Ahhh Help ... HIGH TEMP During Fishless Cycle

[Viperboy]

Ok so yester day i had my visi therm stealth heater set to 82 and my thermometer was reading perfect on the other side saying it was 82 ... this is high i know cause im doing a fishless cycle atm.

Well today in Kansas was little warm .. about 80 or so and when i get home to check my tank the temp guage which is digital says the tank is at 88 .... so i quickly turned my heater way down ... now im wondering if that high temp has killed all my bacteria or anything else that could have damage my tank ... TIA

Ray

[Menagerie]

The high temp probably didn't help much; although, I'm not sure any long term damage was done. The bigger problem is how easily your tank was affected by the warm air. I'm sure it gets toasty in the summer and you don't want your tank to fluctuate. How large is the tank and is it in direct sun or on a wall that gets warm during the day?

[Viperboy]

Ok well i turned my heater all the way down to 72 (as low as it goes) ... and now the temp is about 82 .... the tank is in my basement at home and is not in direct sunlight and the closest wall it is to is a south one so i mean it doesnt get that warm i dont think .... the thing is I am in college and i come back every now and again to check it and do some tests myself but for the time being my mom is doin the tests and tellin me while im gone ..... heres my problem i have to go back to school tonight (30 min drive) so should i leave the heater turned down and tell her to check the temp gauge in the morn and if its low to turn the heater up some or what ..... TIA

Ray

[sudz]

Honestly, the heater shouldn't care wether the weather is hot or not. It should shut off at 82. If the tank got hotter than that, its because your basement got hotter than that. If the heater is new, i'd see if you can exchange it, otherwise, set it at 78 or something, if the temp of the room goes to 78 and then your tank goes higher than that, (by more than a few degrees) something is seriously fishy with your heater.

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

I've had this happen with an underrated heater. You may have it set to 88 to keep it on all the time (essentially), then when it get's help from room temp it skyrockets

What size tank and what wattage heater?

[Viperboy]

I have a 29 gal tank with a 150 watt Visi therm stealth heater that is brand new ... and to be honest i think the basement is the coldest part or our house so i dont know how the temp got up the high but ill just set it to 78 and see what happens i guess .... thanks for ur input so far guys

Ray

[SCFatz]

I had the same problem with the heater in my 29g starter kit.It just got hotter and hotter although I was turning it down.

Take it back where you got it and they should swap it for a comparable one (wattage wise at least).

On a side note,the lady at petsmart said they were having a lot of problems with that brand (I forget which one) and they had already pulled them from the shelves,but hadn't gotten around to replacing the ones in all of the kits yet.

Anyhow...I agree with the consensus...you have a bad heater.

fatz

[Viperboy]

Well i set it to 78 last night so when i go back home today after class ill check it and if its too far off from 78 i guess ill email Big Als and tell em i got a bad heater ... has anyone else heard of visi therm stealth heaters going bad? ... thanks guys

Ray

[7Enigma]

Happens to me during the winter (should be almost finished). My house is very cold and even though my 20gallon has the same heater as you, it will definately vary during the day (both from the increased temp in the house, but also from the 65w CF lighting). 88F is still fine for the bacteria, none died from that temp. Higher than that would have slowed their growth some, but they are pretty tolerant of temps.

[Viperboy]

Yea i dont think its boken it must just be my basement ... cause i came home today and with it set at 78 the temp is staying fairly steady around 79 ... but i guess i dont have much control over the climate of my basement but i wouldnt have thought it would have gotten hotter. But thanks guys and i think ill keep it just to see how it works out a little longer.

Ray

[Menagerie]

Although visi therm stealth heaters are generally a good bet, but occassionally there will be a bad one.

[sudz]

Sometimes the little metal "thermometer" inside can stick, causing the heater to stay on. I had this happen in my OLD (20 years +) 50 watt heater. If i gave it a flick, it would unstick its self. It should be deemed unreliable. It takes a long time for a tank to come up to room temperature (even if room temp is 90*f) The filament inside probably just stuck. I'd still try and get a new one if i were you.

[Viperboy]

Ok i emailed big als to see what their thing is on exchanges

Ray

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

Up here there is a 1 year warranty through them if you are a member of the VIP points program.