Help... not pleased with our heaters...

[justemoi]

My children have 1.5 gallon tanks for each of their bettas. I picked up little heaters that do not adjust and am not satisfied with the inconsistency in temperature . I have some larger heaters that will fit (size wise) in their tanks but they are much higher wattage... can I use these heaters in the small tanks even though they are high wattage? Won't they still control the temp irregardless of the tank size/wattage? Thanks so much for any advice!!!

[Oldfishlady]

What is the water temp without the heaters....you may not need them and even with the adjustable type heaters if the watts are too high for the tank volume they can over heat and cook the fish......

[justemoi]

Originally Posted by Oldfishlady

What is the water temp without the heaters....you may not need them and even with the adjustable type heaters if the watts are too high for the tank volume they can over heat and cook the fish......

I'm not sure yet... I took the heaters out so I guess I will see by morning what the no-heater temp is? I worry because I keep my house at @ 70 degrees.

I looked at the heaters I have and although they are all very small in size, they are 75w.

Wouldn't a quality heater thermostat know when the temp is right and shut itself on/off irregardless of tank size or wattage?

[Oldfishlady]

You would think that is how they would work...lol....and it depends on the brand too...some are better than others...

I use the pre-set type-78F- that vary from 10w-50w in my 1-5gal unfiltered tanks and they keep the water temp-from 74F-88F....depending on the room temp

I would monitor the water temp with separate thermometers and not rely on the heater thermostat.......with the 200w that I use on my large tanks-depending on the room temp the water temp may vary 10 degrees from what I have them set on....

Tight fitting lids can also make a difference in water temp.....I have a 3gal eclipes tank that I don't use a heater in and it maintains a water temp in the mid-upper 80's...one of the few tanks I keep a lid on and use a filter with.....the temp is due to the fluoresent bulb and maybe the heat from the filter motor itself...I guess.....lol....

[gbose]

JustM,

May I suggest you upgrade to large tanks? then your heaters will work fine. How about 5Gs or even 10Gs, if you have the space? I think 1.5Gs are really small and are a very fragile environment -- can go bad v. easily.

GB

[Luimeril]

i had a 50 watt Top Fin brand in my 3 gallon, and it maintained a steady temp of 80F when i set it. x: it did an amazing job of keeping Chappy happy when she was a fry. Xd not sure about any other brand, though.

[justemoi]

Thank y'all so much for your feedback! I'm going to check the heater-less temp on the small tanks in the morning and then make some decisions I guess. Because I am curious, I am going to put a larger 75w heater in my empty 5g plant tank just to get a feel for how accurately it works...

hmmm... now I am really intrigued by the wattage/tank size/thermostat theory... LOL!... a new obsession for me to ponder... just what i need... ha! ha! ha!

[justemoi]

Originally Posted by gbose

JustM,

May I suggest you upgrade to large tanks? then your heaters will work fine. How about 5Gs or even 10Gs, if you have the space? I think 1.5Gs are really small and are a very fragile environment -- can go bad v. easily.

GB

GB, believe me... I wish that I could but that's not in the cards Although they are in smaller tanks, fortunately for the fishies I am unbelievably attentive to them, their needs and their environment. They seem to be happy and thriving... now if I could just master the temperature to my liking we'd be set...

[justemoi]

ok... the new thermometers are on... the tiny heaters are out... the 75w heater is in the 5g tank (for research purposes )... and the fishies are all worked up because I had the NERVE to mess around in their tanks yet not give them any worm treats... lol!

Seriously... I will check the status of temp changes in the morning and go from there... thanks again!

[justemoi]

So, the 75w heater set on medium has my 5g tank consistently at 82 degrees. Next in the experiment: I am going to put the 75w heater in a FISHLESS 1.5 gallon tank on low and see what temp it maintains from now till morning...

Question: the fishies tanks are currently only at 73 degrees how do i transition them into warmer water? just add the heater? or should i slowly raise the temp?