Heaters (And Water Changes)

[ginaekdal]

I have had water in my 63 litre Juwel for about a week now. No fish yet, of course, and not cycling yet as the test kit I ordered is very late to arrive. At this point all I have done is I have checked all the equipment is running smoothly over time, made sure there are no leaks, and added three big and six smaller plants.
 
Yesterday I added the last couple of big ones, and since I needed to move things around a little I turned the light switch off, pulled all three electrical plugs (lights, heater, and pump) out, and removed the lid. The tank probably sat like that for five to ten minutes whilst I prepared the plants. I had to remove some water to safely get my hands into the tank without spills, so I took about 8 litres out (I have a 10 litre designated tank bucket). Planting all done, I refitted the lid and plugged everything back in. Lights and pump work fine, but with the heater I have (had) no way to tell.
 
Fast forward to a few hours later, and the water in the tank is a lot colder than it was prior to the water change. I should mention I of course temperature matched the water I added back in, and before I started in the first place the water was warm enough that I could tell the heater was working.
 
24 hours later the water temperature is still not back to what it was. Unfortunately due to the aforementioned shipping delay my Juwel Digital thermometer hasn't arrived either, so I have no way of testing the exact temperature drop; I just very clearly feel it.
 
Onto the questions...
 
Are the Juwel heaters slow to restart?
 
Have I blown the heater somehow? I knew it wasn't supposed to be plugged in whilst (partly) out of the water, hence making sure to unplug everything. Should I have waited longer before taking water out? At no point would it have been more than 2-3 centimeters above the waterline. If I should have waited longer, how does those breaks work out with fish in the tank?
 
Are small water changes supposed to affect the temperature like this? How would I manage this with tropical fish (hopefully guppies) in the tank if the temperature is this unsteady? Thinking about both the weekly ones and potential emergency ones. My tank isn't the biggest with its 63 litre capacity and 60 x 30 x 35 measurements, but I am a little surprised it seems to be affected this much. The entire operation would have taken less than an hour in total.
 
What do I do in the event of a heater malfunction with fish in the tank? The tank sits in my living room which roughly holds a constant 20 degrees Celcius. Would the tank hold this temperature without a heater for a day or two in an emergency or would it fall below? Room temperature can of course be cranked up.
 
Anything else that I might not have thought of?
 
I will sit this one out until I get my thermometer, get some numbers then and possibly test it with another water change since I have no rush to cycle or add fish. I do have a spare heater written down on my list of eventual purchases, but I have to admit a replacement heater wasn't on my budget within the first couple of weeks! I will of course buy a new one if it turns out this one is well and truly gone, but I will be loath to repeat this in the future and so any tips will be gratefully recieved (including recommended heater replacements).

 

[Akasha72]

Hi, I've had several Juwel tanks and their heaters are very good - as are their filters. The heater should come straight back on - you should be able to hear an audible 'click' as it switches on and off if you are stood close to it and there's no background noise.
 
When you re-filled did you add back temperature matched water or did you add back cold water? If it was cold it could take a few hours to bring it back up to temperature. When we water change our tanks we always add some hot and cold water to our buckets and attempt to get the fresh water as close to the tank temperature. We do this so we don't shock our fish. It doesn't have to be spot on, just close enough. 
 
What I would suggest is to call at the pet store and get a temperature gauge from there - it's always a good idea to have more than one in case one fails. I find the black strip type that stick on the glass to be very good. They are in-obtrusive and accurate. This will give you an idea on what the tank temperature is at.
Once you've got one of those, turn off the heater for a good 10-15 minutes, check the temperature of the tank and check what temperature you've set the heater to. Then turn the heater back on and place your ear close to it. Listen for it 'clicking' to see if it starts up. If it doesn't and the tank temperature doesn't come back up to the level the heater is set to then it's time to contact Juwel and see if you can claim on the warrenty. I've found Juwel to have very good customer service.
 
Let us know how you get on  

 

[ginaekdal]

Thanks!
 
I did temperature match to the best of my ability, not because I have live fish that need it at present but because I wanted to practice and make sure I could in fact get it right when I do! A bit dismayed I seem to have mucked it up this badly.
 
I still have a hope the heater is working but slowly, but 24 hours seems like a long time to get a result.
 
I never knew about the clicking on the Juwel heaters! I did have background noise as I was working on the tank so I wouldn't have been able to hear one. I will definitely try to listen for one when I get my thermometer and can test the actual temperature, so thank you for that!

 

[Akasha72]

most heaters have a light that goes on and off but because the Juwel heater is meant to be hidden inside the filter box they don't - at least I've never spotted a light on them.
 
I have an external heater on my current tank and if I'm sat with no background noise I can hear that clicking as it goes on and off. It'll be more audible if you turn the filter off as that will disguise it. 
 
As you have no fish you could run a test. Set the heater to 26-28, and change 50% of your water for cold. That should bring it down (allowing for room temperature) to below 20. Plug your heater back in but not the filter, have no background noise and stand near it and listen. With such a low temp it should come on and stay on for a few minutes then click off, then come back on. It'll keep doing that until it brings the heat up to 26-28. Once it's got up to the set temperature it should then click on and off less often

 

[ginaekdal]

To update this, I ended up replacing the Juwel heater with a 75 Watt Aquael. It seems sturdier and I have placed it far enough down on the tank wall that I can do basic water changes without it emerging.