setting up a 120g.. what type of flter and heater

[Bud8Fan]

I'd like to see the "actual" power consumption from said heaters.

Like I said, if they are inefficient then where does the power go?
Sounds like a good experiment.

For the record, I loved my ebo jager in my 55.

 

[WyldFya]

There is a number of things that can contribute... it could be low surface area to wattage used, the materials used, and/or the size of the actual element.

 

[Bud8Fan]

Conservation of Energy:

In physics, the conservation of energy states that the total amount of energy in an isolated system remains constant, although it may change forms, e.g. friction turns kinetic energy into thermal energy. In thermodynamics, the first law of thermodynamics is a statement of the conservation of energy for thermodynamic systems, and is the more encompassing version of the conservation of energy. In short, the law of conservation of energy states that energy can not be created or destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another, such as when electrical energy is changed into heat energy.

The heaters are in water which creates the isolated system.

The only way to settle it would be to get two set ups side by side, one with a crappy heater and one with a premium heater. Run the two side by side for a week maintaining each at the same temperature all the while monitoring how much electricity each is using.

Any takers?

 

[WyldFya]

The energy won't be disappearing, but the efficiency is still not going to be the same. Surface area of the element itself will be one of the biggest influences.

 

[Bud8Fan]

So where does the energy go if one is not as effecient?

 

[cichlid savage]

I wont debate the filtration portion of this but IMHO it is better to have 2 heaters in your tank instead of 1, in case of a failure. I use Stealth heaters and have had no problems with them at all. They have been completely reliable. That being said I would put 2 300 watt heaters in there.

 

[WyldFya]

So where does the energy go if one is not as effecient?

The energy is still used, that doesn't matter, but the efficiency of the heating is what is more important. For instance, only so much water will come into contact with a heater per hour. If the element is very small in surface area (tetras for instance) the water will not heat as well. Compared to an ebo jager that has a ton of surface area for the element, more water can come in contact with the element, resulting in a higher efficiency. The energy is used either way, water is heated either way, but how much water that is heated is what is important.

 

[WyldFya]

I wont debate the filtration portion of this but IMHO it is better to have 2 heaters in your tank instead of 1, in case of a failure. I use Stealth heaters and have had no problems with them at all. They have been completely reliable. That being said I would put 2 300 watt heaters in there.

Definitely a better idea to run 2 heaters instead of one in the case of any tank under 100 gallons.

 

[Bud8Fan]

The energy is still used, that doesn't matter, but the efficiency of the heating is what is more important. For instance, only so much water will come into contact with a heater per hour. If the element is very small in surface area (tetras for instance) the water will not heat as well. Compared to an ebo jager that has a ton of surface area for the element, more water can come in contact with the element, resulting in a higher efficiency. The energy is used either way, water is heated either way, but how much water that is heated is what is important.

I completely understand what you are saying but I'd still like to see how much electricity is being used.