JBJ Nano Chiller Run Away

[adicus]

I have read a number of postings over the months about the JBJ Nano Chiller running away. They were all new installs and no damage was done to the empty aquariums. However that has changed now. My systems has been up for five months, and last Thursday (20 November) I came home from work to find all the corals/shrooms in my tank shriveled up and the fish lying on the bottom totally motionless.

 

Initially I didn't see any reason for this to happen, so I started checking the equipment and discovered the fault light on the chiller. I then checked the temperature which was at 49 degrees Fahrenheit. My first thought was OH ######. Trying to not get any angrier I unplugged the chiller and located the 50 Watt heater I had purchased, but never used. I put in in place and let it bring the tank temp up slowly. As the temp approached 70, the fish began to stir (I was really surprised by this as I thought they were dead). Then the crabs started to stir - again surprised. When the tank reached 72, I shut down and removed the heater and set the HQI to hard on to let it finish the temperature increase. After another two hours, the temp stabilized at 79 and I shut the HQI off for the night. Most of my SPS's were white, all the mushrooms were shriveled up to button sized disks, all the zoaies were closed and shrunk to nothing . . . In disgust, I turned out the lights and went to bed.

 

Next morning, I propped open the lid of the tank to get some cooling effect from the ceiling fan in the room, and went about my business for the day. The light was scheduled to come on at 10:00 - and I checked on the fishes around noon. The zoaies and shrooms appeared to be reviving. Nothing great, but at least they weren't gone. I noticed movement of my snails yesterday. As the days pass, little by little, a lot of the corals are reviving. I'm down to two which haven't come back, and one of them is showing signs of life. My once pristine tank is now showing signs of sludge on the macro algae which was in the tank, and a pinkish film forming on the sand. I did a clean and water change last night, and changed my chemi-pure. Hopefully it will look better tonight.

 

I took pics of the "frozen wasteland" as it were, and I'll take some recovery pics this weekend and post them.

 

BOTTOM LINE - In my humble opinion, JBJ Chillers are not of the quality that is needed for this hobby, and I strongly advise anyone considering purchasing them to reconsider.

[jeremai]

What size is your tank? Which chiller? Which pump are you using? How long have you had the chiller on that tank?

[nu2reef]

this is why I run my system on a Aquacontroller Jr, to make sure certain things turn on only when theyre supposed to.

[reefdan]

this is why I run my system on a Aquacontroller Jr, to make sure certain things turn on only when theyre supposed to.

 

+1 the extra 300 bones is worth it if you can spare it

 

sorry for your loss. that really sucks

[adicus]

What size is your tank? Which chiller? Which pump are you using? How long have you had the chiller on that tank?

 

Most of the information you are requesting is in my post. Tank is JBJ 28HQI (in my signature). Chiller is a JBJ Nano Chiller (in the post) - purchased as part of initial tank set up - 5 Months 4 days (again in my signature). Pump did not fail, Chiller failed. At this time I can power on the chiller, it comes up normally, about two minutes after I power it on, it goes into chill mode (green light), no fault light, and then runs until I power it off.

[jeremai]

Don't get so defensive, friend - just trying to help. I didn't insinuate that the pump failed. I asked which pump it was. Or more specifically, what is the flow rate?

 

Have you contacted the manufacturer to try and find if the problem is a manufacturing defect?

[er1c_the_reefer]

so was the heater not plugged into until you took it out of the box?

[BKtomodachi]

There is more to a chiller than the chiller itself.

 

I don't trust mine- I run an AC Jr. to control temperature.

[reefdan]

Don't get so defensive, friend - just trying to help. I didn't insinuate that the pump failed. I asked which pump it was. Or more specifically, what is the flow rate?

 

Have you contacted the manufacturer to try and find if the problem is a manufacturing defect?

 

 

i think he's just frustrated (understandably).

[adicus]

Don't get so defensive, friend - just trying to help. I didn't insinuate that the pump failed. I asked which pump it was. Or more specifically, what is the flow rate?

 

Have you contacted the manufacturer to try and find if the problem is a manufacturing defect?

 

Sorry if you thought I was being defensive. I have a tendency to be short and to the point (it's a characteristic of my occupation) - nothing to do with you. No I have not contacted the manufacturer, nor do I plan on doing so. All other dealings with JBJ which I have read on various forums here indicate they are not very responsive to customer issues, and they want you to pay all shipping (to/fro) charges to return defective equipment. I don't really need that kind of a hassle right now. I have really worked hard and diligently on my tank. Doing everything the best I could find in researching. At this point, I am strongly considering taking my aquarium down.

 

PS - I posted and article on nano-reef describing my chiller install which also had the flow rate of the pump. I spent a great deal of time finding the information on calculating the flow rate and matched the pump based on the rise and fall to the aquarium to meet the specs which JBJ published for their chiller. I am on my lunch hour at work, and don't have the specifics of the pump.

[BKtomodachi]

i think he's just frustrated (understandably).

No, he's being unreasonably defensive, for sure.

 

The questions Jer was asking weren't really clearly defined, either. Who are we to assume the tank description in one's signature is the only tank they have, and that the signature contains accurate information. Its really not that difficult to retype it for the purpose of clarification, either.

 

Sorry if you thought I was being defensive. I have a tendency to be short and to the point (it's a characteristic of my occupation) - nothing to do with you. No I have not contacted the manufacturer, nor do I plan on doing so. All other dealings with JBJ which I have read on various forums here indicate they are not very responsive to customer issues, and they want you to pay all shipping (to/fro) charges to return defective equipment. I don't really need that kind of a hassle right now. I have really worked hard and diligently on my tank. Doing everything the best I could find in researching. At this point, I am strongly considering taking my aquarium down.

Any info on the pump?

[er1c_the_reefer]

did you have a heater plugged in before...? cause it's been cold in CA the last few nights...

[adicus]

did you have a heater plugged in before...? cause it's been cold in CA the last few nights...

 

Never used the heater before. When I set my tank up, it went to an incredible 80 degrees overnight in a room with a temp of 72. I have been tracking the temp since I removed the chiller, (room temp drops to 68 at night) and it stabilizes at night to between 78 and 79 (I close the lid at night). during the day, lid propped open (~2 inches at the front of the tank) and the ceiling fan in the room on, it runs between 79 and 81. If I fire up my computer, I have to keep an eye on the temp, and manually start and stop the chiller to keep the temp in check.

[roushinator]

Sorry for your problems. This is the first time i have heard about the JBJ problems. I got one coming in this week. I guess i will keep an eye on it and keep my heater in for safety.

[er1c_the_reefer]

without any heaters plugged in my tank can easily drop 8-9 degrees overnight with ambient temperature in the 50's. and i'm playing with 160g of water. a 28g can easily drop way more than that without a heater. just saying.

 

also, heater in is a good idea... i'd rather have the chiller and heater battling it out until you can get an acjr or ranco than lose a bunch of livestock

[reefdan]

spending more money on a failing reef sukcs but a ac jr will solve all your problems and keep your temps within 0.3 degrees if you'd like.

 

i had all kinds of temp issues until i got one. now it's all settled and running perfectly (except i can't seem to keep my alk up, but that's another story)

[roushinator]

spending more money on a failing reef sukcs but a ac jr will solve all your problems and keep your temps within 0.3 degrees if you'd like.

 

i had all kinds of temp issues until i got one. now it's all settled and running perfectly (except i can't seem to keep my alk up, but that's another story)

 

Can you post a link for me for a AC JR? Thanks.

[reefdan]

http://www.neptunesys.com/~clp/index.php?o...0&Itemid=40

 

EDIT: i got mine from reefgeek.com

[Casino1]

Hate to hear this news, but i encourage you to stay with it, it can be very rewarding as well as devastating at times, i have been at this for 2 years and have fried 2 communities so i know exactly how you feel... However a few free frags from a buddy and some spare time and im feeling good again :-)

 

Also i do own a JBJ chiller and have been very pleased with it, when i burned the 2nd community it was due to a crimp in the chiller hose, (i would suggest buying your own hoses when using the JBJ chillers cuz they are not so soft)

 

However the 1st JBJ chiller i purchase leaked water straight thru fresh out the box, so i had to return it asap..

But the replacement has been purfect for over a year non-stop..

 

just my 2 cent

 

good luck with your recovery

[S197]

same thing happened to me, but I have a jauger heater thats slightly OP'ed for the tank and my tank only got down to 68 with the chiller running atleast 12 hours in the night. I bought a new Prime 1/15 chiller and its been running perfectly for about 3 months, I liked the JBJ better (it was quieter, smaller, and more efficient) but this one has a digital display so I can see the temp right away.

 

If you do get the chiller, I wouldnt reccomend pluging your heater into the chiller. Id leave it on standby incase this ever happens again.

 

Ive heard that it can happen to the jbj chiller if its not getting enough flow. I dont know if thats true or not, but I returned it to DFS and they shipped me a prime chiller, and I didnt pay shipping either way. There really great ppl, but I have spent over $3000 with them =)

[Shoot Me_I Explode]

An aquacontroller jr is a good idea to control heaters and chillers but it is not a dedicated temperature controller. A better option is something like the duel stage aqua logic controllers to regulate the heater and chiller.

[neelix]

You could always use a Ranco temp controller, very reliable. Single stage would run about 60 bucks.

[Phixion]

I have a JBJ chiller and have nothing but praise for it. Even before I had my ACjr it's now plugged into, it never ran away from me. Sounds like your's might have had a faulty thermostat, though I do find it hard to believe it chilled down that cold. Many people with cold water tanks need to run rather powerful chillers just to attain temps in the 50's. Not saying your temp isn't correct, just saying in general.

 

Also running WITHOUT a heater is a foolish mistake, even if you live in Death Valley. Cold happens, and a heater is a good backup. A heater would have certainly bettered your odds for sure of livestock survival. A 50w heater is completely insufficient for a 28g tank however, even if it is the hooded 28g HQI tank.

 

Lastly, you really can't complain about the situation if you don't at least get proactive and contact JBJ about it. Just because you heard something about them, doesn't mean you'll experience it yourself. That's almost more of a foolish assumption than not having run a heater in your tank to begin with. I've had times I've contacted places that have supposed crappy service, and I got treated and handled like royalty. Guess it depends on whom you talk to there, I dunno...

 

In the end, I am sorry to hear of your losses, I can understand the frustrations as I too would be frustrated. But above all, I'd take all the necessary steps before hand to assure it's as least likely to happen as possible. For my tank I keep a bettery powered air stone in the tank at all times incase the power goes out, it'll automatically kick on and keep the water oxygenated. I use an ACjr (yes an expensive investment, but it's saved me a lot of money in the long run) to control all my lights, and climate control devices which includes heater, chiller AND fans. It's a money saver, and extra well spent piece of mind. Better invetment than my ATO to be honest. Even a Ranco controller would be quite sufficient enough.

[jeremai]

What he said. ^

[adicus]

I have a JBJ chiller and have nothing but praise for it. Even before I had my ACjr it's now plugged into, it never ran away from me. Sounds like your's might have had a faulty thermostat, though I do find it hard to believe it chilled down that cold. Many people with cold water tanks need to run rather powerful chillers just to attain temps in the 50's. Not saying your temp isn't correct, just saying in general.

 

Also running WITHOUT a heater is a foolish mistake, even if you live in Death Valley. Cold happens, and a heater is a good backup. A heater would have certainly bettered your odds for sure of livestock survival. A 50w heater is completely insufficient for a 28g tank however, even if it is the hooded 28g HQI tank.

 

Lastly, you really can't complain about the situation if you don't at least get proactive and contact JBJ about it. Just because you heard something about them, doesn't mean you'll experience it yourself. That's almost more of a foolish assumption than not having run a heater in your tank to begin with. I've had times I've contacted places that have supposed crappy service, and I got treated and handled like royalty. Guess it depends on whom you talk to there, I dunno...

 

In the end, I am sorry to hear of your losses, I can understand the frustrations as I too would be frustrated. But above all, I'd take all the necessary steps before hand to assure it's as least likely to happen as possible. For my tank I keep a bettery powered air stone in the tank at all times incase the power goes out, it'll automatically kick on and keep the water oxygenated. I use an ACjr (yes an expensive investment, but it's saved me a lot of money in the long run) to control all my lights, and climate control devices which includes heater, chiller AND fans. It's a money saver, and extra well spent piece of mind. Better invetment than my ATO to be honest. Even a Ranco controller would be quite sufficient enough.

 

 

Thanks for the input. I took your advice and purchased an ACJr. which I just installed today. I've been baysitting the tank with lid open/lid close scenarios using the ceiling fan to control the temp. I discovered that the Chiller will still work for cooling as long as you turn it on and off. I hooked it up to the ACJr. It's been 12 days since the failure, and all of my corals except one have recoverd - naturally the one (Magenta Stylophora) was my favorite. I've been dealing with new algaes since the incident. Some kind of purple sludge on the sand and rock and I now have hair algae. Been doing 5 gallon water changes weekly, and the algae is starting to diminish a little. The water params are great, except for the larger than usual temp swings without the chiller. Now that I have the temp back under control, perhaps the tank will return to where it was.

 

Again thanks to everyone who posted their advice!!