i am having a problem with evaporation, anybody know how to fix this, the temp is 72f.

On my old tanks I had the glass drip trays that sat in a set of runners or sliders. They covered the entire tank with only the entrance for the pipes in the corner that exposed some of the water.

On the 2' I have just a plastic drip tray from the LFS. £2 Cheap and cheerful lol

I have my tanks almost completely sealed of with glass plates, to minimize evaporation issues.
Most condensated water will drip back into the tank.
I still may have to add 3-5 liters on a hot week in my 180Gl, though.
Just make sure you have no leak in the tank...

Actually I just got measurments for mine today and a price... lol

i know it is not a leak, i lose about 1/8 of a inch a day. are there any ways of stopping this without sealing the top of the tank???.

Nope, refilling will be your only option, but that may take 5 minutes a day, so that's not to bad...

i too have glass plates covering my whole tank but as noddy says refilling is just one of those things we av 2 deal with

if i don't refill, the evaporated water will lower the waterlevel in my sump.
If i wait too long, the pump will start to pump air.

A sump is a great place to add some kind of auto top off device. The salt water guys use them all the time.

Have a look around and there are a load of designs some of them as simple as an upside down rigid container with a tube in, others involve float switches and the like.

If you have enough room around your sump it wouldnt be too hard to set up something with a capacity of 5-10 gallons that would keep the levels constant. You still have to fill the container and would want some kind of valve on the outlet in it so it didn't dump all its water when you were doing a water change.

Quick Design Here


I think this would work. Air would only be able to get into the inlet when the water level drops below the level of the inlet pipe. When it does air would bubble up the inlet and allow a corresponding amount of water out, thus keeping your levels constant.

Obviously drip trays or glass sheets will help but this is more fun

gcollin wrote:


if you're keeping oscars, 72F is a bit chilly..... I keep mine between 79 and 80

if you have other fish that require cooler water, then nevermind

Ok, so here's my question...

I have always just added a gallon or 2 every couple weeks to make up for this. I just assumed this was something that was unavoidable. I prefer to have access to my tank for feeding and maintenance. Is it ok to add water like this? I have never noticed any kind of stress or anything from the fish when I do this. Just want to make sure what the best option is.

brichter04 wrote:



I would'nt think adding water is a bad thing as long as your treating
to remove chlorine.


Zoo