Heater broken

[Lamie]

I found this morning my heater had broken. I'm just wondering if I need one?
The temperature in the room is warm in winter, it hardly ever gets cold and in summer which it is now gets very hot in the room and doesn't use the heater.
Can I leave the heater out or should I replace the broken one? The tank is 70 litres and has 9 tetras
Thanks

 

[connorlindeman]

I found this morning my heater had broken. I'm just wondering if I need one?
The temperature in the room is warm in winter, it hardly ever gets cold and in summer which it is now gets very hot in the room and doesn't use the heater.
Can I leave the heater out or should I replace the broken one? The tank is 70 litres and has 9 tetras
Thanks

As long as the aquarium stays at a proper temperature the heater is not necessary.

 

[Colin_T]

Where is the heater broken?
Is the glass broken?

You don't need an aquarium heater if it's warm enough to keep the water warm. But it's a good idea to have one in winter to stop the temperature dropping too low.

I used to have my heaters set to 18C in winter and turn them off in spring when the temperature was above that. Depending on your climate, you could do a similar thing.

It also depends on the fish you keep. If you have discus, then keep the temperature above 24C. If you have tetras and barbs, they will be fine at 18C over winter. Feed them less in cooler water.

 

[Lamie]

Where is the heater broken?
Is the glass broken?

You don't need an aquarium heater if it's warm enough to keep the water warm. But it's a good idea to have one in winter to stop the temperature dropping too low.

I used to have my heaters set to 18C in winter and turn them off in spring when the temperature was above that. Depending on your climate, you could do a similar thing.

It also depends on the fish you keep. If you have discus, then keep the temperature above 24C. If you have tetras and barbs, they will be fine at 18C over winter. Feed them less in cooler water.

No it's not the glass broken. It was so hot this morning. Yes, it's just outside of the 2 year warranty. From what you saying I don't need the heater over summer. Maybe I'll get one in the winter. It might get cold overnight.

 

[Colin_T]

Unless the room temperature drops a lot during the night, it is unlikely the water temp will drop a lot.

If you put some polystyrene foam on the base, back and 2 sides of the tank, it will insulate the tank and keep the temp from dropping as quick. Same deal with a coverglass. Have 4, 5 or 6mm thick coverglass and it will help trap the heat.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Heaters, any brand, are the least reliable piece of equipment in the hobby. I have used a lot of different brands and they all can fail and have for me. Many of the fish I keep are usually in water that is over 80F (26.7C) to 86F (30C). If I have to run a dry/rainy season to trigger them to spawn I may have to take the water temp. over 90F (close to 33C).

Right now I am struggling with my summer outdoor tanks. The nighttime temps are now dropping below 50F (10C). I cannot bring the fish inside as most will be shipped out or taken with me to CatCon in 12 days. I had 8 tanks outside but now only 3 remain. One is a bio-farm tank getting ammonia and keeping filters cycled for the event. Yesterday I prepped for the cold. I have 600w of heating in both 40B tanks (150l). The biofarm can be allowed to drop lower and it is a 20L with A 300w heater. The two larger tans are also covered with several larg bath towels. The biofarm is barely covered.

Next week I ship out at 40-50 of the approximately 100 fish in thoe pair of 40Bs. Fortunately about half of them are babies under 1.25 in. (3+cm).

Almost since day one in this hobby I began using two heaters in any tank over 20 gals. (75l). This protects some against one of them failing. It also heats the tank better as the heat sources are spaced apart. By being able to place at least one horizontally close to the bottom of the tank the rising warm water helps with circulation. The coolest water in most tanks is near the bottom.

 

[DoubleDutch]

No it's not the glass broken. It was so hot this morning. Yes, it's just outside of the 2 year warranty. From what you saying I don't need the heater over summer. Maybe I'll get one in the winter. It might get cold overnight.

Was the tank too hot ?

 

[Lamie]

Was the tank too hot ?

Yes it was 32degrees it was very hot. I panicked. I thought about it and I got one today from the shop.

 

[GaryE]

Never trust a heater. They can crack and zap you, and they can make fish soup. You have to monitor them closely, and you will have duds.

Whether you can go heaterless depends on which species of tetras you have. Some are great at 18, some need 24. A few need 26. It also depends on the room temperature in winter.

 

[Colin_T]

Never trust a heater. They can crack and zap you, and they can make fish soup. You have to monitor them closely, and you will have duds.

Yeah, heaters are shady characters they are. You don't wanna meet one down a dark alley.