New heater needed...suggestions?

[Codefox]

I currently have (I beleive) a single 200W heater in my 55g. Its not doing the job. So I need to upgrade. Should I keep that one and get a 2nd 200W heater or two 150W heaters? Or some other combination of numbers?

 

[MSU Fan]

If you have a canister filter, you could go for a hydor inline (eth 200/201 or 301) I have the 301 version and i can raise or lower the temperature in almost no time flat. not to mention that the heater is behind the tank and hidden!

 

[Sicklid]

How cold are you keeping the ambient temp in that room, sub-zero? I got away with a 50 watt Big Al's special (five bucks) for over a year.

 

[Guest]

i have two heaters- 200w and a 150w heater in my 55 gal. i added a rena 200w because i was fighting ich and needed a steady 88f and the 150w was being overworked and not very reliable. now the two work together and i can control the temp a lot easier and one heater is not stressed very much. the temps stay steady even at night when the temps drop in the house. i know when winter hits the two heaters will work well in tandem also.

 

[Sicklid]

Oh yeah I am all about the redundant heater thing, catfishface, I just keep forgetting I live in Florida. But seriously, I did use a 50 watt for a year, but the ambient temp in the house was 75 and the tank was kept not much higher, most was 79-80 degrees so it did'nt work that hard. BUT I did swap it and I too am going to get a Hydor inline as well as a stealth Visi therm.

MSU Fan, how do you rate the Hydor? How long have you had it? Reliabilty? Ease of use? I am interested in getting one soon and am curiuos.

 

[justrelax]

i use the 250 watt visitherm stealth on my 55 with much success. holds a steady temp in a cold room just fine, and the dial is even pretty accurate. i like the two heater idea, though. makes a lot of sense. i like the in-line heater idea even better! that's definitely on the wish list right now

 

[Sicklid]

I always thought that rendundancy of heaters used the ROT that if you need 150W, then use two 75W. Just split in half. I guess the bigger the better tho, right?

 

[Tostada]

Two 75W heaters wouldn't necessarily be as good or better than one 150W heater. If they are actually both set at the exact same temperature, that's great -- especially if you don't have much water current, because it'll heat the tank more evenly. It's difficult to perfectly synchronize heaters, though.

Say you actually have one 75W heater set to 78F and one 75W heater set to 80F. Now winter rolls around and your house's ambient temp might be significantly lower. Once the tank gets up to 78F, the first heater shuts off, then the 2nd heater is running constantly by itself to try and get the rest of the way to 80F.

If they're both quality heaters, this might be irrelevant ... but still, if one heater is doing all the work and one is idle, this isn't really an optimal setup.

In the end, I'm sure dual heaters are perfectly fine and even preferable to some, but you should at least use heaters that have a light to indicate when they're heating. That way you'll know if one is doing most of the work and you can synchronize them. I don't think the Stealth heaters have a light anywhere.

 

[MSU Fan]

MSU Fan, how do you rate the Hydor? How long have you had it? Reliabilty? Ease of use? I am interested in getting one soon and am curiuos.

Oh, its something else! I absolutely will not go back to a submersible if I have a choice about it. First off, ease of access is great. I have it hanging on the outlet off my XP3. Since the return is hanging on the side of the tank, the heater is right there at the corner of the tank (easily visible and adjustable). And let me tell you what, this thing can heat a tank up at no time. I got ich recently, and did the heat treatment (keep at 87/88 degrees for a couple of weeks), and we had to keep making small adjustments on this heater because it was so effective.

Right now, it is hooked up to a 75g with a powerhead 802 creating a current (I got some current loving fish!), and that heater keeps the water +/- 1/2 degree without a problem. I am upgrading my lighting to a PC fixture (I will mount within my canopy), so I am interested to see how the overall temp is affected. I find this heater to be extremely reliable. I have only had it for less than 1 month, so I would ask LoneWolfBlue about long term use since he has had one hooked up for longer.

Overall, it gets a 9.5/10 (I don't like the temp change dial, but that is a personal preference). My recommendation: don't buy until I have stock in Hydor!

 

[malkore]

I have a hydor 300 on my 75gal tank, and an old, drafty house. keeps my tank 76F in the winter, though I admit i have a ton of PC lighting that helps heat it too.

been running it 18 months now, no complaints.

 

[TwoHobbies]

FWIW I have a 300w Hydor Theo Submersible. I also tried using 2 heaters in a 55g and found it a big pain to synchronize them. After months of trying I gave up and removed one.

The next time I order supplies, I'm going for the Hydor Inline, just to remove another item from the tank.

 

[evercl92]

These stainless steel heaters are by far the best I've ever owned
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=8172&N=2004+113767

 

[Guest]

I also tried using 2 heaters in a 55g and found it a big pain to synchronize them. After months of trying I gave up and removed one.

maybe there are different variables involved because i have not had any problems synching the two in my 55g. at least not so far. but when i bump up to a 100g+ tank, i am going to take a closer look at msu fans heater setup for sure.

 

[Sicklid]

Right now, it is hooked up to a 75g with a powerhead 802 creating a current

So, this is just a powerhead dedicated to the heater (obviously for current also)? Meaning, it's not on the return of a sump or canister filt. 5/8" line?