... then off... then on...

You get the idea. You might experience the chiller cutting in and out of operation every few minutes or so. Bad for chiller. bad for your bills too.

In the worse case but highly unlikely scenario (because the chiller should have cut off before that happens), the water freezes in the coils causing a choke.

[Wzierbovsky]

Thanks for the advice. That sounds disconcerting - the chiller switching on/off frequently.

Another question: what are the other LFSes besides Bioplast that carry Hailea chillers? I've found them also at Keong Seong, but don't know or have seen other places carrying them.

Thanks!

[Goondoo]

Thanks for the advice. That sounds disconcerting - the chiller switching on/off frequently.

Another question: what are the other LFSes besides Bioplast that carry Hailea chillers? I've found them also at Keong Seong, but don't know or have seen other places carrying them.

Thanks!

Many marine hobbist in SRC are using external temperature probe when they are using cheaper chillers. The probe will be placed somewhere in the tank away from the outflow tube. If properly installed, the probe will allow the chiller to use the exact water temperature in the tank as the guage instead of those "passing-through" the chiller.
I suggest using an external filter instead though. I found that callister filter tends get slower and slower after sometime. If not cleaned regularly, you will still face the same "on-off" problem.
Chiller is not that hard to clean, I cleaned mine using bleach solution mixed with water using the same external filter. After that, run clean water though with a high concentration of Anti-chlorine.
PS: Use a pail to hold the water and filter .... and don't soak your chiller in the water....

[dawn]

Thanks for the advice. That sounds disconcerting - the chiller switching on/off frequently.

Another question: what are the other LFSes besides Bioplast that carry Hailea chillers? I've found them also at Keong Seong, but don't know or have seen other places carrying them.

Thanks!

You can get the hailea chiller from www.aquaticsg.com or you can get them at petmart.

[Wzierbovsky]

Yep; I bought a Hailea HC-300 from Aquaticsg. Their asking price was much lower than elsewhere, and they delivered to my home too.

I've been running the chiller for 4 days now, and it's worked much better than expected. My tank's a 3 X 1.5 X 1.5 feet again, with the chiller paired to a Rena XP3. The chiller's running at 1/4 HP and keeping the temperature constant at 26 degrees, the chiller kicks in every 1.5 hours, sometimes slightly longer, or so for 10 minutes. One can hear the fan running when it's on, but it's no more noisy than the air-conditioning.