Heater cracked but still working

[Capt_Cully]

I started a nano and couldn't figure out why nothing was living in the tank. No cycle had occured, used cured rock and transferred water etc.

Anyway, I found that the heater's glass case was cracked but it still worked. Would this be releasing something into the water that would make life unsustainable? What's in those things?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

It could have releaed enough copper to be a problem.

 

[Capt_Cully]

Should I test? Or just do a sizeable waterchange? Is it doomed if there's copper in the water?

 

[rbursek]

I hope you replaced the heater.
Bob

 

[qfrisco]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11636544#post11636544 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rbursek
I hope you replaced the heater.
Bob

Yes, you should replace that heater right away. Other than potentially releasing unwanted stuff into the water, it's also an electrocution risk.

 

[moocow]

mmhmm x2 to all of that.
It could also potentially shut off breakers.
You should unplug and replace it ASAP!
what brand is it?
Some brands have lifetime unconditional warranties.

 

[Capt_Cully]

Oh, there's no question. I unplugged it and pitched it as soon as I noticed it. My question was, did the cracked tube hold anything besides electric charge that might enter the water.

I'm on my way to pick up a new one. I left the MH on overnight to keep temp reasonable. It held around 72deg.

Gonna do a waterchange today, and one tomorrow 5gal each. See what happens.

 

[WaterKeeper]

Listen to Randy. Electrical equipment usually has some copper involved. Even if the wiring is aluminum there are probably copper contacts in the circuits. With current moving through water in the cracked case, copper can easily leach from the heaters internal elements. A 100% water change may be enough to decrease it to non-toxic levels but, if the contamination is severe, it may mean replacing any rockwork and substrate.

 

[Capt_Cully]

there are 2 hermits that are alive and some zoanthids. I would think the inverts would be particularly sensitive to copper???? I'm not sure. So some stuff is still alive, despite the temp dip.

 

[Capt_Cully]

New heater's in place, we'll see what happens.

 

[syrinx]

I have never seen a broken heater cause a problem in a reef- other than temp. It is a very true thought that most electronics have copper involved- shows it pays to check things out even when they appear to be working correctly.

 

[Capt_Cully]

Just how does copper effect a tank. What does it kill???

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Enough copper will kill most inverts. To kill fish you'd need a really high level.

I have never seen a broken heater cause a problem in a reef- other than temp. .[/]

I have. Of course, I've probably heard of more chemically related tank disasters of various types than most anyone, as those cases often come to the chemistry forum seeking assistance. You'd be amazed at the wide variety of things that somehow get into peoples aquaria.

 

[Capt_Cully]

I aquired a test kit. Copper 0. New heater is in, inverts have picked up their activity. They were movin' a little slow when the temp was 70. I'll try some simple corals today, see if they fair better.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

What inverts are there now? Snails are a good indicator, in many cases.

A reading of 0 ppm copper on a test kit may not be adequate to know it is low enough to not kill inverts. A crude but also useful way is to run a polyfilter for a while and look for a blue color change. It also helps clean the water at the same time. Cuprisorb is another good choice.

 

[Capt_Cully]

3 hermits. I've got some zoanthids in there 3 of the 4 tiny colonies are opened up. I would think they'd be even more sensitive than the inverts????

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Those are all inverts. Corals are not apparently more sensitive than many snails, since snails are often the firs to go. I do not know the relative sensitive to zooanthids and hermit crabs, but it is a good sign anyway.

 

[drparker]

Over the years I've had enough glass heaters break that I only buy titanium now. They never caused a problem with the live stock just scared me.

 

[Capt_Cully]

True about the zoos being inverts (guess I kinda brain farted that one) i was kinda generalizing the sessile inverts vs the crawlly kind. I'm gonna add some different kinds of things today if I can get my hands on anything. Simple stuff like a kenya tree and I'll put some astreas in there.

I do have my large system up and running. If there was any untraceable Cu in the tank, would there be any danger of removing things from the Nano and placing it in my larger system?

I ask because if anything starts to look bad, I could easily rescue it and throw it in my other tank, so long as I would not be jeopardizing that tanks inhabitants.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

That sounds like a good plan. No, there is no significant concern about removing animals and them taking much copper with them.