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Air Exchangers in the Fishroom

chriscoli

Administrator
As I've mentioned previously, we're going to be moving and I'll be getting a new fishroom. I've been doing a lot of research and have even had the luck to visit a few fishrooms recently.

I'm currently running 33 tanks in our house, but will be able to have quite a few more in the new space. I'll also have a properly enclosed room for once! Total will be just over 300 sq ft of space.

What are your experiences/opinions about having an air exchanger in a fishroom?

Jehmco recommends the AEH1000 for my situation.
http://jehmco.com/html/air_exchanger.html
 

DiscusnAfricans

Past President
I don't have any experience with them, but I've heard its the ideal setup for maintaining humidity in the fishroom. I'm sure Bruce and the rest of the house would appreciate it.
 

dogofwar

CCA Members
Our furnace (which has a humidistat attached) is in the same room as the fishroom, so it kicks on (in fan mode) when the humidity hits a certain level (I think it's currently set at 60%). It's much less humid than in the prior fishroom (which didn't have this).

The biggest issue is condensation on the HVAC ducts (i.e. cold ducts + warm air = condensation = mold). Even when the humidity in the room in relatively low, this can happen (because of the temp differential). I keep fans on the ductwork to keep condensation from forming and I haven't had any issues with mold. Fans on the ducts + a general circulation fan makes things pretty comfortable, even with so many tanks in such a small space...

Tightly covering tanks can go a long way to keeping humidity down. We keep a dehumidifier just outside the fishroom (to keep the humidity in the rest of the basement in check) and I seldom empty it (I think it holds 1/2 gallon or 3/4 gallon) more than every couple of days (it's set at 55% I think).

Matt
 

b considine

a dude playing a dude disguised as another dude
I'm reasonably sure Mike Barber has an air exchanger in his fishroom. He also may have the mixing valve setup you asked about in another thread.

Blaise
 

JLW

CCA Members
I've looked into buying one several times, and it has come down to a very simple reason not to do it. You've got to vent the exhaust somewhere. You can set it to vent into the rest of the house, which'll diffuse your humidity and potentially be comfortable during the winter (not so much in summer :), or you can set it to vent outside. If you vent outside, then you have to replace the air from outside as well (or your house will implode). In winter, that means WAY higher heating bills.

With the number of tanks I have, it's unfeasible to put individual heaters into each tank (I'd blow the fuses every 2 seconds). So, keeping the place heated can be difficult.

The best management -- as others have mentioned -- is to tightly lid all of your tanks.
 

Pat Kelly

CCA Member
Staff member
I know Hans had them for a while but stopped using them. While they kept his humidity down, they also kept the temp down some. He used more electricity running them than using several dehumidifiers.

I used a dehumitifier in the room plus I have a bathroom fan on a timer that cuts on 2 times per day to pull the air out of the room.
I have no duct work in that area. I use plastic on the ceiling to help keep most of it in the fish room. And of course its insulated.
 

Tony

Alligator Snapping Turtle/Past Pres
Chris has seen my method, but for others interested, I use a dehumidifier and an exhaust fan hooked up to a humidistat/thermostat combo (meant for an attic exhaust fan). When humidity or temp gets above whatever I set them to, a duct fan kicks on and blows air right out the side of the house.

It's worked well since I set it up in the early summer, but am interested to see how much it affects me in the dead of winter. Will have to do a lot of tweaking to find the set point sweet spots.

My room is small though, so your mileage may vary.
 

mchambers

Former CCA member
In my basement, I just have a dehumidifier and a door that seals off from the rest of the house. Of course, I don't have anywhere near as many tanks as you have and will have, but I find that it works pretty well.
 

Frank Cowherd

Global Moderators
Staff member
You have to keep the humidity below 70 to prevent molds and mildew from taking over on walls and in cabinets, etc. I considered the heat exchanger but my basement fish room is underground and no way to put one in without major surgery. I opted for a bathroom type exhaust fan, one at each end of the room, hooked to humidity controllers set at 60 and a floor dehumidifier. The combination works well. All connections to and from the exhaust fans are 4 inch corrugated flexible pipe and the whole system runs without much noise. The humidity in the basement is always between 60 and 72 % but upstairs it is typically 40 to 50%.
 
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