[adviner]

Question,
I'm trying to cool off my tank its a 90 gal with a 20 gal sump. I live in Arizona and now we are going to the winter season. Until I have a chiller i'm gonna put a litter of ice to cool off the tank to about 78 degrees. My question is should i get a 500 watt or 300 watt heater for my tank? And if i put the ice in the main tank will putting the heater in the sump (so its out of the way) properly heat the water if it gets to cold?

Thanks

[pogodzib]

I'd put the ice into the sump instead of the main tank because it will melt fairly quickly anyway and the circulation between the main tank and the sump will prevent the water in the sump from getting too cold. A word of caution though is to not to drop the temp down too quickly or your fish and corals can get harmed.

As for a heater, for a tank that size 300-500watts is a good amount for heaters, but I would recommend getting two smaller heaters instead of one larger heaters. Heaters are prone to failure and having smaller heaters will help minimize the impacts if a heater fails in the on position (overheating) or off position (too cold).