Heater for a cold basement

Landon K

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 23, 2022
Messages
47
Reaction score
29
Location
KS
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have my tank in my basement which stays 67-69 degrees. a little warmer in the summer and a bit cooler in the Kansas winters. I bought a 200 watt heater and it is proving to not be strong enough to consistently keep my tank 76 degrees. What size heater would you guys recommend to maintain 76 in a cool basement? My total system volume is ~80 gallons. Thanks.
 

littlebeard

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Feb 7, 2015
Messages
474
Reaction score
627
Location
Madison, WI
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Whatever you do, I suggest multiples so when one fails the other(s) can handle the job.

Scenarios are:
One stuck on... will it boil the tank?
One completely broken, will it freeze in the tank?
 

Potatohead

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 3, 2017
Messages
2,428
Reaction score
3,581
Location
Vancouver
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
What brand heater is it?

I've always found 2-2.5 watts per gallon to be sufficient but I also pretty much always use Eheim heaters which are more efficient than most since they are glass.
 
OP
OP
L

Landon K

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 23, 2022
Messages
47
Reaction score
29
Location
KS
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
What brand heater is it?

I've always found 2-2.5 watts per gallon to be sufficient but I also pretty much always use Eheim heaters which are more efficient than most since they are glass.
It is an Eheim Jaeger.

And to be fair, a cold front just came through last night and temps dropped to about 30 degrees. We did not turn the heat on because this cold is only going to last 36 hours or so. Heat will be on once winter comes for sure. I will probably add another 200 watts of heating to avoid major temp drops in situations like this.
 

underwaterjr

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
May 25, 2015
Messages
70
Reaction score
95
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have 2 300 watt titanium heaters on a ranco controller in my basement in Wisconsin. About 85 gallons total
 

piranhaman00

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 24, 2019
Messages
4,875
Reaction score
4,828
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
What kind of question is this? Just add more heaters, I like to use 3 small ones, I would do 3 200 watt
 
OP
OP
L

Landon K

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 23, 2022
Messages
47
Reaction score
29
Location
KS
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
What kind of question is this? Just add more heaters, I like to use 3 small ones, I would do 3 200 watt
Just wanted to get an idea of how many watts people would recommend. I got it wrong the first time and I want to make sure I add the appropriate amount.
 

Caring for your picky eaters: What do you feed your finicky fish?

  • Live foods

    Votes: 7 21.9%
  • Frozen meaty foods

    Votes: 26 81.3%
  • Soft pellets

    Votes: 7 21.9%
  • Masstick (or comparable)

    Votes: 1 3.1%
  • Other

    Votes: 2 6.3%
Back
Top