Best heater?

[maxwell1295]

I need a submersible heater for both my 30gal and 10gal tanks. I assume I'll need a 150w and a 50w. Is there a particular brand I should be looking at?

[maxwell1295]

Okay, I did another search...

Still no consensus, but I think I may have narrowed to Visi-Therm Stealth and the Rena Cal Top Light. I need a 150w for my 30gal and the Stealth comes in either 100w or 200w sizes. Is 100w too little? Is 200w too much?

[rich311k]

I like the visi-therms, very nice reliable heaters. No glass and they turn off if they get to warm. Like when you forget to unplug them and they get exposed to air. I would go over rather than under watted.

[tropicfishman]

you defintly don't want to under watt a tank, I have a Whisper submersible heater 50 watts, it does a good job and wasn't that expensive, but its finicky on staying at 78 degrees

[maxwell1295]

Originally Posted by rich311k

I like the visi-therms, very nice reliable heaters. No glass and they turn off if they get to warm. Like when you forget to unplug them and they get exposed to air. I would go over rather than under watted.

Thanks! I guess I'll go ahead and grab the 200w Visi-Therm Stealth.

[QTOFFER]

I've only used Visitherm heaters. I have two of the older glass ones that have been running for about 2 years without a glitch. I also have some of the newer Visitherm Stealth heaters that don't have any glass to break. I've been very happy with them.

Your wattage estimate for both tanks sounds right. Big Als has the Visitherm stealth 150W. Of course, getting the 200W wouldn't hurt either.

[Corey]

I've been through a few brands since I've been getting new equipment lately, and my favorite by far has been the Theo heaters. Just set it and leave it, and I like that it has a light so you can tell when it's on/off. Theyre generally smaller and more attractive than the other brands, although a little more expensive.

[degbowl]

These are my favorite heaters.
http://cgi.ebay.com/50Watt-Pro-Heat-...QQcmdZViewItem
I have two of them and they work great.

[Fishyfanatic]

I also love the Stealth's. They are not glass so they won't break if you slightly hit them with anything. And as stated above, they turn off when out of water.

[fishylittlenemo]

I'd deff go with the Visi-Them. My friend whom's building up his saltwater tank has 2 of those. They're really cool heaters cuz the have their on temp reading along wit actually temp settings unlike some that just have marks. I think this one would be a good choice.

fishylittlenemo

[ringfinger]

I have a 200 watt stealth in my 29 gallon and I love it. My house can get quite cold at night, but it keeps things steady at 78 without a problem. Its black and "stealthy", wont break, and...has a cool name. Go get one.

[maxwell1295]

Thanks for all the replies. I ended up picking up a couple of the Visi-Therms from Petsmart. Got the 50w and the 200w for $18 and $20. Gotta love their price-match policy. They were tagged at like $33 and $35 each. I just printed a page from their website and they matched the prices there.

[Simpte]

Originally Posted by degbowl

These are my favorite heaters.
http://cgi.ebay.com/50Watt-Pro-Heat-...QQcmdZViewItem
I have two of them and they work great.

You took the words right out of my mouth. IMO, the best heaters out there.

I use Visitherms heaters also. Quality work with a good price.

[SolarityBengals]

I've always heard Jagers are good. Thats what I ended up getting.

[CGGorman]

Best one I ever had was a Visi-therm submersible back in the day when submersibles were brand new. It lasted me 10 years and ran like a Swiss watch. I broke it after I forgot to unplug it during a 50% PWC. Silly me.

Replaced it with a Hydor THEO. Less than a year later and it's on the way out. The thermostat is going. I've got it set at 71 (lowest setting) and it's currently holding the water at 78. It's been steadily getting warmer over the past couple months.

I've also got a Hydor ETH in-line. So far, So good and very stable temps.

Finally, Im running a Hydor HyroKablewith a ThermoSET controller. All is well there, too.

The ETH and HydroKable is only a few months old, so we'll see.

[degbowl]

There are many good brands out there. Basically I would go with a submersible non glass heater with a thermostat that you can set exact temp. I like the pro-heat heaters , but the visi-therm looks good , too. I think once you find something good then stick to that brand.