heater and contoller ideas.....

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

flukekiller

Piranha
MFK Member
Aug 2, 2014
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gloucester, va 23061
over all the years i have never used a controller for my heaters. I guess i have been lucky cause i have never had one fail on me.... with all the money going into my new build i want to be on the safe side and do what will be best. with that being said:
1- what heaters would you suggest for a 350+ gal tank(i have always used titanium in the past)
2- what controller is reliable but yet wont break the bank
 
It's one of those things that never happens, until it happens- so I didn't want to risk it either. I have a ~300 gallon, including sump and now use two titanium heaters (Catalina) and a Ranco controller. Given the money going into the tank, I did not give it a second thought and I don't think it will break your bank as you putting building a 350.
 
Titanium heaters have always scared me so I avoid them. I find the ranco to be highly reliable, if you want the peace of mind I wouldn't go for a cheaper unit. I run 2 250w jager set at 87 connected to a ranco set at 74 with a 3 degree window of variance. Theoretically keeping the heaters at 87 will keep them from boiling the fish if the ranco's sensor comes out of the water or fails. Some people dial the heater to max so they can heat more quickly and spend more time off. I keep the heaters at the end of my sump and the sensor up stream from the heater in the sump. Something to consider is that a ranco must be wired, so if you don't have electrical expertise you will likely have to buy a prewired one from jehmco or etcsupply. If you run a sump you can add a second probe to read temps, so you can keep one in the main tank and one in the sump. The reason that might be ideal is because you want the temp to be solid in the main tank where the fish are, but if you leave a solo probe in the main tank and the heaters in the sump you could end up cooking your sump if the pump(s) fail. My set up is on 300 gallon, and aside from user error I'm confident that heating won't be the thing that kills my stock. Ranco also have to be sized for your heaters, I run the smallest unit.
 
Why do titanium heaters scare you? Is it because they don't have their own thermostat and hence no redundancy? I'm asking strictly out of curiosity.
 
I run 400watt titanium heaters from jehmco. And a Ranco temp controller on my tanks. I've been very happy for the past couple years since I switched over from crap glass heaters
 
DN328 said:
Why do titanium heaters scare you? Is it because they don't have their own thermostat and hence no redundancy? I'm asking strictly out of curiosity.
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I prefer the redundancy of normal heaters, and like that they can be used without a controller just because it makes them more flexible and versatile. I'm also worried that a titanium heater will end up leaking, although I'm not sure if that wipes a tank.
 
That's where I got my Ranco. I also just had them wire with two plugs for two heaters rather than power strip. The plugs light up when on was a nice touch given the controller doesn't have an indicator.
 
I run Ranco Controllers and Blue Line Titanium Heaters.
 
All heater whether glass or titanium and controllers seem to have issues. Absolurtely no one makes a so called trouble free unit. Some just make them more reliable then others. Actually the most reliable heater I have ever used is a Aqueon and it was also the least expensive. But the heaters I mainly use are Visi-Therm. However I have used Titanium and they were simply okay. As far as controllers. I have used Jalli and on a scale of 1 to 10 I would give them a 6. The next controller I am going to buy is a Blueline Biotherm Temp Controller. If they are still available.
 
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