Erren Posted May 22, 2006 Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 I was thinking about putting 1 small betta tank in my room. I normally turn on the Air conditioning when summer reach 40-42 degree and turn it off when i'm not at home. So basicly when i leave the house, the room temperature suppose to reach 40-42 degree (don't know whether this is bad for betta or not). And it could reach 16 degree while i'm turning on the air conditioned. I know it will definitely kill betta due temperature fluctuation. So my question is: If i turn on heater inside the tank 24/7 would that solve the temperature fluctuation problem? I'm just worried that i might boiled the betta by turning on the heater while the temperature outside is 40-42 degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splendidbetta Posted May 22, 2006 Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 Temperatures that high are not good for bettas, but either are temperature fluctuations. Quite a few of our members have a lot of problems keeping their bettas alive during such high temperatures... it isn't so much the heat, but the sudden temp-drop afterwards that causes the most harm. A heater might solve the problem in an airconditioned room. You would need to keep the temp at a temp cooler than 30 C on hot days, with a tank heater on. Where in melb do you live that you experience such hot days? Last summer we had very few days that were hot enough to dramatically influence the water temp of hour tanks. hth :applaud: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted May 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 :applaud: Melbourne did have a funny weather. I have experienced 43-44 once few years back. Although its only a day and i didn't have betta at the time. I thought i might ask someone here in case i experienced summer that hot. So are you saying that setting the heater at 29 degree for example while room temperature is 36 or 37 degree would result in = water temperature at 29 degree?? The same thing if i turn on the air conditioned and room temperature shifted to 16 degree; water temperature would still be = 29 degree? Correct me if i'm wrong. thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splendidbetta Posted May 22, 2006 Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 If the submersible heater normally keeps the tank at 27*C, which is the preferred temp, then with airconditioning keeping the air temp below 30*C, the fish tank should still be close to 27*C. If the air temp is 30 or above, and the tank temp is supposed to be 27, the heater won't continue to heat the tank because the air is heating it above 27. So you could still overheat the water just because the air temp is so high. HTH :applaud: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted May 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 I see. so would the submersible heater boiled my betta if it was set at 27* degree while air temperature is 35* degree for example? i mean i should say submersible + hot air temperature. Will it boiled my betta? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VickiPS Posted May 22, 2006 Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 Erren, if your betta is in a small tank, the water will quickly reach the same temperature as the surrounding air. If the heater in the tank has a thermostat, it will switch itself off when the water temperature reaches the temp you've set the heater to. If it doesn't have a thermostat -- for example, one of those small-tank submersible heaters -- it will continue to raise the temp of the water by a couple of degrees. SO... If you leave the airconditioning on in your room during summer, the tank heater will keep your betta's water at whatever temp you set it at, 26 - 27 deg, say (or at most raise it a couple of degrees if it's not thermostatically controlled). If you DON'T leave the airconditioning on in summer, the water temperature in the betta's tank is likely to reach room temperature, and if that's 42 deg, it will kill your betta. A thermostatically-controlled heater will have switched off by then, so it will make no difference at all to the water temperature. Your best solution is to leave the airconditioning on in your room, set to 24 - 25 degrees, so your betta will stay comfortable. I have lost bettas at room temperatures of 34 - 35 degrees: 42 is definitely far too hot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted May 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 I think most heater are sold to include thermostat controlled nowadays. So will this thermostat controlled heater (submersible) switched "off" based on the temperature of the heater itself or the water temperature (air temperature). Sounds a stupid question but just want to clarify that. What i'm trying to find out here is; say the air temperature is 30 degree (safe for betta) if i didn't turn on the air condition But i did occasionally turn on the air conditioned. Hence, the air temperature shifted to 16 or even 14 degree. I solve the problem in long term by setting the thermostat controlled heater at 30 degree. So water temperature roughly would increase up to 30 degree 24/7 while the air conditioned is on. Am I correct to say that when i "turn off" the air conditioned and air temperature shifted back to 30 degree then the heater would automatically "off" and won't turn on again?. 30 degree is quite ok for betta, i just worried that while i "turn off the air conditioned", the heater + 30 degree air temperature = something more than 30 degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VickiPS Posted May 22, 2006 Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 Am I correct to say that when i "turn off" the air conditioned and air temperature shifted back to 30 degree then the heater would automatically "off" and won't turn on again?. The thermostat measures water temp: it will turn off when the water is at 30 deg. If the air temp is 30 or higher, the water will quickly reach the same temp and the thermostat will switch the heater off. 30 degree is quite ok for betta, i just worried that while i "turn off the air conditioned", the heater + 30 degree air temperature = something more than 30 degree. No, the heater won't keep heating once the water reaches 30. That's what a thermostat does -- it measures the water temperature and turns off the electric current to the heating element when the water is at the pre-set temperature. Of course, if the air temperature is higher than the thermostat setting, the water will be heated by the surrounding air: so if the air temp goes above 30, so will the water temperature. Hence, the air temperature shifted to 16 or even 14 degree. Wow, that's one CHILLY air conditioner! :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted May 22, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 hihi . Thank you so much for your explanation. Each day i learned something new. Really glad i joined this forum. Another thing is, if air temperature is constant at 30 degree for 365 days a year and i set the heater thermostate at 28 degree; would that means the heater will never turn on?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splendidbetta Posted May 22, 2006 Report Share Posted May 22, 2006 Ideally you should set the thermostat to 27 degrees, not 30. You will find that fish may often look uncomfortable at 30 C, and I don't believe it is very good for them. I have heard that the higher the temp the shorter the life of the fish. If the air temp is 30 all year, and the stat is set to 28, then the heater will not turn on unless the air temp falls below 28. Which it should, at night. With a thermostat set to a correct temperature, the heater will never overheat your fish. Any temp higher than the set temp will turn the thermostat off, as Vicki explained. It is the outside temp that will affect your fish if it is higher than the set temp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted May 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2006 :lol: i just realised this after 2 years raising betta. Lucky none of my betta died during summer. I wonder how they could survive in the wild. Asian region supposed to be hotter than Australia for sure. They never had winter over there. Rain and hot summer, that's it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splendidbetta Posted May 23, 2006 Report Share Posted May 23, 2006 30 C is not enough to kill a betta (usually), but I don't believe that it is good for them in the long run. At 30 C a bettas metabolism probably runs faster than at 27C. While this means young fry will grow faster (usually), it can mean that your betta won't live as long as if it was in cooler water. Imagine living in 30C temps all your life. Would you be comfortable? I don't know how hot it gets during the day in SE Asia, but I imagine that where bettas naturally occur, it is mainly more humid rather than just hot, and that there is lots of shelter and cooler areas of water that the fish can escape to if it gets too hot. I also think that there is not much fluctuation in temperature, so bettas dont suffer from that either. I would like to know more about this. Maybe when Eddie comes back he will have some first-hand info for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckie Posted May 23, 2006 Report Share Posted May 23, 2006 in the rice paddies and creeks, they can swim deeper, where it is cooler (theoretically). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Posted May 28, 2006 Report Share Posted May 28, 2006 and outside there is shady cool spots opposed to shut up closed stinky hot rooms! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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