what type heater?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Id say a 150 watt heater would do the job. I have a 250watt visatherm stealth in my 75 setup that has a 20 gal sump an it stays at 80 with no trouble.
 
Due to the price of 2 heaters, I am not going split the watts. I use a 200 watt heater in my 75 and it keeps the water at 82 so I might just go with 150 watt heater in the 40/about 50 gallons total with the sump.

:popcorn: Nothing wrong w/ that logic but not sure if I agree born2lovefish. I guess it would depend on the value of what you have to lose. For me ...... let's see, the cost of 2 sm. htrs. about $35. The cost of losing even one of my 'lil buddies'...... PRICELESS!! A 150/200w htr. stuck in the "ON" position can raise the temp. in 50gl tank to 100 degrees in no time. I also have an audible HI/LOW temp. alert. Nothing is 100% fool proof but if I can improve the safety factor by even 1% I think it's more than worth the extra expense. JMHO Good Luck
 
moneygetter1;494798;494798 said:
Due to the price of 2 heaters, I am not going split the watts. I use a 200 watt heater in my 75 and it keeps the water at 82 so I might just go with 150 watt heater in the 40/about 50 gallons total with the sump.

:popcorn: Nothing wrong w/ that logic but not sure if I agree born2lovefish. I guess it would depend on the value of what you have to lose. For me ...... let's see, the cost of 2 sm. htrs. about $35. The cost of losing even one of my 'lil buddies'...... PRICELESS!! A 150/200w htr. stuck in the "ON" position can raise the temp. in 50gl tank to 100 degrees in no time. I also have an audible HI/LOW temp. alert. Nothing is 100% fool proof but if I can improve the safety factor by even 1% I think it's more than worth the extra expense. JMHO Good Luck
That is true, having safety precautions in place to prevent dramatic changes in water params is that much less you have to worry about.
 
Buying two heaters will not get rid of the risk of having one stuck in the on position... Just because you have an alert thing on there does not mean it will actually work if something goes wrong. There is nothing you can do, in my opinion, to absolutely get rid of things that can go wrong.... Buying two heaters and putting them next to each other in a sump just sounds pointless to me....
 
Buying two heaters will not get rid of the risk of having one stuck in the on position... Just because you have an alert thing on there does not mean it will actually work if something goes wrong. There is nothing you can do, in my opinion, to absolutely get rid of things that can go wrong.... Buying two heaters and putting them next to each other in a sump just sounds pointless to me....


:confused: Easy neighbor. Please believe I'm not trying to argue w/ you. My goal is to help if I can. We can agree to disagree & still be friends. I'm just sharing some advice that was given to me some years ago & has thus far been very successful.
1} Never said 'it would get rid of the risk'. The objective is to minimize the risk by using 2 smaller units to do the same job. If 1 sm. unit failed ON it would take longer for the water temp. to reach critical than w/ a larger unit.

2}Actually the 'alert thing' works quite well & has been doing so for a number of yrs. It gives a digital reading of the water temp. & can be set to alert whatever HI/LOW temp. you choose. Temp. alerts & temp. controllers are safety devices designed to minimize the risk of critical temp. fluctuations BEFORE the damage is done.

3} In general 2 heaters would not be 'put next to each other' in a sump or a tank. They would be placed at opposite ends, hi or low, vertical or horizontal to distribute the heat more evenly throughout the tank or sump.

4} Iagree w/ 'there is nothing you can do to absolutely get rid of the things that can go wrong' I said in prev. post Nothing is 100% fool proof but if I can improve the safety factor by even 1% I think it's more than worth the extra expense.
I choose to take extra precautions w/ regard to temp. control & redundant filtering & back-up power ect. because that's me. Can you be successful w/out all the extras? ..... Sure you can. I'm just sharing info neighbor cause sharing is caring..... nothing more..... nothing less!! (chk. my sig.) What ever you decide I do wish you success. JMHO Good Luck
 
If I had a bigger tank I would get two heaters. I just for a 40 gallon it would be kinda pointless, but I do agree with you that a couple heaters for bigger tanks is the best way to go. It lets the heat get distributed more evenly. Thanks for the advice!
 
I have 2 300W jagers running on my big tank, It's okay, I like it because it does 1000ltrs but I don’t like it because its got soooo much hype, OMG BEST HEATER etc etc... it still fluctuates the temps from 26.5 - 27.4 even though I have them both set on 26 degree. Granted it is a large water volume but this was supposed to be king of heaters.

8/10

I have a fluval Tronic heater (300w) running on my 5ft O tank. the features are not as impressive as the jager but it still does a good job, it is supposed to do over 300ltrs its set at 28 degree C and goes up to 28.6 I think it's more sensitive. I'm happy with it even though it's not "shatter" proof.

7/10



:nilly:
 
If I had a bigger tank I would get two heaters. I just for a 40 gallon it would be kinda pointless, but I do agree with you that a couple heaters for bigger tanks is the best way to go. It lets the heat get distributed more evenly. Thanks for the advice!

:popcorn: No problem. I live to share. That's what this hobby should always be about, helping each other when we can. Keep this in mind though. It's actually more important to safeguard the 40gl. A small body of water will overheat a lot quicker than a larger body of water. The greater the amount of water the longer for a critical change to occur thus giving you more time to adjust. That goes for temp. as well as excess nitrates & so on. I have the same 'safeguards' on my 29gl as on my 110gl cause it's better safe than sorry. JMHO Good Luck
 
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