Thermostat Failure

[AndyT]

Hi Folks, its a long time since I posted anything - lost the link due to a computer failure.

This post is about a disaster I suffered a few days ago, a thermostat stuck on whilst I was at work, and I came home to what I can only describe as fish soup. I'd always assumed that it would take longer than this to go critical but I was wrong.

Does anyone know of any additional devices I can use on my other tanks which might cut the power in the event of a repeat.
The heater in question was only about 18months old, should they be replaced every 12 months etc.

As usual any advice, tips will be most appreciated.

Cheers

Andy

 

[slt]

sorry about your fish andy, bet you were gutted, my thermostat has a
2yr guarentie so no you don't replace them that often, sorry i cant't
help you out with info about how to stop it over heating but i'm sure
someone will reply,

 

[William]

NEver had anything like this, it must be very distressing I want to keep this post short so others with more knowledge can post. Please accept my sympathies.

 

[AndyT]

Hi,
I certainly was gutted, lost around a dozen fish, felt sorry for them and me.
Most were Angels which we had grown from 2cm or less onwards, they were around 8cm when the disaster happened.

I've just ordered a new heater (Hagen Tronic) and hope to re-build the tank at the weekend. Not sure what to re-stock it with, thinking about small Malawi Cichlids, but then again my Oscars are getting amourous so I might be optimistic and keep it for the offspring (potentially 3000 I understand).

Andy

 

[adeyc]

Andy. Sorry about the fish M8. There is a heater on the market that has a cut out switch if the temp gets higher then the setting(works like a circuit breaker). Most should do this anyway(thermostat) they switch off any higher than the temp you got it set up for. I'll see if I can dig out any info on it for you.

 

[Macquatic]

Andy, sorry to hear about your disaster. If it's not too late get 2 heaters half the wattage you require, that way if you get a failure it will take twice as long to do damage. I always use Visitherm heaters, some are now over 6 years old! LFS had problems with Tronics and now won't use them. Mac.

 

[Great Lakes]

Andy, Sorry to hear it. MAcs advice about two heaters is a good one because heaters can fail to turn on also. The best way to combat this problem is to purchase quality heaters.

I must admit though, I am courting disaster on a couple of tanks right now with cheap heaters. We use what we have at times.

 

[Davy Reynolds]

Andy, sorry to hear your truobles. As mac says the only real slution is to use two heaters what the full wattage split between them. Usually if one goes it wont have the power to fry the tank for a while as the other one wont switch on at all.
There is no real of ways around it

 

[Alien Anna]

What a horrible story! I had a thermostat heater go on me, and my tank got up to 88F before I managed to replace it, but it didn't literally boil my fish.

I hope this kind of incident is rare because I've just bought a heater for my new cichlid tank and I must confess I use any old rubbish on my other tanks (after paying £23 for a branded Juwel heater, only to discover it was no better than a cheap one, I'm now sceptical that you get what you pay for).

My fear is always that something like this might happen when I'm away on holiday.

However, I can't imagine it would be too impossible to rig up some kind of circuit breaker, so that if your tank got to a certain temperature, the heater would cut out. I think if the weather is hot, like recently, it would be better to leave the heater switched off during the day.

 

[Dragonslair]

Hi Andy,
I have at the side of my tank two gadgets, one I made and the other I bought from a firm called Animal house. i have their address if you want it.
the first gadget I made myself basically out of a doorbell(battery type) is a water over spill detector. I have it placed next to the external filter. I experienced a leak once and didn't detect it until I had a mini flood. I hadn't placed the filter top back on securely and it leaked. So I invented a detector. Secondly and this may assist you in the future is I have a temperature alert with an alarm built in. I know it doesn't cut off the system but it does alert you if the water goes above the preset temperature. The only other way is what Algarde recommend. Buy two lower wattage heaters and if one fails, it'll take longer for any damage to occur. Hope this helps for the future. All I can say is life's a ***** M8 !!!

 

[AndyT]

Hi All,

Thanks for your sympathy and suggestions. This disaster is something I would not wish on anyone.

I'm in discussion with RS Components at the moment about parts for a safeguard which would cut the power if the temp exceeded 27C for example.

So far it looks promising using a capiliary thermostat, which would cut the power if it rose more than 2C above the norm and restore power if it fell below 2C less than the norm. Norm being between anywhere between 0 and 40C.

If the reply is positive, I reckon I can develop a safeguard which would protect any aquarium, be totally waterproof, and give both an audible and visible alarm for less than £25.

If development is successful and any member is interested, I am willing to provide the device at cost.

The only problem at the moment is tha the wattage supported using standard components is 100W or less. Fine for multiple heaters but no good for a single 300W heater for example.

I'll post an update when I have completed my enquiries, and have something definite to offer.

 

[Davy Reynolds]

Sounds really good mate. Keep us informed. Theres loads of peps out there that would like something like that. Price sounds high. But sure it would be worth it.

 

[AndyT]

Hi, The price is certainly high, but the commercial quality thermostat component alone is £14, and the device has to be safe.
I understand that there is a similar device available for reptiles but this is over £35 and I'm not sure its waterproof.

If you compare this to the £150 plus of Angel fish etc I lost, and their unenviable demise then I think its worth it.

In the mean time, I'm going to double up on smaller heaters in the larger aquariums as advised, and very carefully inspect my heaters for signs of leakage etc regularly.

Wishing everyone reliable heaters,

Andy