Best/biggest Chiller around $1000?

[agoutihead]

Looking to pick up a high quality chiller, budget is about $1000

What would you guys suggest?

I'm only planning on using this to run a Hydro Innovations cO2 generator & a dehumidifier & possibly in nute reservoir

I see Ecoplus has a 1 HP chiller for around $974 & their 1.5 HP chiller is around $1174, so a difference of $200 and it's a huge jump in HP for that little bit of money, so I would probably just go with the 1.5 at that point.

How is their quality though?

Chillkings are obviously one of the best, but out of my price range.

For my price, what is the biggest/best chiller I can get?

Thanks.

 

[Hammerhead]

I love Pacific Coast chillers. High quality . I have used them for years, I use this one

http://www.pacificcoastchiller.com/contents/en-us/p9.html


This is 1/2 hp
http://www.pacificcoastchiller.com/contents/en-us/p12.html

 

[agoutihead]

I've always read to not use aquarium chillers as they just aren't good for gardens...

 

[PoopyTeaBags]

i hated my eco plus chiller i liked my hydro farm ones better... just my opinion i was getting 1/2 hp hydro farm ones for 420 bucks...

im sure you can get 1 Hp units for under 1k not sure if its what your looking for.

 

[Hammerhead]

I have never herd or read that...There is no difference between the 2 that I can find. Specs are the same. If you do a search on Aquarium chillers Hydro farm is listed.

 

[PoopyTeaBags]

I have never herd or read that...There is no diferance between the 2 that I can find. Specs are the same

ive bought 3 hydro farm chillers. then a eco plus... the eco plus was 6 degrees off the rest of the chillers and blue lab would go from 6 - 3 degrees off and could never be completely situated... prob was just a bad unit but never returned a hydrofarm unit..... returned ad bought more hydrofarm... just my situtation

 

[Hammerhead]

I have never used ecoplus.. Pacific coast chillers are great units. I would not endorse a unit without having tested it.. They will work great in a garden or Aquarium.. 2 deg control

They have a unit that is for Hydro. The specs are the same for the unit that's for Aquariums

http://www.pacificcoastchiller.com/contents/en-us/p10.html

 

[PuReKnOwLeDgE]

My ecoplus has been plugged in for 3 years, actually tearing that room down this week The chiller has worked great, temps have never budged.

 

[jcom]

i hated my eco plus chiller i liked my hydro farm ones better... just my opinion i was getting 1/2 hp hydro farm ones for 420 bucks...

im sure you can get 1 Hp units for under 1k not sure if its what your looking for.

I've been using an EcoPlus for several years and it has been rock solid...still going strong...just bought 3 more for larger setup.

Also, my take on aquarium chillers not being good for growing...not true...they are actually what I look for because they tend to use aluminum, stainless steel, or titanium coils vs. copper. Copper kills corals and other invertebrates and can be bad for plants too.

 

[budleydoright]

aquarium chillers rock for nutrient rez cooling. Not so much for watercooling HID etc....

 

[agoutihead]

Seems a lot of people like Ecoplus (on other forums as well) And few here suggest Pacific Coast.

Who has the better warranty?

Are there any other manufacturers that should be taken into consideration that are high quality?

I understand that biggest isnt always best, but I wanted to get at least a 1 hp - 1.5 hp chiller for around $1000 that is very high quality.

As mentioned, at this point the only thing I think I need a chiller for is to run my Hydro Innovations cO2 generator, dehumidifier & nute reservoir. But leaving some head room in order to add something at a later date is also considered into the situation, that's why I'd like to go to 1.5 hp if affordable.

Do I even need a 1.5 hp chiller or would even a 1 hp be overkill?

I want my chiller to be rated "overkill" so it won't have to work as hard therefore extending it's life.

I also plan on hooking everything up to a Controller in order to control all functions. (Probably an iPonic 600 controller)

Should I expect a lot of heat being generated by a 1-1.5 hp chiller? Remember, I'm going all LED...

 

[agoutihead]

I now realize watercooledgardens was referring to being able to cool HID lights with their chill kings and say that for accessories aquarium is fine for accessories.

I'd still like to get a 1.5 HP for around $1200 or less. I'll look into the best price for a Pacific Coast & hydro farms.

Anyone having a sale soon?

 

[agoutihead]

What's the difference between the regular 1 Hp chiller and the 220v 1HP chiller Pacific Coast offers?

 

[agoutihead]

For my requirements, do you guys think I need 1 or 1.5 hp, yet still leaving head room so the thing isn't maxed out when it's running?

 

[HUGE]

i say always oversize if possible. headroom. dynamic range.

 

[budleydoright]

i say always oversize if possible. headroom. dynamic range.

^^Audio guy?

 

[agoutihead]

What's the difference between the regular 1 Hp chiller and the 220v 1HP chiller Pacific Coast offers?

First, how do you run multiple feeds for a handful of equipment on a single chiller? I would have a total of 4 feeds needed explained here:

Well as I mentioned the #1 reason for this is running a Hydro Innovations cO2 generator - not really sure how many gallons that requires, but I'm sure less than 100.

I also want to hook up a dehumidifier to the system in-case it's needed, I honestly don't know what kind I would get or how much it would need, but lets give it 100g as well.

Now the last thing I can think of, at least for now that would require cooling are the nute reservoirs.

This will be a 2 room grow, one veg/mothers & the other flower, so technically I will need 2 separate nute reservoirs based on the stage the different rooms will need of nute strength.

But even taking that into consideration, I'd imagine 50g reservoir per room, so another 100g total.

Lets add an extra 50g reservoir to the chiller system itself so it never goes dry & I think even with a lot of cushion we are only at 350g for the whole system.

What I'm confused about is that most 1 HP chillers I see say they do up to 30* cooling on 700g such as the:

C-1000 1 HP Aquarium Chiller - $1215 + shipping

And this other 1 HP I found:

Aqua Euro USA Max Chill 1 HP Titanium Aquarium Chiller - AquaCave.com - $1059 + $120 for shipping

But the ones listed on watercooledgardens say that the 1 HP Ecoplus is only rated for 2-400 gallons & the 1.5 HP does 3-500 HP. Take a look at their Ecoplus model comparision chart:

Watercooledgardens.com*::*Chillers - Residential*::*Ecoplus 1.5 hp Commercial Chiller - $1174 + $100 for shipping (the 1 HP is $984 + shipping)

Why does WCG under rate the Ecoplus' so much compared to the other 1 HP chillers?

Shouldn't a 1 HP Ecoplus be able to give the same 30* cooling on 700g like the Pacific Coast & Aqua Euro chillers?

If all of those specs are correct, I'd rather swing for the 1 HP since it will still leave plenty of head room for my grow, but also draw much less electricity than a 1.5 HP instead of wasting it.

The 1 HP Ecoplus is the best deal, but if it really only does the 2-400 gallons I may opt for the slightly more expensive Pacific Coast or Aqua Euro just to save electricity in the long run.

It does seem as if the Ecoplus 1.5 HP for $1174 + shipping is the best deal of them all though.

What do you guys think?

 

[agoutihead]

Anyone have any input?

 

[budleydoright]

First, how do you run multiple feeds for a handful of equipment on a single chiller? I would have a total of 4 feeds needed explained here:

Few ways. Large chillers can have multiple rez at different temps. Simple chillers that you pump water into and out of require an external rez. You can put multiple pumps in that rez. For instance, your co2 Gen need an low volume high pressure pump. A pond pump or sump pump unsually won't do it. Your other water cooled equipment may need a higher volume low pressure pump.

Well as I mentioned the #1 reason for this is running a Hydro Innovations cO2 generator - not really sure how many gallons that requires, but I'm sure less than 100.

I also want to hook up a dehumidifier to the system in-case it's needed, I honestly don't know what kind I would get or how much it would need, but lets give it 100g as well.

Now the last thing I can think of, at least for now that would require cooling are the nute reservoirs.

This will be a 2 room grow, one veg/mothers & the other flower, so technically I will need 2 separate nute reservoirs based on the stage the different rooms will need of nute strength.

You just need a single rez. Probably 30-100 gallons depending on the load. Put a high lift pump in it for your co2 gen, another lower lift pump pushing water through a stainless steel wort chiller in each of your nutrient rez.

And then yet another sized pump circuit for your duhuey.

Another option is a single large high lift pump with adequate volume, connected to a mutiple outlet pvc manifold with an outlet and flow control device for piece of equipment.

But even taking that into consideration, I'd imagine 50g reservoir per room, so another 100g total.

Lets add an extra 50g reservoir to the chiller system itself so it never goes dry & I think even with a lot of cushion we are only at 350g for the whole system.

What I'm confused about is that most 1 HP chillers I see say they do up to 30* cooling on 700g such as the:

C-1000 1 HP Aquarium Chiller - $1215 + shipping

And this other 1 HP I found:

Aqua Euro USA Max Chill 1 HP Titanium Aquarium Chiller - AquaCave.com - $1059 + $120 for shipping

But the ones listed on watercooledgardens say that the 1 HP Ecoplus is only rated for 2-400 gallons & the 1.5 HP does 3-500 HP. Take a look at their Ecoplus model comparision chart:

Watercooledgardens.com*::*Chil lers - Residential*::*Ecoplus 1.5 hp Commercial Chiller - $1174 + $100 for shipping (the 1 HP is $984 + shipping)

Why does WCG under rate the Ecoplus' so much compared to the other 1 HP chillers?

Shouldn't a 1 HP Ecoplus be able to give the same 30* cooling on 700g like the Pacific Coast & Aqua Euro chillers?

If all of those specs are correct, I'd rather swing for the 1 HP since it will still leave plenty of head room for my grow, but also draw much less electricity than a 1.5 HP instead of wasting it.

The 1 HP Ecoplus is the best deal, but if it really only does the 2-400 gallons I may opt for the slightly more expensive Pacific Coast or Aqua Euro just to save electricity in the long run.

It does seem as if the Ecoplus 1.5 HP for $1174 + shipping is the best deal of them all though.

Most of the small up to 2 hp chillers that contain titanium coils are designed for aquarium use. They are giving you the ratings that pertain to that use. Watercooled gardens (hydro innovations) , builds a more industrial device that is made and rated for our use. They use copper exchangers with much more surface area.

the smaller your rez. The faster your chiller can drop the temp. If you need 50 degree water, then smaller is better. If your chiller is underated for the load, a large rez can act as a buffer. Storing heat in the water until the chiller can catch up during off hours.

Depending on the size of your dehuey and your room, sounds to me like your way oversizing. I'm currently running a w/c co2 with 40 gallons and no chiller. Water isn't evem warm, supplying 1000ppm to an 8 x 11 x 8' sealed room. I've run 2 1ks or 3 600 hps on my .5hp homebuilt chiller. A dehuey and co2 gen wouldn't even be considered a load on it.

 

[agoutihead]

Few ways. Large chillers can have multiple rez at different temps. Simple chillers that you pump water into and out of require an external rez. You can put multiple pumps in that rez. For instance, your co2 Gen need an low volume high pressure pump. A pond pump or sump pump unsually won't do it. Your other water cooled equipment may need a higher volume low pressure pump.

You just need a single rez. Probably 30-100 gallons depending on the load. Put a high lift pump in it for your co2 gen, another lower lift pump pushing water through a stainless steel wort chiller in each of your nutrient rez.

Wow, you just explained this to me so I actually understand it. I thought I needed to cool hundreds & hundreds of gallons for what I needed. I didn't realize all I would need is a 100g reservoir and it would be able to cool the cO2 gen, dehuey & a couple of nute reservoirs.

I thought the the c02 gen & dehuey would need 50-100g of water running through them at a time, but I realize that probably only what, 5 gallons or less actually runs through the units at a time.

At this point all I think I need is a 1/2 hp don't you guys agree?

I'll probably end up with an Ecoplus commercial 1/2 hp.

Another option is a single large high lift pump with adequate volume, connected to a mutiple outlet pvc manifold with an outlet and flow control device for piece of equipment.

This really sounds like the way I'd like to go. In the end it will be more efficient to run 1 big pump than multiple med size pumps.

Do you have a link or pics to one of these multiple outlet pvc manifolds?

Depending on the size of your dehuey and your room, sounds to me like your way oversizing. I'm currently running a w/c co2 with 40 gallons and no chiller. Water isn't evem warm, supplying 1000ppm to an 8 x 11 x 8' sealed room. I've run 2 1ks or 3 600 hps on my .5hp homebuilt chiller. A dehuey and co2 gen wouldn't even be considered a load on it.

I am unsure of the size of the room as it's yet to be built, but it will be built to the most efficient size to house 32 plants total, 2 rows of 16 with adequate room around the entire perimeter for maintenance.

So it's obviously not going to be "large" and I think a 100g reservoir & 1/2 hp chiller is the best for me, still leaving me plenty of head room don't you think?

Remember, all it's going to be is:

Hydro Innovations cO2 Generator & Icecap
Dehumidifier which has yet to be determined
2 SS coils, 1 in each of the 2 nute reservoirs