Water Heater

[NatalieFish]

Hello, NatalieFish again wanting more advice! I've had such wonderful help so far with my tank.. as , as i've said the precious owner didn't clean it an im surprised the fish are still alive. but i don't know how old they care because for all i know the lazy people probably just put more fish in the tank after the others died without bothering to clean the tank to keep them alive terrible! i know but i saved 5 of the 8 that were there when i bought the whole shabang. anyway, there was a water heater in it when i took everything out to clean it, my brother told me it was a water heater, they .. didn't have it plugged in. i have fresh water fish. do they need the heater? im thinking they may.. so also im scared bout electrocuting my little darlings. .. any ideas on how to test it before i put it back into the tank?? i just really want to make sure after all i've done for them i don't want to lose them now due to a faulty heater!

Thank you so much!

 

[Lynae]

If it is glass, like most of them are. They have to acclimate (like fish) to the temperature, otherwise you'll hear a big crack. If its in the tank right now, then just plug it in, if it is now out, then carefully secure it in the tank and wait about 30 mins before plugging it in. Freshwater fish DO need a heater, unless you have goldfish or other cold-blooded fishies.
Chances are it is in working order and nothings wrong with it, the last owners were probably clueless....or it was summer and your house was really hot?
good luck!

 

[NatalieFish]

re:

If it is glass, like most of them are. They have to acclimate (like fish) to the temperature, otherwise you'll hear a big crack. If its in the tank right now, then just plug it in, if it is now out, then carefully secure it in the tank and wait about 30 mins before plugging it in. Freshwater fish DO need a heater, unless you have goldfish or other cold-blooded fishies.
Chances are it is in working order and nothings wrong with it, the last owners were probably clueless....or it was summer and your house was really hot?
good luck!

Okay, thank you very much! .. I Will do that... i just.. hope that they are okay! so scared about the thing malfunctioning. The previous owners seemed like they didn't know what they were doing at all.. they actually said to me " Oh you don't have to clean it! just replace the filters!" I almost cried. So, ill leave the heater in it for a half hr or so and then plug it in ..

ill.. tell you what happens!

ps- when i had my arms it it , taking plants out and syphoning, the water seemed fine, room temp. maybe they had the heater off during summer? im not sure as well.

but ill do as you suggested and ll tell you the results.. hopefully they are good results. XD

 

[mfdrookie516]

what temp is your tank? What fish do you plan on having?

 

[fishmonkey]

okay, just to warnm you, most heaters have a little light on them that turns on when it is plugged in. if you look and the light has turned off, that is a good thing. it means that the heater is regulating the temperature that you set it for. Dont freak out like i did lol

 

[NatalieFish]

re:

okay, just to warnm you, most heaters have a little light on them that turns on when it is plugged in. if you look and the light has turned off, that is a good thing. it means that the heater is regulating the temperature that you set it for. Dont freak out like i did lol

... okay, im trying not to freak out right now. Where would the light appear?..hhahah.

 

[NatalieFish]

re:

what temp is your tank? What fish do you plan on having?

well, im not sure the temp, but when i had my arm in there today putting the heater in ( well, not too long ago actually ) the water seemed room temp. and i don't know what kind of fish i plan on getting! any suggestions?

 

[fishmonkey]

... okay, im trying not to freak out right now. Where would the light appear?..hhahah.

you would see the light if it was plugged in. if you dont, then put your hand around the heater when it is underwater and if the heater is warm, then it on. not ALL heaters have a light, but the ones that i have used do.

 

[mfdrookie516]

definately need to invest in a thermometer too... i like the ones that suction on the side of the tank... the ones that stick on are generally not as accurate as they read the temp of the glass, not the water, so id stay away from those

 

[fishmonkey]

or for like 7 dollars, you can get a digital one that is easy to read and very accurate