Help Needed
- Thread starter waggy1
- Start date
not ideal. There's a big risk that this will fluctuate the temperature and may rise it too high whilst the radiator is on.
TomShootsPhoto
Fishaholic
Some people may use the radiator as an additional heat source, and they don't buy a heater.
But this way, the temperature will be very unstable, thus it's not recommended to put in near a radiator OR a window.
Hope it helped!
But this way, the temperature will be very unstable, thus it's not recommended to put in near a radiator OR a window.
Hope it helped!
Miles_hot
Fish Addict
Could you pull the tank forward a little and put some high spec insulation between it and the radiator (continuing above and below the tank a bit)? In this way the tank would not "see" the radiator and could be regulated as it it was somewhere else in the room?
Miles
Miles
I'm relying on a house heater too. It's not right next to the tank, but it keeps the temp warm enough during winter.
I am still pondering on whether aquarium heaters may actually give harmful bacteria the chance to develop in tanks or that doesn't happen. So far I haven't had a heater and didn't have ich, or velvet or inflamed gills or finrot or dropsy in all these years. (well, there is a first time for everything). So I still wonder if I should get a heater for the swordtails and catfish. Will I be doing them a favor or putting them at a risk since they are used to house temp for so long?
I am still pondering on whether aquarium heaters may actually give harmful bacteria the chance to develop in tanks or that doesn't happen. So far I haven't had a heater and didn't have ich, or velvet or inflamed gills or finrot or dropsy in all these years. (well, there is a first time for everything). So I still wonder if I should get a heater for the swordtails and catfish. Will I be doing them a favor or putting them at a risk since they are used to house temp for so long?
Miles_hot
Fish Addict
Assuming that your preferred location is in front of a radiator (and slightly above it I assume) my suggestion is that you get some good insulation material (look at your builder merchant for some thin high performance sheet material) and place it between the tank and the radiator. I would run it from the bottom of the radiator to above the top of the tank to create a channel for the heated air to flow through. In this way you will not be heating the tank by radiation nor by the passage of hot air.
HTH
Miles
Assuming you are talking about tropical fish, do you have the heating set to the same temperature at all times, even during the night and when you are away?
How exactly do you think a heater has something to do with the bacteria and fungi in the water?
/me is really hoping this is not the reason for not using a heater
It depends on the species, what is the catfish? As with guppies, mollies and platys, I would consider the "ideal" temperature for swordtails to be around 19-21 C, and I would feel pretty confident keeping any of the four species (good stock only) in temperatures from around 16 C to about 26 C, while their "can survive in" range is even larger.
In terms of temperature, the most harm can come from fast changes (which affect the temperature itself and other factors such as pH), which is why I use heaters in *all* my tanks (even the ones which I want at 16 or 18 C) as I know that the outdoor temperature here can vary quite a lot between day and night (for example, a couple of days ago we had 19 C during the day and 0 C the same night) and I do not heat my house *all* the time (actually, the thermostat is in a different room from the fish tanks, so it does not keep the temperature steady in the rooms with the fish tanks anyway).
If you get a heater and the water is 16 C when you put it in and you switch it on when it is set to 28 C, this is quite likely to harm the fish. If the tank temperature is at 20 C and you add a heater that is set to 20 C, then only change the temperature by 1 degree per day starting from day 2/3 of having the heater, then this will not harm the fish and is likely to benefit them. Oh, and remember that good circulation is important around the heater, and that the temperature dial may be off from the "real" temperature.
The room is heated during the whole winter and spring. When summer comes and heat starts to get to 28 C+, obviously I won't use it.
Seeing as winter might make bacteria seek a very warm place, they could go for the heater and develop there. But I am not sure, might be just a coincidence that I never faced any of those diseases on my fish. And that's not my reason for not using a heater though. I have one, but I'd rather not risk shocking the fish if the cracks in the rubber will let water get through. It's also full of calcareous formations. It was used in my turtle's pond one winter but she never liked sitting in the pond even if she had it warmed up. I'd also prefer to get one that would not allow the fish rest on it and get burnt. This one has no isolation whatsoever and could harm the catfish. I can barely see what its brand is but I think Techmic.
The catfish is a 9 year old Hoplo, not sure what kind though. I would have thought he's a Megalechis Thoracatum but he has these odd long tips from his pectoral fins and he is about 15 cm long. I kept trying to take a picture of his fins but he moves too fast when he sees the phone camera. I can't get a good glimpse of his fins. Here's a rough drawing of what it looks like.
All my other hoplos that lived for about 8 years never had these kinds of fins. And they seem to be growing even more. But he started growing these one year ago. They keep getting longer with each month.
He also has a lot of black spots and his color varies according to time of day. During the day he is a dark brown and during the night he's a lighter shade of brown.
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If you have a thermostat, it would still make sense to leave the heating "on" because it should automatically switch off when it's too hot and it is a useful safeguard in case of an unexpected cold spell.
The bacteria which one would encounter around the house are not the same ones which cause fish diseases, so if the bacteria are in the tank already, then they are in the tank. As for the heater attracting them.. well, if your house is as warm as you say it is, the heater will only be a safeguard in case your central heating breaks and should always be off (it works on a thermostat basis, same as most modern house heating) and the water circulation should be good enough around the heater that the water at the heater should be almost the same temperature as anywhere else in the tank.
In the hope that I can reassure you a bit: I have been keeping fish since 1995 and have always used heaters. In all these years, I have only seen whitespot once in my own tanks (last year, new blue rams) and finrot only on shop-bought guppies. Diseases have everything to do with the water and the general health of the fish and almost nothing to do with the temperature of the tank. I say almost nothing because bacteria and fungi do better in higher pHs than in lower pHs and temperature can *marginally* affect this. Also, in the last 16/17 years, I have only had two heats break and both of them because I put hot heaters into cold water.
You can remove the mineral deposits by soaking the heater in vinegar, and most modern heaters come with heater guards when one buys them (I use only Visitherm heaters and I can confirm that they are very good quality and reliable). I have never heard of Techmic heaters before and a quick search implies that they may be a little bit dodgy, so if you do go for a new heater, it might be worth paying double for one which is likely to last more that twice as long.
Sorry, I don't know enough about Hoplos to help you ID, but going from what I've read, these guys are also all ok with cooler water, so around 20-22 C should be a good "usual" temperature for the tank. If you can be 100% sure that the temperature in the tank never drops below about 18 C (for the Hoplos), then I would say that you can get away without a heater, but I personally prefer to *always* have one, just in case something does go wrong with the heating or if the water for the water change is a little too cool, etc.
I have total control over the house heater as it is electric. But i'll see if I can get a safe heater so that the hoplo won't do something stupid (like sitting on it).
I never had a heater and I've been keeping fish since 1997 officially, since I had some guppies back in 95 and my mom killed them with soap...
All hoplos have survived any temp so far and lived between 6 and 9 years (most others lived 8, this 9 year old is my oldest and last Hoplo I have).
Same with swordtails, they seem quite resistant.
I'll see what I can do once I upgrade the tank.
I also forgot to mention there are 2 stoves here and in case the heater breaks, they can heat the house too.
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