heater- how much temp. change is acceptable

[cliff0114]

I have a 55 gallon, I only have feeders in it right now. It is cycled and they are coming out tomarrow or friday and going to start stocking with: Bala shark and other shark types, gouramies (spelling sorry), and other active swimmers all will be 72-82 degree range fish.
I wanted to see how the temp. was with heater off. It stays 72 at night and it got to 76 today. is that to much of a temp. change? or should I turn it on and keep at 76-77 so there is no temp drop? How much is acceptable?

 

[mfdrookie516]

a degree or two is acceptable, IMO. Constant is much much better though. Your best bet is to keep the heater on and keep the tank at a stable temp.

before you get those bala sharks, you might want to do some research on them. 55g is way too small for a bala shark

 

[fishiesaremylifexoxo]

I have no idea what a bala shark is, but my advice would be to immediately invest in a 76 gallon tank with carbon exchange capabilities and three medium sized panda fish

 

[cmor1701d]

Yes to heaters on. You want to keep the temp within a 2 degree range. Is 76 the upper range your room will get to?