Need Heater Recommendation ASAP

[JackSpadesSI]

I've got a 30-gallon tank (I've been told that it's a 30 Long) that I'll be setting up very soon for a freshwater community. I need a heater for this tank. I'd like it to have a built-in thermostat so that I don't have to have another piece of equipment.

Budget isn't really a concern, but I'll say under $100 to keep it reasonable.

I need to know what to get ASAP because my guppies in my 5-gallon aren't doing too well. The sooner I get the 30 up and running, the sooner I get the fish from the 10 to the 30 and the 5 to the 10 (everyone gets an upgrade!).

It would be a huge plus if the recommended heater is available either from Amazon.com or at my local PetSmart, for sake of speed.

 

[mfdrookie516]

The aqueon submersible heaters (the black plastic ones) from petsmart seem to be pretty good. I have one in my 40 breeder and I"m pretty happy with it. With a budget of $100, you could probably go in to a titanium heater if you really wanted to spend the extra cash, but a 200-250w aqueon would be about $30 or so giving you the other $70 to spend on other stuff

 

[neilanh]

I've had the most success with Hydor Theo heaters. They're glass though, so it's a consideration for breaking vs. the newer plastic heaters that are out, but these have been the only heater I've ever used that are consistent and haven't failed on me.

 

[meegosh]

I am using an aqueon in my 20g high - it came with the kit for $50 so I figured I would try it. I am pleasantly pleased with it, it holds the temp steady and the suctions cups hold (for now at least). What more can you ask for?

FWIW, I have a 150w heater in my 30g long that is mounted horizontally at the bottom of the back glass. I have been getting steady temps for years now.

 

[mfdrookie516]

^not even sure why I said 200-250w... I have a 200w in my 40 breeder and it consistantly stays at 78. Should have said 150-200w

 

[JackSpadesSI]

Yeah, I figured $100 would be more than enough to cover a heater.

I'm a bit surprised that older heaters were glass, as glass is an insulator. That's an odd choice of material for something designed to conduct heat to its surroundings, if you ask me.

As for 150W vs. 200W, if the heater has a thermostat built-in, is there any worry of the heater being too powerful for the volume of water it is heating?

 

[neilanh]

Yes, there is actually. Heaters can fail closed, meaning that the thermostat can fail and cause the heater to stay on. If your heater is oversized for your tank, it can cause an obvious overheating.

Since you have room in your budget, it's usually better to go a bit undersized on the heater sizing and have 2 of them. This way they can share the workload when everything is operating normally, and if one sticks ON it won't over heat, and if it fails OFF your other heater can keep things going well enough until you identify the problem.

 

[JackSpadesSI]

Thanks, everyone. I bought an Aqueon Pro 200W heater.

neilanh - unfortunately, I didn't see your post until after I placed my order. You're right that it may have been better to have two 100W or 150W heaters in the tank, but I'll have to do with the 200W for now. At the very least, I will have another thermometer in the tank to independently verify temperature apart from the heater. I'll monitor that as often as I can.

 

[luke.s]

Let us know how it works for you...
I'm setting up a saltwater here soon and just got this in the mail yesterday
Amazon.com: HPS100: Finnex Digital LED Heater w/ Memory - 100 Watts: Kitchen & Dining