I Hate This.

[Jpmc™]

I hated the thermometer I got today, so I went back and got an inside one. IT STILL DOESN'T WORK.
It's a floating inside one with a suction cup, so I put it in, and it reads 28 Celcius! I know for a fact, my water isn't that hot. Any help?

 

[JenCliBee]

I hated the thermometer I got today, so I went back and got an inside one. IT STILL DOESN'T WORK.
It's a floating inside one with a suction cup, so I put it in, and it reads 28 Celcius! I know for a fact, my water isn't that hot. Any help?

In tank thermometers are usually pretty acurate, how do you know your tanks not that hot?.


Dont mean to be rude but can you write in black like everyone else please , writing in red is consiered rude in the uk and not to mention i cant stand the colour red lol

 

[Jpmc™]

I hated the thermometer I got today, so I went back and got an inside one. IT STILL DOESN'T WORK.
It's a floating inside one with a suction cup, so I put it in, and it reads 28 Celcius! I know for a fact, my water isn't that hot. Any help?

In tank thermometers are usually pretty acurate, how do you know your tanks not that hot?.


Dont mean to be rude but can you write in black like everyone else please , writing in red is consiered rude in the uk and not to mention i cant stand the colour red lol

Sorry, but red is just my color.
Anyway, I broke the thermometer by accident on my sink (It had like little silver balls inside) and, believe it or not, while testing it under the sink, it actually works better. I'm afraid to use it in my aquarium. but I'll try to get you a picture of the therm.

Here's a small picture of it.
http/www.thatpetplace.com/images/presentation/P27176.jpg

 

[CKutz]

those little balls are mercury i think, it causes cancer. i wouldn't use it in your tank if it is cracked.

edit:
no it's not mercury..thought i'd double check because mercury would be one piece i think not stay seperated in little balls. anyone know what those things are?

but i still wouldn't use it in your tank, the red stuff is probably an alcohol based mixture because mercury isn't used anymore.

 

[Tolak]

Those balls are steel. If you ever break one in a tank (my oscar did) you can clean them up with a magnet. The colored liquid in tank thermometers is usually alcohol, if that gets in the tank do a water change, though it is such a small amount it really won't affect anything.

 

[silverrabbit]

I always find the inside thermometers very accurate - I use both a stick-on and inside on my aquariums and they both always read the same.

As asked above, what makes you so sure you're water isn't that hot? If it's through dipping your hand in that isn't an accurate guide - even 28 deg. water doesn't feel that warm it's quite shocking.

If you are going by the thermostat on your heater, well that can be a load of cobblers too - my elite heaters are set to 24 deg, yet the tank stays at a constant 27, and when it drops below that, the heater comes on.

 

[Elrohirthehasty]

28 C is 82 F, (american) so thats about the top of a range for freshwater tropical. I have a tank at 80 right now, sometimes it can get up to 82 in the summer w/o a heater running

 

[oswoldy]

I hated the thermometer I got today, so I went back and got an inside one. IT STILL DOESN'T WORK.
It's a floating inside one with a suction cup, so I put it in, and it reads 28 Celcius! I know for a fact, my water isn't that hot. Any help?

Just out of interest what did the stick on one say it was, are you 100% sure your tank is not 28c. If you want to test it take a cup/glass of water out of the tank, stick the thermometer inside it, record the temperature then record it again an hour later to see if its changed.

Mike

 

[saz326]

As already mentioned - the metal balls are steel. They're there so that the temperature can be conducted from the tank water to the base of the thermometer faster so the thermometer reacts to temperature changes better.

Sometimes thermometers can read hotter than true temperature because of being in direct sunlight or directly under the aquarium light. This can cause the coloured parts of the thermometer to heat up more than the surrounding water - giving a false reading.

 

[Rediahs]

I have used those thermometors (the stick on ones with steel balls and red alcohol) for years in my betta tanks, I have never had a problem (except once when one broke). I have one in my new 29 gallon and it is perfectly accurate with what the heater says it's supposed to heat it to, and the stick-on strip that came with the tank, they all say the same thing.

Those floating suction cup thermometors are the most reliable cheap thermometors, not sure why you don't trust it, I'm pretty sure it's probably working. 28 degree water doesn't feel like 28 degree air. It's warm but not that warm feeling.

 

[meguro]

I hated the thermometer I got today, so I went back and got an inside one. IT STILL DOESN'T WORK.
It's a floating inside one with a suction cup, so I put it in, and it reads 28 Celcius! I know for a fact, my water isn't that hot. Any help?

It sounds like you've used 2 thermometers to measure your temperature, and that they both said ~28C. I'd have to guess that neither of those thermometers were incorrect and that your tank water most likely is 28C. I'd suggest lowering it to at least 26C unless you're keeping something like blue rams, rummy nose, cardinels, loaches, discus etc.

If you are going by the thermostat on your heater, well that can be a load of cobblers too - my elite heaters are set to 24 deg, yet the tank stays at a constant 27, and when it drops below that, the heater comes on.

I'd suggest reading the instructions for your heater if this is troubling you. Most heaters have some way of being calibrated which should be explained in the instructions.