Heaters, am I doing something wrong?

[thbrewst]

I keep killing heaters left and right. Lost a Finnex 800W last night after only a couple of months of use. I was wondering if I am not using it correctly.

I currently have the heater laying in the bottom (horizonally) in the return section of my sump. Obviously the water level in this area fluctuates with evaporation, but as long as the heater is submerged I assume it does not matter.

I have it plugged in to a Reef Keeper (original model if anyone is collecting antiques) so it controls the on/off cycle with the temp probe.

Prior to this latest death, I lost a 500w finnex that I got with the system, a 300w Aqueon, and a 250w Marineland stealth.

The tank is ~175 gallons with about 25 gallons in the sump (40g breeder). I keep the room temp at about 70 deg.

Thoughts? Am I just unlucky?

 

[thbrewst]

bratliff;605705 wrote: My thoughts would be just the size of the heaters. What's the reason for the monster heater? I use three 300w heaters for my system (one in the display and two in the refugium) and they've been running for year now with no issues. My suggestion would be to go with multiple smaller heaters.

I got the 500w because it came with the system I bought. I got the 800w because the 500w was out of stock and they gave me a good price to go ahead and buy it. The Aqueon and Stealth are the largest ones you can get at your standard PetCo/Petsmart and I needed a heater. My plan was to use them to heat my water change water, but with last nights failure the Stealth is not heater my whole 200 gallons. According to their specs that is ~125 gallons more than it is capable of handling.

Is running it in the return section a bad idea? I would think putting it in my fuge would be bad as I don't get that much flow in there (guessing 30 gals an hour turnover), so it would have trouble keeping the entire tank heated and the water in the fuge might get too hot, right? I could put it in the drain/skimmer chamber but there is already a lot of 'stuff' in there. If it would be better I could make room.

 

[jennm]

Could be the brand of heaters. If the Finnex ones were Titanium, they are JUNK, IMO. I haven't found a brand of Titanium heater that's reliable (I suspect they all come of of the same overseas factory).

Search for "Stealth" on the forum. That should tell you all you need to know (again, JUNK, IMO)

I've had decent success with Aqueon heaters but I've had a few fail too. They seem to be better than many brands.

Try an Eheim Jager one.

Jenn

 

[mtmcghee]

JennM;605744 wrote: Could be the brand of heaters. If the Finnex ones were Titanium, they are JUNK, IMO. I haven't found a brand of Titanium heater that's reliable (I suspect they all come of of the same overseas factory).

Search for "Stealth" on the forum. That should tell you all you need to know (again, JUNK, IMO)

I've had decent success with Aqueon heaters but I've had a few fail too. They seem to be better than many brands.

Try an Eheim Jager one.

Jenn

Jager +1

 

[skriz]

I absolutely and utterly hate to do this, and I will vehemently deny this ever happened, but I have to agree with Jenn on this.

Calling Finnex garbage would be insulting garbage. Finnex products and the company representives are the worst piles of fecal matter I have ever dealt with.

Ebo Jager - that's the way to go with heaters. They'll last forever. Great quality and reliable.

And you DO NOT need a 500w heater. If you find you want that much, get 2 x 250w heaters.

 

[thbrewst]

Wish I would have known that before I bought this one. I'll still try to get it replaced under warranty, but I'll try a Jager as a second one.

I have definitely learned my lesson about one big one versus 2 smaller ones.

Thanks for the advice all...

 

[lilrobb]

I think the reason for this heater to fail might have been continous cycling, (too many on/off cycles) due to being severely oversized...

 

[thbrewst]

LilRobb;605834 wrote: I think the reason for this heater to fail might have been continous cycling, (too many on/off cycles) due to being severely oversized...

Implying what? That it is better to have the heater running more to make it last longer?

With the 250w that I have in there now, it has not (in 24 hours) been able to get the tank back up to the 79 degress the RKE is set for. This is what leads me to think that I need more heat. Granted, from the posts above it could be the brand that is the problem, not the size.

 

[lilrobb]

Look at lightbulbs - the more often you switch them (the wire going from hot to cold or vice versa) they sooner they die.
After all it is a material constantly heating up and cooling down causing material fatigue...
Longer cycles are (strictly for the heater, not your powerbill or the tank) better...

 

[jennm]

Skriz;605789 wrote: I absolutely and utterly hate to do this, and I will vehemently deny this ever happened, but I have to agree with Jenn on this.

Welcome to the dark side, Raj. It's OK, we've agreed several times in the last few months, and the world hasn't ended yet.

BTW... Ebo Jager ceased to be "Ebo" several years ago. Now they are owned by Eheim

Jenn

 

[skriz]

JennM;605886 wrote: Welcome to the dark side, Raj. It's OK, we've agreed several times in the last few months, and the world hasn't ended yet.

BTW... Ebo Jager ceased to be "Ebo" several years ago. Now they are owned by Eheim

Jenn

The end is nearing...

Yeah, when Eheim first bought them, the quality took a massive hit. They quickly rectified it, though. But, they will always be Ebo Jager to me; can't have it any other way!

 

[grouper therapy]

thbrewst;605837 wrote: Implying what? That it is better to have the heater running more to make it last longer?

With the 250w that I have in there now, it has not (in 24 hours) been able to get the tank back up to the 79 degress the RKE is set for. This is what leads me to think that I need more heat. Granted, from the posts above it could be the brand that is the problem, not the size.

Cycling reduces lifetime because the surface of the element oxidizes rapidly at higher temperatures; if the higher temperature is maintained, the oxide coating actually protects the element from further rapid oxidation, but if the element temperature is reduced (turned off), the oxide coating breaks off due to contraction and exposes fresh metal to more oxidation. With continuous cycling, the resistance of the element is increased to the point that it becomes too hot and burns into. This also happens to the elemnt wire inside the housing.
When using aquarium controllers ,users usually set the heater to come on after the temp drops a fraction of a degree from desired temp. and turn off at that exact temp thereby causing the excessive cycling. I use Ranco temp controllers which I set at 2 degree set point and that eliminates the excessive cycling. FWIW I use Finnex heater in this matter and have for 3 years. One of them just went out this year.I think I may try the Eheim as I am a fan of their other products.