In-Line Thermometer.

[sir_keith]

I've been thinking recently that it would be really useful to have an in-line thermometer in the hose that I use to fill my aquaria during water changes. My water-changing routine is to use a small submersible pump to remove the desired volume of water- I just pump the old water out into the garden- and to re-fill the tank with fresh water using RV hoses attached to a utility sink in the laundry room. I mix the hot and cold inputs right at the tap to give the desired temperature, make sure the temperature is steady when running through the hose, and then fill my tanks. During this process I monitor the temperature of the incoming water with a laser thermometer, but it would be even better if I had a continuous readout from an in-line thermometer. I don't have a big enough water heater in that part of the house to change all my tanks at once, and if I'm pushing the limit, the temperature of the water drops as the hot water gets depleted, which is something I need to know about as soon as it happens.

So, I'm thinking about something like this, which I could splice into the hose just upstream of the outlet sprayer nozzle-



Here it is on Amazon- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XFXBS64/?tag=wafishbox-20

Any thoughts? Or alternate suggestions? Anything that makes life in the fishroom easier is a good thing!

 

[Modest_Man]

The human hand is remarkably accurate at telling temperature differences. I just feel the tank water and the water coming out of the hose and match it.

I spent a couple years doing work in rivers doing studies on fish (here in the PNW) and we measured parameters such as temperature and we could see swings of 10-15 degrees F in a column of water 15 feet deep. Surface water could be near 70 degrees and where there was hyporheic flow (surface water flowing slowly underground then returning to the river) it was in the 50's. The fish didn't seem to mind.

I guess I'm saying don't overthink it. Waters tend to be more stable temperature wise in the tropics but there are daily fluctuations and environmental fluctuations that all fish deal with.

 

[sir_keith]

The human hand is remarkably accurate at telling temperature differences. I just feel the tank water and the water coming out of the hose and match it...

I know that, and use my hand for quick reads, but it would be useful to have a continuous readout that I can monitor while doing other things in the fishroom, like drinking a beer.

The other issue I have is that Tanganyikan fishes are very sensitive to water parameters, including temperature. Lake Tanganyika is enormous, more an inland sea than a lake, and the temperature of the lake varies only about 6°F from the surface to 3000 feet! Furthermore, there is no yearly turnover, and consequently, Tanganyikan fishes are ill-adapted to deal with temperature fluctuations, even small ones. That's why I need to be very careful when doing water changes.

 

[DMD123]

Looks to be a good solution and since it is designed for brewing purposes should work in line on your tank filler without an issue. My fish are not delicate so I just set temp by hand but in your case I think this would work very well.

 

[sir_keith]

Looks to be a good solution and since it is designed for brewing purposes should work in line on your tank filler without an issue. My fish are not delicate so I just set temp by hand but in your case I think this would work very well.

Yes, I didn't realize initially that this thermometer was made for brewing, but one great feature is that it covers the appropriate temperature range for aquaria. I have a friend back East who is a serious braumeister, so I've contacted him to ask if there are other such devices I might consider.

 

[sir_keith]

Update on the in-line thermometer. I ran a test a while back, shown here-



I was pretty pleased with the results; the thermometer seemed accurate and responsive, and I saw no reduction in flow rate with the thermometer in line. I've now done quite a few water changes with this device, and continue to be impressed. It's really nice to have an instantaneous readout, and it did alert me to a 2 degree temperature drop whilst I was filling one of my (empty) tanks. So mission accomplished as far as I am concerned.