# Reminder about heaters



## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

Found the tank at 82 F this morning. I check the temperature every morning as I have learned over the years that heaters do not stop and let the water cool too much. In fact they fuse and overheat the water.
The thermostat on the top of the heater has been set to 68-70 F for the last 6 months and did a fine job of keeping the tank at 76 when the room is kept at 70. However, now the room temperature is at 78 I would have expected the heater in the tank to be off, not still heating the tank if it was working properly.

So out the heater goes and a new one put in.

Just be aware that heaters need to be checked on a regular basis to make sure they are heating the tank to where you want it. 
The one I discarded was an Ebo Jager. Not cheap to buy but still has the potential to overheat the tank when then mechanisms no longer have the ability to be adjusted.


----------



## big b (Aug 17, 2014)

I don't trust heaters.


----------



## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

Do you live in a climate that allows you to go heaterless ?


----------



## big b (Aug 17, 2014)

Yes I do,it is called a bedroom . I live where the official state fish is the large mouth bass. The vidalia onion can only be grown here. We are known as the peach state.


----------



## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

Georgia?
I live north of the border between canada and u.s so we only get 2-3 months maximum where we could possibly go without a heater. In fact this past week,we have had the a/c on then had to turn the furnace back on because it got to just above freezing again. Our current temp is just below 68 thus it is really a necessity for heaters.

I have kept fish in a small room with an electric heater on to 75 but at that time I had 5 tanks running plus a table full of bettas in individual small tanks. It was anice place to go when the temperature of the rest of the house was only heated to 68.I did not have individual tank heaters at that time.


----------



## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I use heaters, esp. on the bottom tier in the basement, but it depends on the fish and I tend to unplug them in the summer. I am also in georgia. There are a fair number of really nice cool water fish, though a lot of them like strong current.

The last time I saw Ich it was in a small tank in my bedroom without a heater. I let it get cool in there when I wasn't home. 

The "stuck-on" heater thing is a real problem. Even the "good" brands have issues. My fish-club friends with real expensive discus plug heaters into devices that shut them off when the tank gets too hot. IMO this feature should be built-in to the heater and work!


----------



## big b (Aug 17, 2014)

Yep Georgia. I do not do heaters at all but I need to do a heated tank for my 20 gallon. I am gonna be careful cuz I do not want to come home form school one day and find my fish cooked.


----------



## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

It's expensive, but there is one way to solve this problem. Get one of those "Temperature Controllers" and plug your heater into that. The controller has a temperature probe that goes into the tank. When the heater should be on, it energizes the plug and lets the heater work. The heater itself no longer "decides" whether or not to run, and if it should stick, the Temp Controller would shut it off if the temp got too warm.


----------



## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

Have never heard of a temperature controller!


----------



## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

It's more of a saltwater thing, but it works just fine for freshwater.


----------

