I just saw another thread about a Stealth heater boiling somebody's tank so....bump for more votes
Stealth Submersible Heater Reliabilty Poll
- Thread starter BTB0923
- Start date
My cheap hang on heater boiled my super aggressive black piranha so I went out changed all my heaters to the 250w stealths. I bought a total of 6 and out of the 6 heaters 3 broke in a about a years time. 1 bubbled up and stoped working, 1 split open in different places from the bottom up, and one would bring the temp up past 68F. I Don't trust their automatic shut off switch when the heater is out of the water so I would recommentd switching it off. I still went out and bought new ones because they are pretty accurate I just use digital thermometers(Coralife) to make sure the heaters are working right
i have one stealth on my 75 gallon. I've had it for about 2 weeks, but it was purchased along with the tank from a seller on craigslist. the seller had it running for abut 2 years. i have a fluval e300 on my 125 gallon, which is a much better heater than the stealth, in my opinion.
I wish I could change my vote in the poll because one of my 250 watt Stealths failed on me a couple days ago. I came home from work and my tank was 89 degrees. Luckily I caught it in time so all my fish are ok. I just bought one of the new Stealths with the indicator light for my reef tank too.
BTB0923;3642504; said:
How big of a heater on how big of a tank?
I've been saying for years that using to large of a heater will wear the on/off mechanics/electronics of the heater out prematurely... causing the heter not to turn off...
I think ALL to often people make this user error then badmouth the heater manufacturer. When in reality, any brand will have this same malfunction when improperly sized...
You're so right again, master. I didn't think On/Off switch could wear out until one day my digital light timer failed. I switch On/Off and no click. Bummer!!! All heaters can be prone to fail. My advice is do what the salt water guys do by adding a temperature control. This device is about $110 and will shut off the heater if the heater is stucked in the On position.nc_nutcase;3642602; said:
This is nothing to worry about as long as you have good aerations. My tank temperature in the summer without heater is 93F.BTB0923;3642504; said:
I have had a number of Stealths and they do alright, although a couple of them flaked out and got stuck in the ON position. I try to use two small heaters or a single heater rated just large enough in my tanks to avoid cooking my livestock.
