Finnex Heaters are JUNK

[jimk60]

I typically replace ever couple of years. Even changing every year seems like a crap shoot.

Yes, every year, all heaters are junk and I would not trust thousands of dollars in live stock and SPS to a cheap $50-100 dollar heater. Mine will be replaced annually. Replacing them every year is cheap insurance.

 

[monti mike]

I have a finnex heater and this thread makes me glad that I picked up a controller to monitor the tanks temp. Thanks for sharing & cautioning us.

 

[BullyBee]

I have found the more expensive the heater, usually the longer it lasts. I’ve had to replace eheim jaegers, I’m having issues with my hydor ETH right now. My Fluval is less than a year old so I can’t make a proper judgment yet.

Again this is just my experience, but the matte black aqueon and the cobalt (Aquael made) ext heaters are great

 

[X-37B]

I only run my heater in the winter.
Lfs had a finnex explode on the large 300 + frag system. Of course it blew during the 2 days they are closed. Killed the whole tank.
I use eheim and replace every year which is only 6 months of running.
That way I have backup heaters in a pinch that have only been run 6 months. Cheap insurance for my 120 DT and 45 frag system since I do not use a controller.

 

[BullyBee]

How is it we can make ATO‘s and calcium reactors, but a heater? Nope. Can’t make a solid one

 

[X-37B]

How is it we can make ATO‘s and calcium reactors, but a heater? Nope. Can’t make a solid one

I have wondered the same over the years.
My home hvac runs forever and maintains the correct temp.
It can be done but the cost would be high and the aquarium heater industry would not sell as many.
We have many good controllers but I dont use them. Even have an Apex that I never setup.
When I was an engineer we had heaters that lasted a long time. They were quite exspensive and were hooked up to even more exspensive controllers.
Nothing lasts forever but in this hobby turn over of equipment keeps the money comming in.
Eheim heaters have not let me down, yet.

 

[Joeg]

This may be over simplifying things but heaters are just like an incandescent light bulb. I rarely ever saw an incandescent light bulb last more than a year let alone one pushing 300-500 watts and turning on and off every few minutes. Like most things they have a useable lifespan before problems are likely to present.

I set a reminder to order a new heater at the 18 month mark and when it arrives I install it right away. I keep the old one as a backup for the tank and then take the old backup and use if for mixing salt. I've got 3 in rotation at all times and every time a new one arrives I take the oldest and recycle. A $45 heater every 18 months is cheap insurance to protect your animals and using this arrangement you can see how it pays off to have the controller be a separate piece of equipment.

 

[WillH]

I replace once a year, very little compared to everything else tank requires. I have used finnex with the inline temp controller for 3+ years now.

 

[steveb]

Small sample size there. I've had 2 in 10 years. Not a problem.

Ok that’s your opinion 3 of 10 in 2 years disagrees with your assessment. Could be your sample is too small or not recent product?

I’m sure if you had the same results you would feel differently.

 

[steveb]

For the record I do replace them pretty much at the 24 month mark.

All of systems are monitored via Apex. Actually 2 heaters per system. Sized for 2/3 of the volume so if one sticks open or closed it gives me time to replace.

Everything is on gfci I just don’t use grounding rods as these are frag tanks in a room off my garage. So I don’t want the gfci to trip w/out me being around.

I was checking the system as I saw a downward drift in the system temperature. Where I screwed up this time is I was just wearing socks and made myself the ground path which then tripped the gfci.

these Have all been 200/300w variety with analog controller as I didn’t want to have to buy 5 ranco controllers or something similar Since I already use the apex as a failsafe.

 

[homer1475]

I have used finnex titanium tubes for years(no thermostat, plug it in and it's on). I just replaced my last one, cause after 3 years it was time. Still works fine, kept it as a backup.

I will never trust a finnex with it's own thermostat again though.

 

[Plecosam]

This may be over simplifying things but heaters are just like an incandescent light bulb. I rarely ever saw an incandescent light bulb last more than a year let alone one pushing 300-500 watts and turning on and off every few minutes. Like most things they have a useable lifespan before problems are likely to present.

I set a reminder to order a new heater at the 18 month mark and when it arrives I install it right away. I keep the old one as a backup for the tank and then take the old backup and use if for mixing salt. I've got 3 in rotation at all times and every time a new one arrives I take the oldest and recycle. A $45 heater every 18 months is cheap insurance to protect your animals and using this arrangement you can see how it pays off to have the controller be a separate piece of equipment.

A heater is nothing like a light bulb, sorry but a heater is a heating element, you do not replace these in a stove top, or hot water system.

 

[ca1ore]

I was using finnex for a while but have transitioned back to EBJ because I like the redundancy of the internal thermostat. I’m also able to run them with the head out of the water so absent the glass tube physically breaking (which I have never had happen) there’s no way for it to leak anything into the tank. FWIW, Schego in Germany makes titanium heaters for aquariums. Not sure whether they’re any better than finnex but they are what BRS uses for their branded heaters.

 

[jda]

All heaters are junk... just some less than others. I see them as disposable pieces of tanking.

I also use Ehiem and keep the heads out of the water. I use them on Ranco or Medua (very old temp controller that will run many amps of heaters) and I test them every year or two. The seem to last between 2 and 10 year for me, but usually about 5 on average.

All heaters should have two forms of "control." If you are going to only have one, then use a Ranco since nobody has every presented a documented case of them sticking "on" and when they fail, they fail off - they are truly industrial grade. Aquarium controllers can fail "on" so please have internal thermostat if you use one for your heaters.

 

[Plecosam]

Yes you are talking failure modes or more importantly dangerous failure modes, common in safety systems for industrial process control.

 

[Joeg]

I disagree about the simple light bulb comparison because the element in a bulb and one in a heater are both nothing more than electricity heating a metal element where there result is some light and heat. The repeated action action of heating and cooling is eventually what degrades the material. Toss in the corrosive environment of a reef tank and you'd be smart to plan for the eventual failure of your heater.

Have a look in your local hardware store and you'll see that they likely carry both stove top and electric water heater elements because both will eventually fail. Parts wear out and the nice part about a stove or water heater is that you can just replace that isolated element instead of pitching the entire thing in the trash.

A heater is nothing like a light bulb, sorry but a heater is a heating element, you do not replace these in a stove top, or hot water system.

 

[Plecosam]

I am not going to argue a senseless point, or the fragility of a light bulb verse a heating element.

 

[Joeg]

I wasn't trying to pick a fight and I also was not trying to say that they were comparable in durability. Best of luck to you.

 

[ca1ore]

@jda .... I was running a Medusa controller until just a couple of years ago. Audible alarm got stuck on and my DIY skills most definitely don’t extend to electronics (although I did teach myself this Spring how to service a lawnmower that refused to start). Ranco for the win ....

 

[Potatohead]

With the amount of people running $2000 worth of powerheads or $5000 worth of lights you would think a company like Ecotech or Red Sea would fill this hole in the market. I'd pay $250 for a reliable heater that lasts 6 - 8 years in a heartbeat.