Heating 1 gallon for $6.97 USD

[BettasRFriends]

Alright, I bought this heater called Junior Heater from walmart for $6.97. It's 7.5 watt but ignore the 2-5 gallon that the box said because everyone who used this heater said that it BARELY heats up 2 gallons so 1 gallon should be fine. Here's the home site:

http/www.jraquatics.com/

 

[newfishies]

i have several of these.. there are pluses and minuses (are those even words?)

there is no way to adjust the temp, it just heats it's alloted amount and that's it.

you definitely need a thermometer with it.

i have one in a 1 gal and it barely keeps it at 75F...i had to put 2 in my 2.5 gal (couldn't find 1 larger heater to fit in the tank)

have you seen the junior plus anywhere? i would like to try that one!

 

[BettasRFriends]

Well i live in southern cali and there's two walmart practically next to each other. Anyways, i haven't seen any junior plus yet. If I do i'll uh....'pm' you (what the heck does pm means anyways? post message?) or aim.

 

[corykitty516]

OH and dont be stupid like me and leave the darn thing plugged in while you do a 50% water change and take your sweet time getting back to it so it burns a hole in itself.

 

[BettasRFriends]

LOL corykitty516! Doesn't it say somewhere DO NOT OPERATE IF NO FULLY SUBMERGED? LOL.

 

[cation]

I like to call those things "fish boilers". You never know when you're going to come home to a bowl of "betta stew".

 

[KageBunshin]

Well i live in southern cali and there's two walmart practically next to each other. Anyways, i haven't seen any junior plus yet. If I do i'll uh....'pm' you (what the heck does pm means anyways? post message?) or aim.

PM is "private message" its an option to send 1on1 messages via Forum.

 

[cutechic]

Really? I've been using the Hydor 7.5W, and haven't had any problems yet. This one is supposedly shatterproof, and so far it's done a good job keeping my tank at a constant temperature.

http/www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp...10401&ast=&key=

 

[cation]

Personally, I simply wouldn't use a heater in one of my tanks that wasn't adjustable. Some people have had great experiences with them, no problems - some people, not so great.

Edited to add - that one of yours is the best looking one I've seen, cutechick. I'd be a lot less wary using that in my tanks then most of the 7.5 heaters I've seen.

 

[Styx]

I have one in my 5 gal and... I don't think it actually does anything.

 

[cutechic]

Out of curiosity, why are non-adjustable heaters less reliable? Is it just because they don't have a thermostat & can't turn themselves off when the water becomes too hot, or is it because they are of worse quality in general?

That's good to know about the Hydor ones though. Let's hope it lives up to my expectations. I'm thinking of replacing my 25W non-adjustable heater with another 7.5 Hydor.

Another question... I don't think it's too off-topic: what do you think about placing the Hydor heater underneath the gravel/ sand? The package says it can be done safely, but I'm somewhat apprehensive.

 

[cutechic]

I have one in my 5 gal and... I don't think it actually does anything.

A Junior Heater or a Hydor? Either way, the heater probably isn't powerful enough to heat a 5g (despite what the box says). Generally, to find the recommended heater for your tank, you multiple your tank volume (in gallons) by 8. That'd give you 40W for your tank. If you decide to upgrade your heater, I'd go with a 25W as opposed to a 50W.

 

[cation]

cc, wuv explains it better then I did here. Clearly yours shouldn't have the same problem the other ones do, because it is submersable.

 

[cutechic]

Oh, I didn't see that. Thanks

 

[Styx]

Cutechic, thank for the advice. I do plan on getting a better one ASAP so I can put my lovely Emerald in there.