I was wondering how many of you guys use an ETC (electronic temp control) unit on your tanks. I recently purchased 2 Ranco ETC units for each of my 125 gallon tanks. I have used them for my snakes, but I wanted to give them a shot on my fish tanks. I know that a ton of reefers use them, but what about you freshwater people?
I see three main advantages in my system. I use VERY cheap heaters. They are Hydor Theo 200W, and I got a box of 15 for $100. They heat well, but their internal thermostat is just terrible. I killed a bowfin I had when the heater was set to 72, but it didn't shut off until the water hit 89. This allows me to bypass that and use these heaters that I got for a steal, and have precision accuracy temp wise.
The other advantage is that there is never one heater working harder than the other ones. I use 3 on my each 125, and I never worry about one burning out quicker because it shuts off at a higher temp.
The other thing is that it is so much easier to change the temp. I can do it from the side of my tank, rather than digging around in my sump for 3 different heaters.
I was just curious as to the amount of people using this or something similar. I think they are great, and wont ever set up a larger tank without one. They are well worth the $50.
Here are some pics of my set-up. In picture 4, you can see the 3 heaters in circled in yellow to the left under the bio balls, and the temp probe to the right circled in red. You can see how much easier it is to go to the control panel next to the tank instead of pulling out each individual heater to change the temp. I also threw in a few pics of my fish, and the last one is my $4 moonlight. It's pretty good for the cost.
I see three main advantages in my system. I use VERY cheap heaters. They are Hydor Theo 200W, and I got a box of 15 for $100. They heat well, but their internal thermostat is just terrible. I killed a bowfin I had when the heater was set to 72, but it didn't shut off until the water hit 89. This allows me to bypass that and use these heaters that I got for a steal, and have precision accuracy temp wise.
The other advantage is that there is never one heater working harder than the other ones. I use 3 on my each 125, and I never worry about one burning out quicker because it shuts off at a higher temp.
The other thing is that it is so much easier to change the temp. I can do it from the side of my tank, rather than digging around in my sump for 3 different heaters.
I was just curious as to the amount of people using this or something similar. I think they are great, and wont ever set up a larger tank without one. They are well worth the $50.
Here are some pics of my set-up. In picture 4, you can see the 3 heaters in circled in yellow to the left under the bio balls, and the temp probe to the right circled in red. You can see how much easier it is to go to the control panel next to the tank instead of pulling out each individual heater to change the temp. I also threw in a few pics of my fish, and the last one is my $4 moonlight. It's pretty good for the cost.
