Could have been a disaster today and last week!

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
J

Japtastic

Gambusia
MFK Member
Oct 27, 2008
246
3
18
London UK
Last week my heater broke and got stuck on! Luckily I noticed the thermometer was showing 30 and changed the heater for a new one, scary stuff, that's 2 heaters that have done that to me in 14 years of fish keeping.

The first time it happened about 7 years ago and I wasn't so lucky, it killed everything as I was out of town at the time :(

The second thing that happened last night was that my internal thermometer had been attacked, by the Jag probably, I only realised something was wrong when I got home today and most of the fish were breathing heavily and cowering in the corner so I went to check the temp and the ball at the bottom of the glass tube was broken off and missing!!!!

This must have spilled the red liquid in to the tank and when I opened the lid it smelt of alcohol/kerosine, so I did an immediate 95% water change and tried to find the missing piece but I couldn't find it so I syphoned all the sand out and looked again but still no luck, I cleaned all the sand thoroghly but still no missing piece, I just hope he didn't swallow it, he appears to be fine as do all the other fish.

Lesson learned, check your temperature at least twice a day and no more internal thermometers involving glass with big fish.
 
Yeah dude, that mercury does bad things to the fish. Happened to me one time in a small pond and all of the fish's eyeballs popped.
 
I checked the temp on my tank one day and it was at 85F when it should have been 78F. The internal temp gauge of one of my heaters must have malfunctioned. The heater was on 4 months old. I was lucky that I caught it when I did taht day.

I also had a thermometer break on me as well. That was the second time I lucked out as it was only the outside glass that broke.
 
Heaters do seem to have a tendency to break and get stuck on and there doesn't seem to be any way to protect your self :(
 
Japtastic;2448556; said:
Heaters do seem to have a tendency to break and get stuck on and there doesn't seem to be any way to protect your self :(
Click to expand...

There ARE ways to prevent this from happening

1) Use two smaller heaters instead of one. (Example: two 75 watt heaters instead of one 150 watt) That way if one gets stuck on it can't fry your fish.

2) Use an external thermostat. If the water gets too hot it will turn off the heater
 
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