Hi everybody, joey here again and welcome back.
So in today's video, I'm going to show you how to make a do it yourself aquarium heater.
Now when you're not using this heater, you can also use it year round as a dehumidifier.
Sounds interesting right?
Well, it's not only an interesting idea, it actually works really well.
Now I previously made a video on how to survive a power outage with your aquarium, and showed
another type of emergency heater in that video, However this one will be much easier to do
and has more than one use.
So let's get started.
The key to the heater lies in calcium chloride.
Calcium chloride is a salt of calcium and chlorine
The most common use in my area is it being used to melt ice.
Calcium chloride, when mixed with water produces an exothermic reaction.
Meaning it heats up.
So, if we were to take a small bottle, and add some calcium chloride to it, then add
water...
that water will heat up.
This would give us cheap and easy aquarium heater.
So that's exactly what we will do.
Let me show you an example.
This water was room temperature.
Around 20 degrees Celsius.
I'm using a manual focus camera here, so focusing on it enough to clearly see the temperature
took a moment as I wanted to show a continuous shot.
I added in the calcium chloride and then put the cap back on.
I shake it up, and then tested the water
temperature again.
It rose to 40 degrees Celsius within seconds.
Mixing calcium chloride to water at a ratio of 3 to 1 I find gives the best results.
Just add both ingredients to the bottle, put the top back on tightly, shake it up, and
drop it in your tank.
Obviously we will have to monitor the aquarium temperature during the time the bottle is
in the tank to know when to replace the bottle or to remove it.
This heater will last up to 2 hours in your aquarium before the temperature of the bottle
drops enough to need to be replaced.
I would recommend 1 500ml bottle for every 50 gallons.
Adding extra bottles is simple enough if you need to.
The benefit here is calcium chloride is cheap on average; I can buy around 50 pounds for
less than $20.
You'll find it at most local hardware stores.
Just insure the only ingredient is calcium chloride.
Obviously you'll never use 50 pounds of it, so that's where the next use for it comes
in handy.
As an aquarium owner, we can all attest to the fact that aquariums can increase humidity
in the room it's in.
Calcium chloride is also very hygroscopic.
Meaning, it has ability to attract and hold water molecules from the surrounding environment.
Which means it can absorb moisture from the air.
We just need to create something to let it do just that.
So grab a larger bottle and cut it in half.
Take a panty hose, legging of fine mesh and roll it over the top half of the bottle.
Insert the top half upside down into the bottom half of the bottle.
This creates a holder for the calcium chloride.
Calcium chloride will absorb moisture from the air, and that will drip down into the
bottom half of the bottle.
The net will stop the calcium chloride from falling through while allowing the water to
freely pass through it.
This will work for well in small rooms.
A pound should be good for at least 1-2 weeks.
Then replace it.
This can also go right under your tank if you have a sump and are looking to control
humidity under there.
You now have an emergency aquarium heater that while not in use, can double as a dehumidifier.
In my opinion, both are extremely useful and easy to make.
So this is a must have project for me.
I run the dehumidifier all the time, and when the power goes out, I just follow the steps
from my power failure video and use my emergency heater.
Anyways guys, I hope you enjoyed the video, I definitely want to thank you for watching
and we'll see you next time.