Time for a new heater

[apastuszak]

Came home from a class trip with my son to a 55 gallon aquarium at 72°F. The tank was at 78°F last night, so I have to assume my Fluval heater bit the dust. Right now, I tossed in an old 300W Visi-Therm to get the temperature back up where it's supposed to go. But I do want to buy new heaters and "do it right."

I'd like to get 2 heaters instead of using one. My initial thought was two 75 W heaters for each end of the tank. Is 150 W enough power to heat a 55 Gallon tank?

Next question is brand. I haven't bought a heater in YEARS, possibly as long as a decade at this point, so I don't know what's good and not good brand-wise. Aqueon now makes heaters and they didn't before. What brand do people recommend?

And, is there a DIY solution I might be able to do that involves using some non-aquarium product that might be cheaper and just as reliable?

 

[Gill Blue]

good luck. the last 3 heaters I bought, 2 tetras died after about 10-11 months. the fluval after 6.

 

[vr6fan]

good luck. the last 3 heaters I bought, 2 tetras died after about 10-11 months. the fluval after 6.

Imo anything tetra sucks..and fluvals are just ok...ive had much success with eheim jager..great heaters

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[apastuszak]

How are the Aqueon heaters?

 

[apastuszak]

Drove over to the local fish store and bough a Aqueon Pro 200W heater. Only been on 15 minutes now, but at least it's working.

Pretty nice heater. Red light when it's heating up the water. Light goes green when the heating element is off to let you know the heater itself is on and working. No glass tube. Tube is some kind of black plastic material. Instructions claim it has a lifetime warranty. We'll see how it does.

 

[wrslrcichlid]

I've had good experiences with aqueon heaters personally.

 

[xraycer]

I have 3 Aqueon Pros, 1 is almost 3 years old and 2 are over a year. No issues.

My personal preference is at least 2 heaters per tank hooked up to a heat controller http://www.kensfish.com/aquarium-supplies/aquarium-heaters/finnex-hc-0800-heater-controller.html. I follow the 3 watts per gallon recommendation

 

[mudbuttjones]

A bulk of my heaters are aqueons. Not the "pro" line. Just the glass ones.

Some of the ones ive bought more recently have condensation issues inside the glass housing. To remedy this I keep the tops emersed.

I've got 2 in my 90g that ive had for 3 years. No issues what so ever

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[convict360]

I like the Rena smart heaters, they are tough for rough fish, and look great.

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[Lepisosteus]

All the heaters ive owned recently were eheim jagers. You will have to play around with the calibration as they do not come calibrated out of the box (suppose to) but once their set to the temp they are very acurate