Aquamedic Titan 150 Chiller Mini Reveiw (bad pun)

[Len]

The Aquamedic Titan 150 Chiller is terrific. For 10 gallons or smaller, I'd likely still stick with a Iceprobe with a cheap temp controller due to it being more affordable, but for larger nanos, the Titan 150 does the trick in one convenient package. It has about twice the cooling power of the Iceprobe (150W pelteir), is substantially larger, but it's a "complete" product with internal temp control/monitor in a nifty mini-chiller casing. There's an inlet and outlet which swivels 180 degrees in one plane so you can conveniently plumb it in any direction. A green LED in front tells you the temperature. The one thing I don't like about this unit is that, while it can both heat and chill, you can only run one operation at a time. That is, if you set it as a chiller, it only chills and won't heat (and vice versa). I was hoping it did both at the same time. As for noise, relatively quiet, with a moderate fan noise that is audible when it is on. Louder then the Iceprobe, but that's to be expected.

This is going on my 25 gallon that I plan to set up shortly. Frogfish nano most likely I'll keep you guys updated.

FYI, there's Powerbuy going on for these guys. $239 versus $300. Still pricey, but if you need a chiller, this is an option.
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=33276

 

[brandon4291]

dp--

 

[brandon4291]

Len that is valuable information indeed. I am always keen to any post with chiller info, as these are perfect for running nanos that use halide lighting or massive retrofits of pcs. Or, really small nanos that overheat just on regular pc's... a certain tank of mine would really benefit from the use of a chiller, but I hate to plumb external tubing to run it. When you mention an iceprobe, is this the device that is fastened to a heatsink which is fan cooled? That would be easier to install, but it was $90 IIRC. My LFS got one of these items in, and I was wondering how well it worked. Our friend Ben has remarked well on these devices I think, and its neat to hear from others with the same experience.

 

[Apophis924]

Hey Brandon I have the ice probe chiller on my 20G nano. since i use 250 watts of metal halide lights i needed a small chiller. I have it mounted in the lid of an aquaclear 200 power filter. The chiller works pretty good. drops the temp about 4 degrees in my tank. Along with a fan i have to evaporate water i keep the tank at 78 where once it was 86 without the cooling effects. The ice probe is not passive it actually cools. The electronics are based on the properties of particular compounds( thermo electrics) that when a DC current is passed thru them, one side absorbs heat (gets cold) and the other end radiates that heat (gets hot) thats why the unit has a fan and a heat sink at one end. All that absorbed heat has to be removed from the end of the probe that gets cold. Because of this property the larger thermo electric chillers can be heaters or coolers But not both at once. The net effect would be almost no change in the temp of the system. If you go to Coolworks web site http://www.coolworksinc.com/iceprobe.htm
You will find some good tech data on the probe here.
I dont use the controller i just have the ice probe on the same timer as my lights. There are people that run the ice probe 24/7 the only moving part is the cooling fan. Much cheaper than a controller and if you ask me why get a controller? For me it is the metal halide lights that cuase the heat in my tank so i just have my fans and probe all on the same timer as the lights. HTH

 

[Len]

Yup, I had a Iceprobe on my nano before and it definitely works. Mine was retrofited to a Tetretec PF150 filter and it cooled my 150W DE lit 10 gallon perfectly (consistent sub 80 degrees). Yes Brandon, it's the unit with a white probe mounted to a bulkhead fitting mounted to a heat exchanger mounted to a heatsink mounted to a fan (phew!).

The Aquamedic is also a thermo electric "peltier" heater, only bigger (the visible heatsink inside the housing vents is HUGE). They could really design it to both heat and cool if they designed the unit with two probes (one on each side of the peltier) and mechancially engaged only one probe at a time. But I admit this is unfeasible and unrealiable at the price its selling at. Wishful thinking on my part (and the literature was misleading that way). A man can hope, can't he?

 

[brandon4291]

Apophis that is neat information, I didn't know about that DC current cooling and the way they use it on these small chillers. By passive, I meant that heat picked up by the plastic probe would simply radiate down the pole to the heatsinks, moving from an area of greater heat to an area of lesser heat (fanned heatsinks). But you are saying they actually wire the probe, to make use of the DC current situation described above? Neat! If you are getting 4 degree drops in your setup, I think Id like to try one on a 2.5 with massive lighting to see what would happen/ one reason I like these tiny nanos is it won't cost more than $200 to get a whole new reef up and running...

Len you started a great thread, lets watch it and see what additional information is collected then maybe we should archive it, just an idea.

Thanks for the info!
Brandon M.

 

[brandon4291]

Also Len or Apophis, please describe what 'peltier' is used for, is it a rating as in BTU's or the like, or describing a specific chiller design? Just wondering, as Im sure many (including myself) would benefit from this definition especially those hunting for good chillers.

Thanks

B

 

[Apophis924]

Brandon I belive the name Peltier is the name of the scientist that discovered it. It is really known as the Peltier effect. which describes how a DC current causes the cooling/heating reaction in certain compounds
here is the long story short:
Peltier devices, also known as thermoelectric (TE) modules, are small
solid-state devices that function as heat pumps. A "typical" unit is a few
millimeters thick by a few millimeters to a few centimeters square. It is
a sandwich formed by two ceramic plates with an array of small Bismuth
Telluride cubes ("couples") in between. When a DC current is applied heat
is moved from one side of the device to the other - where it must be removed
with a heatsink. The "cold" side is commonly used to cool an electronic
device such as a microprocessor or a photodetector. If the current is
reversed the device makes an excellent heater. If you want the long story long here is the link with a bit more info.
http://www.peltier-info.com/info.html
I look at this cooler effect like comparing LED's to regular lighting. On the small scale they work great But for larger applications better to go old school style with the big dawg coolers. What i like best about these things low noise, no halon group gasses used, ie -freons and the like. and they can double as a heater for the tank in the "off season" . From what i understand the coooler is rated in watts used , i am sure there are fomulas to convert it into BTU's of cooling. If not you can take a liter of water at room temp, put the cooler in till it cools its maxium point. and from there based on time and temp, you can calculate latent heat/calories/ BTU's joules and all that good stuff. Such mathematical things are well above my pay grade and level of patience.

 

[Bleeding Blue]

Wow this is great information guys. So now for the stupid :?: . I just bought an ice probe (from Len oddly enough,) and was going to plumb it today (the computer distracted me.) Does this mean that if I plug the power supply in the wrong direction that I will heat the tank instead of cooling it? Also, will I be able to tell from touch, or should I run it in a bucket of fresh water for a couple of days to make sure? Maybe that is the best plan anyhow.

Mike

 

[Apophis924]

You know Blue that is an awesome question, But not to worry. The ice probe comes with its own DC convertor so it cannot be pluged in the wrong way. Remember your outlets are AC so there is actually no constant negative or positive poles. Once the current goes thru the DC convertor the ice pobe hooks up to it one only one way so you cant go wrong.