Heater Question

[Gauge]

I have a Brand-X 350-watt glass heater in my tank. The thing is nearly a foot long, and I'm sick of having it hanging in my tank. I'm not sure I want my snails crawling on something that gets that hot, and I don't want to look at it anymore. However, I have a sump and the water level in it is only about 5 inches deep. Therefore, I'm unsure where to put the heater. I can't put it in the overflow cup, and nothing else comes to mind. Any suggestions?

Also, I don't like the fact that my heater has the thermostat in it. It doesn't seem very intelligent to put a thermostat for a heater in the heater if it can be separated somehow. It seems that the activity of the heater would skew the results of the thermostat horribly. I've never seen a heater that doesn't do this, though. Any comments?

 

[jackdp]

As for the thermostat being in the heater, that is how most in tank glass heaters work. IMO if you have enough flow going by the heater the heated water should be moved away from the thermostat before affecting it much.

Here is a heater that has an external thermostat http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=3917&Ne=40000&R=8029&N=2004+112984
I haven't used it but it looks like what you want.

 

[Gauge]

I'm looking around at heater/chiller controllers, and they are sparking my interest. I am building a new stand for my tank in the next month or so and I plan on it having a 120mm fan pointing at the surface of the tank for me to turn on when the temp gets too high. Do these controllers simply have a couple of outlets on them that they control the power to, so all I would have to do is plug the fan into one to get it to turn on automatically when the tank is too hot?

 

[jamal-188]

I have 2 of the Won Pro II titanium heaters. One has an LCD temp readout and the othe is just a dial but they have seperate thermostats that you can suction cup elsewhere in your tank.

 

[reefrunner69]

Lay the heater horizontal in your sump.

 

[Gauge]

You can submerge the knob on the top without a problem?

 

[RogerMcAllen]

Probably not, just put it in at an angle.

 

[reefrunner69]

If it is advertised as a submersible heater, then yes you can. I am unfamiliar with the Brand X so I cannot say for sure, but the knobs on my heater stays under water

 

[jamal-188]

Lay the heater horizontal in your sump.

You could also put the heater horizontal in your tank near the top of the water so it would not be as visible.

 

[Gauge]

It's a hexagonal tank. The heater is longer than any one pane of glass. I'm going to try laying it on its side in the sump and keeping the knob above the water. Then I'm going to head to the LFS from which I bought it and see if it is a submergible heater. If so, I'll submerge it in the sump.