Where to place heater sensor

[Tocspaw]

I am setting up an Innovative Marine 15 gallon AIO. I’mstruggling with where to put the temperature sensor for my Helios heater.

In the first chamber I would like to have a media tower. In the second chamber I’d like to run a protein skimmer. In the return chamber I’ve got my heater at the bottom laying horizontally, as well as the return pump and got ATO.

Do I need to move or give up something in order to properly place the sensor?

 

[BeanAnimal]

The sensor should go in the same chamber as the heater, just upstream of the heater, not downstream.

But I have no idea how those compartments in the back are laid out or connected.

 

[Tocspaw]

The sensor should go in the same chamber as the heater, just upstream of the heater, not downstream.

But I have no idea how those compartments in the back are laid out or connected.

Thanks for your response. Upstream in the same chamber could possibly run dry because it is my return chamber.

 

[Baldyreef]

do you think you can fit it in with the media tower? one of my tanks is a nuvo 15 like yours and with the first and second chamber taken there's really no other place to put it

 

[Tocspaw]

I’m considering using a media cup instead so there would be room underneath it in chamber 1. Do you think that would work?

 

[BeanAnimal]

Thanks for your response. Upstream in the same chamber could possibly run dry because it is my return chamber.

Then the heater shouldn't be in there either.

The reason we keep them together with the sensor upstream is so that if the pump is off or something fails, the heater doesn't overheat the water in the chamber that it is sitting in. We put the sensor upstream so that it is not affected by the immediately warmer water coming off f the heater itself.

You don't have a lot of options in a system that small so there are going to be tradeoffs oneway or another.