Active Aqua AACH25HP Hydroponic Water Chiller Cooling System

Had the chiller for about a month. I use it in my cold plunge 5 days a week. The system has a built in 2 degree dead band so if it’s set on 46 degrees the system won’t kick on again until the water reaches 48 degrees. That can be changed but it helps preserve the compressor life. I have it hooked up to a 90 gallon plunge and it works flawlessly so far. You’ll have to buy a separate pump. I included a picture of the online pump I use. It has 3 speed settings and has been a lot better than the pump the company suggests. The systems quiet and cools quickly. For the money I really don’t think you can find a better chiller. I actually found this on YouTube initially. A lot of guys were reviewing it so I figured I’d take a chance on it. Update: it’s been a year next month and the system hasn’t skipped a beat. Absolutely unbeatable. It stays on 24/7 for the price I’m really happy with this purchase. If it crapped out today I’d deff be buying another one

I was in need of a chiller for my 140-gallon cold plunge and, after some browsing and comparing, I decided on this one. I’m happy to say I’m not disappointed! I had no prior experience with chillers and wasn't sure how to set it up, but the instructions were clear, and it was easy to get going. The chiller runs as expected, keeping the tank cool and maintaining a steady 50 degrees. It operates for about 45 minutes twice a day to keep the temperature stable, and the cooling process is efficient. While it does make some noise for a few minutes when it's cooling down to the set temperature, I actually find it soothing—kind of like the comforting hum of the A/C kicking on in a hotel room while you're on vacation. The temperature is consistent and reliable, and overall, I’m really impressed with how well it works. It was definitely worth the investment and has made my cold plunge experience even better.

UPDATE #3 thermometer died. (a little over 1.5 years). I keep it in our enclosed patio (yes I know it says indoor only). I kept filters clean and was not exposed to liquid or dirt. I stored it for 2 months during winter months here in Florida. Turned it on and got the thermostat broke error. Will probably cost more than the unit is worth to have thermometer fixed. Must be the Florida humidity or fresh ai UPDATE #2 (contacted seller) They responded within a week and offered some suggestions but all where "common sense". Issue with paper coming out of the chiller unit and into the water they responded: "could have been some packaging material was left inside at manufacturer." but, they will NOT do anything about it since I have it on my screen-enclosed porch. (technically outside). They did not have any solution for the temperature gauge being wrong. Pretty disappointed because even if I did have the unit inside, these hoses slightly leak. Plus, condensation alone will dampen your floor. It's still chilling well though, but with the thermometer broken I have to rely on manual floating thermometer. Will not buy this cooler again because I refuse to put this wet leaking thing inside my home. I voided the warranty by putting it on my porch (like everyone does it seems). UPDATE 9 MONTHS - chiller still working well but all of a sudden the thermostat is exactly 10 degrees off (too high). Not a big issue as it's consistently 10 degrees exactly, just something to consider. (did not change location or anything else) BIG problem is it's spewing out small bits of what looks like thin brown paper. I'm going to take it apart and look at it, also will try to contact manufacturer. Will update with results. Able to keep my 100 gal cold plung at 55 degrees all day outside in Florida summer (under covered porch). Actually got it down to 48 without much problem! Unit is very quiet, chills quickly for it's size, attachments seem to fit well and do not leak. CONS (all very minor, just fyi stuff I wish i had known) - Unit is slightly different than pictures (hose locations, side power switch) - To turn off need to hold down for 6 seconds. Would like to have the power switch on top instead of way down on side. - Boost function doesn't seem to cool any quicker. - Hose attachments are cheap plastic, seems these would fail before mechanics but we'll see.

8 months in and the chiller is working great. One thing to note, the chiller does actually work to heat water as well as chill it. I have it installed in a cold plunge in Michigan and we have with high temps in the mid 20s right now. The chiller can't quite maintain the 50 degree set point, but it is very close at around 48 degrees. Back in January when temps were around 10 degrees all day long, the chiller kept the water around 43 degrees. It had no difficulty keeping the water cool last summer, but because of information in other reviews, I bought an aquarium heater thinking that the water might freeze in winter and that was unnecessary.

I purchase it to cool our 54 gallon corner fish tank. Before I got it the temp was staying around 79°f to hot for my fish. Honestly this is a beast. It fits under the tank in the stand. You have to buy a pump for it and I recommend the black vinyl hose. It is heavy so when you get it lift it straight up out of the box with help. Always keep it upright. It is basically the cooling guts of a refrigerator. Once you get it out make sure to install the output and input attachment pieces,there are two different sizes. .Make sure they are tight, becareful they are plastic. When you install the hose use two hose clamps per attachment. Hook it all up basically in the bathroom . Put the pump in the tub or a good size pan. Put the output back in the tub or pan. Attach the thermometer probe . Power up the unit and check for leaks. Let it run and make sure it cools properly. Once you have no leaks and everything works install it where you need it. ******Caution**** If you are using it for a fish tank cool them down slowly. Like a degree every 24hrs. Once it cools the water down to the correct selected temp the compressor shuts off. It is very easy to use and works wonders. Draw backs are as follows: 1. Little louder than I expected but not bad. Probably less than most super quiet dishwashers. 2. Heavier than I expected but we'll worth it.

Took a little while to get it figured out, but after a little trial and error, it works just fine. Would recommend.

Follow up June 2022: This chiller is still going strong. We've now upgraded to a 60 gallon tank and it cools it easily. Our original setup with a pump got dirty really quickly. We eventually upgraded to an HW-404B canister filter and put that in front of the chiller (the canister filter pushes water into the chiller). This greatly improved the cleanliness issue and we haven't had to clean the chiller pipes in over a year. This would be worth $500...it's probably the best chiller out there. If you buy this, I strongly suggest putting a canister filter in front of it to save yourself the trouble of cleaning it. Original review: We use this for chilling our axolotl tank in the summer heat of Texas. This thing is a beast! We only have it on a 20-gallon tank right now (Yes we bought one size too big) but it can take the temperature down from 20C to 16C in about 15 minutes. Our last cooler was a thermoelectric chiller and was constantly on, burning 120W. Though this chiller takes more power when it's turned on, it does not turn on very often and only stays on for a few minutes at a time. Our power bill is either lower or unchanged (really hard to tell) compared to the thermoelectric unit. We got this for about $300, so don't pay $500 or $600 for it. It seems to go on sale pretty frequently. The chiller is also pretty quiet, it sounds like a mini fridge when it turns on and the only noise is the fan. The only downside we've had is that this required some assembly to be useful in the tank. Definitely not an out of the box solution. We use this with a 550gph pump and a PVC spray bar we made which cuts down on the water flow in the tank (water currents stress axolotls). Our PVC intake that we made has a cylindrical sponge and I would recommend that anybody using this for an aquarium have at least one sponge filter on the intake.

This chiller really has saved my sanity when I was coming close to losing it. It's quiet except for compressing due to an auto-off feature. It's large, which is understandable, so placement is a consideration when placing. I had the smaller 1/10 HP hooked up to my 29g coldwater tank but it was a third the size it needed to be. That little thing hung in there for three years until I figured out how to properly measure a chiller and was only taken out by the freak heat wave earlier this year. The 1/4 HP is gorgeous for my 29g (requires a regular 10°F drop, 15°F in extremes). This brand is budget friendly and will do what you need if you get your calculations correctly

Great Chiller keeps 100 Gallon Reservoir and 12 5 gallon Pails DWC at a Constant 67 degrees F Even when it's hot in the grow tents! Awesome Investment!

Not sure how I survived without this!

Product arrived quickly and as described I ordered 3 had a few weeks now working well