Temperatures are referred to in degress (°) as Celsius or Centrigrade (C), and Fahrenheit (F). We will be using ° F here, so if you need to convert from °F to °C, you can use this unit conversion calculator from Aquatics by Design to do so. Now, some aquarists feel that maintaining your tank between 75-77° F is best, some say 75-80° F, while others feel that 80-85° F, or even higher is suitable. Here are some prime examples.
- Ronald Shimek's view is that corals you have in your tank may come from many different ocean water temperatures, ranging from 72° F up to about 92° F. For example, keeping reef organisms from the central Indo-Pacific in the upper 70° F range will stress them, as it is too cold, because this is near the upper limits for subtropical organisms. He states that, "It would be better for all concerned if aquarists concentrated their efforts on maintaining separate systems for organisms from geographically disparate areas." In other words, knowing what kind of organisms you have and "where" they come from is an important factor when determining a tank temperature for your system.
- Richard Harker's view is that, "A hobbyist who decides to increase the temperature of his or her tank needs to make sure that it is a stable tank with healthy corals, no sign of algae, and has equipment necessary to efficiently remove the increased waste products. Under these conditions it would be safe to increase the tank's temperature." However, he points out that rather than trying to run your temperatures high, you should reach a happy medium at about 79 degrees, because this temperature provides the largest margin of safety for the hobbyist, as corals have been shown to thrive in water several degrees on either side of this temperature.
Next Page > How To Keep The Temperature Steady
