In Floor Heating For Tanks

[dean9922]

just wondering if anyone has ever tried in flloor heating under fish tanks to help with heating costs. I believe they run more economically then in tank heaters. I am going to be modifying my fish room soon and looking into ways of saving on heat and power consumption.
It seems like you can buy different sizes of this type of floor heating so depending on what size tanks anyone has, you could probably find what you are looking for. Also it is GFCI protected. I was looking at the 16" size strips they sell at Home Depot, as my widest tank is 20 ".
My thought is it would save or at least help in power bills and heat does rise.......It looks like it would be easy to install and even if you had to lay tile down on top of your stand to achieve this, you can buy cheap tile which would work and not even be seen if done correctly. I was thinking if this was set up before placing tanks on stands, it would certainly help out.
I think you can adjust to 86 degrees. Let me know if anyone has tried this. Or maybe it is just a stupid thought.......

 

[nes999]

it could work if you run geo-thernmal but otherwise im not sure

 

[dawnmarie]

Sounds like a good idea on paper ,but, I think in practice it would be more expensive to install and operate. It costs money to produce Btu's regardless of method. If you install radiant heat under and external to the tank I think heat transfer to the water would be less efficeint than using a more conventional method. There are only four ways to reduce the cost of heating an aquarium.
1. Raise the ambient temp in the room
2. Insulate the tank
3. Somehow improve heat transfer
4. Reduce the temp in the tank ( not sure your fish would appreciate this option)

 

[nes999]

now that think of it old schoolers used to use heating pads under the tank

 

[dean9922]

yeah, but there has to be a more ecomomical solution for people with multiple big tanks...
what type of temps would you get with the heating pads......
i am still thinking of insulating my tanks also along with something like this added underneath and maybe raise the temp a bit in the room.....
also thinking about hot tub heaters....one heat source on a trickle/sump system....I think it runs on 240V but the way i see it, there "has" to be a cheaper system to run.....and if i'm changing my fish room i wouldn't mind incorporating something now.....not later....

 

[dawnmarie]

yeah, but there has to be a more ecomomical solution for people with multiple big tanks...

Not sure how the size or number of tanks figures into this, but, If you can solve your dillema by all means share it with the group.
The unfortunate truth is heating water, whether it's one gallon or a thousand costs a certain amount of money per Btu per gallon. Residential water heating cost is one of the top two costs on your utility bill.
Ness999 makes a good point about Geothermal. That and solar are likely the only way to get "free" heat.

 

[rabendr2]

Depending on how much water you are heating you could look into an air to water heat pump. Because of the coefficient of performance (COP) these type of units will be more efficient (about 3 times as much in production, but there will be more storage losses than a typical heater). There is a start up cost of at least $600 dollars though. But if you are burning a few 100 dollars a year or more on heating your tanks, it might be an option.

 

[leather]

This is a thought that has often run through my head. I'll start off by saying that if you heat with electric resistance it is going to cost you the same either by traditional immersion heaters or by radiant style under tank. It might cost even more if you don't insulate below the radiant. Heat doesn't rise it will go down into your stand, hot air rises and hot water rise because they are lighter. I often thought of a under tank hot water radiant pad. It could be hooked up to a gas or oil boiler/water heater. Problem could be overheating if the system ran away. Not just 90 degrees like an electric heater but possibly 180 degrees.
A fish room could benefit from the heat pump somebody else mentioned because the cooling side can be used to dehumidify. If running an indoor pond I believe this would be the way to go.
Solar water heating would be extremely efficient, when it is sunny.
I even thought that on an overflow you might be able to hook up a small generator to a water wheel. Funny idea but gravity always works and you don't really need much energy for your heaters.
Efficiency of any alternative method will rely on the application, particularly the size.

 

[dean9922]

thanks everyone, just thought I would throw this question out there....I am adding another 3 75 gallon tanks into my fishroom which i will be redoing soon and just thought maybe there was a better way of doing things.....

does anyone have multiple tanks on a trickle filter/sump system and if so how are they heating the water for that type of system. I've read you put the heaters in the sump filter area. Is it an effective way to do the heating or should you still use heaters in each tank.

 

[Conner]

Solar water heating is probably the most economical and efficient kind of heat that most people can afford. If you do a whole house solar water heater, it will pay for itself in an average of 7.5 years, and after that its free hot water (which is approximately 1/3 of the average households energy expenditure).

Geothermal is nice, but there is a heavier initial investment than solar, and it takes longer to break even on.