Heater for a small tank?

[ladikara]

Okay I am so confused...

I have read through posts trying to find an answer and I just cannot find the right thing. It's now past midnight, so I am just going to post my question so I can go to bed. :) ha!

I'm about to have a 2.5g tank for my new betta Bubbles. I ordered it online and just waiting for it to arrive. He currently is living in a 1g that I bought before doing research and now regret buying. I don't have a ton of room in my apartment for a nice big tank that I would love to give him...so I feel a 2.5g will work and Bubbles will have a lot of room to swim about.

I need to get a heater..it's a must. Can anybody recommend a heater for a 2.5g tank? I'm new to the fish world, so I am not 100% sure how heater work. Do I leave them on all the time? Do they have a dial to where I can set the temp at? Is there a chance the water can get too hot? I don't want to boil Bubbles by any means, just want to give him that nice tropical water he wants and deserves.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

[BettaxFishxCrazy]

I bought a Hydor Mini Heater but I'm going to return it. It works great but I can't control it and it fluctuates with the temperature of my room. There are some heaters that will automatically keep it warmed at 78*F. If it accedes that, then the heater shuts off until the temp falls below 78*F. I'm going to get one like that instead. I'm pretty sure Walmart has one for like $13 that keeps the temp at 78*. I'm going to check them out later today.

[a123andpoof]

I have the tetra 2-15 gallon heaters. They work pretty well. I know some people have had problems, but so far I haven't. I have one in my 1g, 2g, and 3g right now and it works well in all of them.

[ladikara]

Okay I went and bought the Tetra heater today at Walmart.

My next question is...

I currently have a 1 gallon tank and waiting for my larger tank to be delivered. Can I use this heater in my 1 gallon, even though it says 2-5 gallons on the package? Or will it overheat my water? I've never had a heater before...so I am worried. Currently the temp of my tank is 74 degrees, which I know is low.

[dramaqueen]

I use a Tetra heater in my 1.5 gallon critter keeper and it works fine.

[a123andpoof]

Yep! I am using it in a 1g bowl and it works great!

[skypros]

I have a Hydor Mini Heater currently on my 1 gallon... I have it plugged into a rheostat... It is a device I purchased at Home Depot... It is used to control a floor lamp.... anyways, I used a volt meter and marked the various voltages on the slide control.... I am able to "somewhat" regulate the temp.

I just ordered a 2.5 gallon Aqueon Mini Bow Desktop Aquarium Kit, So I think I will get a tetra heater that has been mentioned in this thread.... Hopefully it will work???

[sjones]

I still can't speak highly enough of my marineland stealth heater where you can set the temperature to what you like, it was expensive (26$ online) but the other heaters mentioned in this thread didn't work when i bought them so I gave up

[ladikara]

I bought the tetra one and it did not work. I am taking it back to Walmart and will go to Petco to purchase a different one. It only turned on maybe 2% of the time and my tank was left at 74 degrees.

[sjones]

Originally Posted by ladikara

I bought the tetra one and it did not work. I am taking it back to Walmart and will go to Petco to purchase a different one. It only turned on maybe 2% of the time and my tank was left at 74 degrees.

I had the same issue walmart and petco, i wonder if they put the ones you return back on the shelf!