How to deal with 100 degree heat??

[Cheryl Laird]

We're in Kansas and have had about a week of 100+ temps.  Our sump tank is buried, and the fish tank is in the shade most of the day. The tomatoes are really taking off, but the peppers are dropping leaves and I've lost a couple of plants in the last 2 days.  I've shaded the peppers plants, but it's not helping much.  The water that is running into the grow beds is warm.  Any suggestions on a cheap way to cool the system down??  The way our summers go here, we're looking at 2 more months of this heat!

[TCLynx]

String up some shade cloth (some aluminet will reflect the most heat while still allowing some light through.)

If it's easy to switch to constant flood through the hotest part of the day you might keep from gaining a little heat then do flood and drain at night to help cool the water as much as possible.  I'm not sure what the humidity is like there but I know in dry climates some evaporative cooling can be helpful,  Trickle water through filter pads or anything that the air can blow through and it can help cool the system a bit though it will also lose you some water to evaporation, but if your well water comes up cool, then perhaps that is fine.

[Leo White Bear]

Cheryl-

  We here in Wisconsin have the same problem as you all in Kansas, 100+ heat.  Although it is a bit rare that we are this hot we still get it at least once a year.  The way I cope with it is to freeze 1 liter water bottles for my small unit (10 gallon tank and 2.5' area grow bed).  For my larger yard units, 150 gallon FT supporting 4 NFT grow troughs is to freeze 1-gallon milk jugs.  One a day with the tank covered usually keeps the water around 68°F - 70°F.  This unit contains 80 Yellow Perch sizes 2" - 5".  They seem to be doing very well and the herbs are starting to take off beautifully.

White Bear

[Margaret]

I don't know because I am a beginner myself. However we have been in the 100-105 range and I still haven't lost any fish, but one tomato plant isn't doing well. I look forward to seeing what people come up with. 

[Cheryl Laird]

Thanks for the suggestions!

TCLynx: The humidity here is around 30-40% in the summer. (I think)  Yep, can easily do the constant flood during the hottest parts of the day!  That won't cause the roots to rot, right? 

White Bear... didn't know it got that hot in Wisconsin! I think I will try freezing water in a few milk jugs. Our fish tank is about 250 gallons with goldfish. The fish seem to be OK, so far, but the heat can't be good for them for long! The surface water is warmer than the bottom of the tank, but can't get a good reading on it. We have a pool thermometer that floats! Can't get the stupid thing to sink! LOL! 

My husband is pretty ingenues and has a couple of ideas... but have to do something in the mean time before I lose any more pepper plants! The tomatoes are doing great! They apparently love the heat! Have tiny tomatoes and several new buds!

[Phil Slaton]

You might wrap your tanks with waterproof insulation such as Armaflex. This material comes in sheets 3’ x 4’ or rolls 4’ wide. Length of the roll depends on the thickness you get. It’s also available with a Pressure Sensitive Adhesive backing.

If you have the luxury, you might also change out 20% of the water for fresh well water.

[Sheri Schmeckpeper]

Your fish should be OK. We're in Arizona - 108 - 114 right now. Goldfish live here in metal fish troughs year-round. If they get hot they go lower into the water to adjust. The plants will have a harder time.

[TCLynx]

Yea, keep in mind your water temperature will be lower than the air temps.  If you can add some extra aeration it can help fish survive extreme heat.

As long as the water is circulating and aerated, the plants should do fine with constant flood for a time.  By keeping the beds flooded through the hot part of the day you avoid having the gravel acting as an air to water heat exchanger (you can do the reverse on cold nights during the cold season.)

[Leo White Bear]

Phil has a good idea, wrap the FT.  If Armaflex is too expensive you could always go with bubble wrap.  Maybe your husband could make a box and lid to fit around your Ft and use household fiberglas insulation between.  My FT is an old milk bulk tank minus the lid, and is very good at keeping the heat out.  I used some 1/2 inch plywood to make a top for it but when the temps get that high I use the frozen milk jugs through the warmest part of the day.

White Bear

[TCLynx]

Insulating the fish tank can help a little but keep in mind that the water is going through the plant beds and if you are talking gravel beds, there is only so much insulation you can do to protect the water as it goes through those.  I expect switching to constant flood through the hot part of the day and back to flood and drain at night will have a fairly large impact on the amount of heat gained but if the nights are not cooling off the water will still get quite warm.  My catfish and bluegill have survived water up to at least 90 F (and I think the water was getting to 93 F one summer coming out of the Monster grow bed in full sun before it had plants.)

When the water is that warm, add aeration and reduce feeding.

[rick kennerly]

Do swamp coolers work in that part of KN?  If I were still in Lubbock, TX., up on the plains, that would be my approach.  Draw dry hot air through a water soaked mat to get some evaporative cooling going, maybe a copper coil for the water inside the chill tower.  

other than that, can't think of much.  

[Cheryl Laird]

Yes, we have gravel in the grow beds. I am going to try the constant flood this afternoon and also have a frozen milk jug ready to go!  Also, putting some different shade cloth over the peppers. They seem to be the only plants really affected by the heat. 

Rick: Don't typically see swamp coolers here in KS, but hey, you never know, right?? My dad is a retired HVAC man... I'm going to ask him about a "cheap" cooling system. Between him and my husband, who knows what they'll come up with!! I'll keep you posted on that! 

Thank you for all your suggestions and advice!! 

[Sheri Schmeckpeper]

If your humidity is high the swamp coolers won't help. Here are air is really dry most of the year, but during monsoon it rises, and when it gets to 25% or so, it's not worth it. A fan might help, though, because fans promote evaporation which will help cool the air near the plants.