What's the best heater out there that is reliable and won't crack, explode ? (tia)

[Tamberav]

Uh oh
I saw some posts of the larger ones doing this. What size was yours and how long ago was it?
Just nervous because I have one that’s 4 years old in my nano. 50 watt.

100w exploded and 75w got stuck 'on'. Both happened this year (yay 2020?). They were probably 2-3 years old.

They are expensive junk. Never again.

 

[mattzang]

i like the eheims and finnex ones. they're both so cheap you can just replace them once a year which seems like the best play

i did have an eheim fail off, but fail off is massively better than failing on

my mom has a tank with a cobalt heater and it failed on and cooked her tank. those things aren't good. the cobalt reps even recommend you replace them every year despite their 3 year warranty or whatever

 

[SMSREEF]

100w exploded and 75w got stuck 'on'. Both happened this year (yay 2020?). They were probably 2-3 years old.

They are expensive junk. Never again.

That bites. What did you end up changing to. And what is your back up plan for a heater that sticks on?
I don’t think we can do anything about explosions, but stay away from ones that have done this.

 

[Tamberav]

That bites. What did you end up changing to. And what is your back up plan for a heater that sticks on?
I don’t think we can do anything about explosions, but stay away from ones that have done this.

I have finexx on a apex controller on my 80g and Jager's in my nano's... a 5g, 10g, and 25g. The 5g is on a inkbird controller that someone made years ago. If I needed another controller, I would do a Ranco or another Apex.

I have had many Jager's and only 1 failure and it failed off.

Jager's are larger so may not fit in certain tanks. I think some use Aqueon in this situation.

Jager's are also cheap and replacing them every 1-2 years would be a lot more cost effective then replacing cobalts. A 100w Jager is $27 with 4.5 stars on Marine Depot and a Cobalt 100w is $65 with 3.5 stars. This is one of those rare times you don't get what you pay for imo!

 

[Ksull72487]

Doesn’t a controller like a ranco or inkbird take some of the risk away if a heater explodes? It doesn’t allow the tank to continue to heat up corrrect

Yeah controller outside aquarium is best. Your integrated thermostats may fail. But you can use a heater with an integrated thermostat set a little higher than an inkbird and so now you have 2 ways your aquarium cuts the heat. Inkbird fails the integrated thermostat kicks in.

 

[ca1ore]

I’ve had a few heaters stop working .... and one that got stuck on, but never had one physically break. What are you people doing to them LOL.

 

[kris2001]

Good info guys, this should be a sticky imo!

Btw question in gfci:

I have approximately 800 watts worth of heaters,3 heaters total connected to a power strip in this 20 amp Outlet. I need a GFCI to connect to this Outlet because this is not connected to GFCI right now....

if heaters explode or malfunctioned I think the GFCI should shut it off.

Can exploded heater still crash a tank even when there's no power flowing into it? Is there any harmful chemical that's leach out? Pic...

What's the best GFCI i can attach to this 20 amp outlet?

 

[AlainM]

Would appreciate some heater advice:
I have a Red Sea MAX 500S. Currently, the heater I’m using is a Finnex HMX 500S. It’s supposed to be fine for my tank size, but it drops the temperature from 78 (day) to 74.5 (night), so I’m not happy about that fluctuation. I’m thinking it won’t hurt to go with a more powerful heater to keep the temperature constant. What about this option below or do you have any recommendations?

 

[Larry L]

It’s supposed to be fine for my tank size, but it drops the temperature from 78 (day) to 74.5 (night), so I’m not happy about that fluctuation. I’m thinking it won’t hurt to go with a more powerful heater to keep the temperature constant.

Sounds like you just need more wattage. Manufacturer heater size recommendations are just a rough rule of thumb, so when they recommend a size it's based on a lot of guessing at e.g. how big a difference there is between tank temp and room temp, how much aeration is happening (more air exchange usually means more heat loss), whether or not your tank has a lid, etc.

Instead of switching out the current heater for one with higher wattage, you might want to think about adding a second heater, so that together they have enough wattage to maintain a steady temp but then also you have some redundancy in case one or the other fails, because the remaining one will at least keep the tank mostly warm until you can fix things.

 

[Orm Embar]

Aside from always using a controller (Ranco, InkBird?), I prefer Eheim Jager. I've generally heard good things about Finnex. I don't trust Cobalt Neo-Therms as I keep seeing threads about them exploding/leaking black goo (much like the old Rio pumps, which did do that to me); I'm not sure why people love them so much.

 

[A sea K]

I've never lost a heater (jager) but I did have an old Rio pump go up in smoke.

I don't trust Cobalt Neo-Therms as I keep seeing threads about them exploding/leaking black goo (much like the old Rio pumps, which did do that to me); I'm not sure why people love them so much.

 

[Spieg]

Good info guys, this should be a sticky imo!

Btw question in gfci:

I have approximately 800 watts worth of heaters,3 heaters total connected to a power strip in this 20 amp Outlet. I need a GFCI to connect to this Outlet because this is not connected to GFCI right now....

if heaters explode or malfunctioned I think the GFCI should shut it off.

Can exploded heater still crash a tank even when there's no power flowing into it? Is there any harmful chemical that's leach out? Pic...

What's the best GFCI i can attach to this 20 amp outlet?

Just my opinion, but the best way to to do GFCI is to install a GFCI breaker in the breaker box (far superior to any outlet GFCI).

Square D cost about $40-50 at most hardware stores.

 

[ingchr1]

Good info guys, this should be a sticky imo!

There is a sticky for best heater:

Best Saltwater Aquarium Heater? You choose!

 

[SteveG_inDC]

Bulk reef supply brand and no matter what replace once a year. If you run two rotate them out once per year.

If you are replacing heaters every year you're doing it wrong.

 

[tkd]

I have run the Cobalt Neo-Therms for years in my DT(s). Very true to keeping temp. Eventually water starting getting into the casing and then another got stuck on and nearly fried my tank. Luckily, i was home to catch it before going to work. I still have some smaller Neo-Therms for mixing salt.

I have tried the Eheim Jager and Aqueon heaters, could never get them to work correctly. Maybe it is the user. LOL

Now I am running 2 smaller BRS Titanium heaters, one main and one backup. If one ever got stuck on, will not fry my tank. Have not had any issues with these.

 

[blitzkragz]

Another vote for Finnex titanium heating rods.

I also use two Finnex titanium heaters controlled separately by a Bayite Controller. But they aren't without issues, at some point over the last two years, each one had to be replaced because they were leaking stray current.