Hagen 25w Submersible Heater

[iamtetsuo]

So I purchased this heater for my 3 gallon Eclipse tank and would like to share my experiences so far. This is the submersible unit, apparently they also make a non submersible unit.

Pros:
Heats up the tank nicely. Currently the tank is at a nice 80ºF
Small enough to fit in my tank without having to angle it in.
Adjustable. Not a preset unit.
Limited lifetime guarantee.
Cheap. Only cost me $20 with tax from my local pet shop. Available cheaper online.

Cons
Noisy. When it senses that it needs to heat the water the pilot light flickers for a bit and makes a buzzing/vibrating noise. Once the light is steady the noise goes away.
No temperature indicator marks on the adjustment dial. You just have to guess, and use a thermometer to monitor the tank temperature. It has been plugged in for 24 hours, but it has crept up from 79º this morning to about 80.5º as of this writing. I have turned the dial down a bit as I'd prefer the water to be at 79º but the manual claims that it takes 12 hours for the unit to adjust each time you turn the knob.
Limited lifetime guarantee. I have saved the original packaging and receipt just in case, and will be registering the heater ASAP

[ChristinaRoss]

good luck with it, usually the midway mark on heaters is 78

[iamtetsuo]

Update

Heater seems to have a hard time keeping the water at an exact temperature. Overnight the temperature drops to around 78-79, during the day it climbs up to 80-81. Not too big of a variance, but still very annoying. I assume that this won't affect my fish too much as it emulates how water temperatures would change in the wild.

Still noisy. But it doesn't turn on as often now, so not that big of a deal.

When I have some extra funds in the next couple of months I plan on upgrading to a higher quality heater. But for a budget heater it does the job.

[iamtetsuo]

Second update

This heater is a piece of you-know-what

Came home one day to find my tank at 84ºF, despite there having been no adjustments made to the dial!

I immediately turned the knob down and opened up the hood to allow the water to cool back down to my preferred 79ºF. Ever since I turned the knob down the heater has become extremely noisy. So noisy in fact I was woken up by it 3 times last night. I can only imagine how much this is tormenting my fish. It is no different tonight.

Tomorrow I am going out and buying a much better heater, hopefully a Marineland self calibrating unit. Then I am going back to the other pet store and finding out if I can get a refund (I doubt it).

[dramaqueen]

I have never heard of a heater making noise.

[Romad]

Originally Posted by dramaqueen

I have never heard of a heater making noise.

Me either.

Anyway... thanks for sharing your experience with this brand.

[Mecal]

my petco heater made noise occasionally. I just wiggled it a bit and it would stop. - now it hasn't done it in a long time.

[iamtetsuo]

The noise it makes is hard to describe. It sounds like something is buzzing inside the heater, maybe a loose connection. Only makes it when it is trying to turn on.

Wasn't able to pick up a heater today due to unforeseen issues at work. So I'v got to deal with the heater for another night.

[Mecal]

Yup, mine did that too.

I would try (if you haven't already) rotating it, wiggling it, etc. see if that stops it.

[HopeInHeart]

Isn't it normal for the temp to drop a couple of degrees at night and then rise again during the day? That would happen in their natural habitat.