Faulty Heater Help

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

thepresence

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jan 2, 2009
68
0
0
Canada
I'm having a problem with some Visitherm Heaters. Here is a link to them:

http://www.jlaquatics.com/info/35/Visitherm+Heaters.html

I've got 2 - 300 watt heaters heating my 100gallon tank. One is in the sump and one is in the tank. The dial on the heaters goes to 89 degrees F and for some reaason, the heaters are shutting off when my water temperature is only 78. Each heater is set to 89. Has anyone else run across this problem?
 
... my heaters are actually doing the opposite.
I have two heaters in my 75 gal. one is a 100w and the other i am not sure..
I have set both temperatures to approx. 77-78 degrees.
One of the heaters is on constantly....
the side of the tank where that heater is on has a digital therm. and it is usually around 81.5 degrees, and the other side, where i have a sticky therm. it says 84 usually!!
Tonight i jsut got home and one says 82.5 and the other 85!! the fish seem fine but it's just driving me the nuts that the heater wont turn off!!

should i just take it out? ....
 
do you have anything moving the water around the tank. besides the filter outake current? sometimes the heater wont go back on bc the water aroudn the heater is warm and the other side of the tank is cool so it thinks the whole tank is warm when only around the heater is warm. the dials are not accurate. use a digital therm not the paper kind which are not correct. temps are important and those paper therms are a bad excuse for spending the extra couple of bucks for your fishes health
 
I had a fish fry a month ago. One of my heaters had a leaver type knob in the top and while I was at work one of my big boys must have slammed into it and cranked it to the max. My thermometers did not read as hot as it got in there. I lost over half the fish.
I now set that one where I want it and put a dab of aquarium glue on the knob to keep it from being moved.
I know this is probably not you problem but thought it my help someone reading this to avoid this in their tank.
So please, everyone check your heater knob and make sure that your monster can't change the setting.
 
I don't know if it will help you because you cant set them high enough, but. I run an exterior controller, manufactered by ranco for the hvac industry it has a small remote probe. I put the probe in a piece of 1/4 vinyl tubing and siliconed the ends to seal it. The probe fits perfectly in the tube and gets good temp transfer. I then took both of my heaters and cranked them all the way and wired them to the controller, now I have a constant digital readout of my tank wherever I run the probe too and can sync. both heaters.
 
When the heater is unpluged take it out of aquarium pop the top off, should slip right over the dial, now you can ajust the heater to a hotter temp, then pop the top back on, worked for me my heater would max out at 78 degrees when i took it out of the box
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom