Chiller really necessary?

*snip*. Sorry Double post.

I think need to see what kind of plants u have. For my case, all my plant grow healthily despite the water quite warm as my plants i use not very demanding.

hey bros thx 4 all the input so far... seems like most sugg fan fit n c how it goes. easy n economical. but i was told i Need at least 4 fans running to hv a significant difference.

mh too ex n increase temp making my problem bigger.

will update on e plants i hv soon. now typing w stylus so troublesome to do research to find out the names.

so far i've only added liq fert once a wk. anyway, wat brand u guys recommend?

Bro Ahmiao.. Resun Cl650 gg for 390 w only 1 mth warranty at NA. 450 for 1yr
C328 also mentioned 390 but didn't say warranty conditions.

fert can be purchase at NA too. Look for the LUSHGro brand. You will need KNO3 and KH2PO4 and Micros. Those will be more economical over a long period of time especially with large tanks.

sorry... wat r micros?

I using a table top box fan.. Cost $20 plus, Wattage - 30Watt, running 14 hours daily, temperature - 26 to 28 (without fan is 29 - 32).. at 30 watt, the running cost is barely 10% of a chiller..

I am using only PL lights (4 x 55 watt) for my 4 footer and I have a big mixture of plants ranging from easy - fairly hard plants.. I even have java moss wall that is growing nicely (moss wall almost died before having the fan) now..

setback for tabletop fan, need a stand that is tall enough and can be quite tricky to get the fan blowing into the tank properly (must aim well to fully optised the wind)..

Chiller is only needed when you want constant temperature (fixed) and when you really serious into bringing temperature lower than 26 degrees.. Otherwise, Fan is worth the consideration..

Not forgetting some consideration factors.. fans can be quite nosiy and imagine 4 - 8 of those hangon fans are running concurrently.. that's why a tabletop box fan for my case.. And I secured my box fan on top of another tank that is next to my planted tank..

by the way, there are clip on MH lights available in the market now.. so no need to drill holes and hang from ceiling.. You may want to check out NA..