heaters with mantis

[cjm033]

im getn ready to go buy some of the stuff for my mantis tank ive decided to hold on a small reef and im gonna do a 5 gal eclipse knock off called a regant galaxy 5 i plan on about 4-5 lbs of lr and a 1-2 inch sand bed but the heater comes up im most likely gonna get a "smasher" what kinda heater do yall have i was probly gonna use a 50 watt glass heater but how will i keep it with it not getting smashed? where should i place the heater and what is the best type of heater to get for a mantis tank? thanks for your help,Chris

 

[ADHybrid]

Ehh, I really dont worry about the heater that much. If you want to be safe my friend would recomend a Titanium heater. Sorry, dont know a brand or where to find that. I may get a titanium heater in the future but I gotta worry about my larger reef tank for now.

 

[cjm033]

hmmm ill look for the titanium heater. do you think it would work if i got 2 pieces of acrylic and glued em together qwith silicone and then glued them into the corner and drilled holes in it that it woul dwork to protect the heater? so its sorta boxed in the corner but has holes so the water can pass through? any hits will help thanks,Chris

 

[RyanN]

Chris,

Won Brothers (Won Pro) makes a 50w titanium heater that sells for about $25 online. I purchased mine from Marine Depot .

HTH,

Ryan

 

[RogueCorps]

Hey Chris,

A won pro titanium would be a great heater for a mantis tank and shielding it is also a good idea so that the hot surface doesn't provoke the mantis.

I've got an Ebo Jager in with my O. Scyllarus. It sounded like an appropriate heater with a very thick heavy tube. Per Dr. Roy's suggestion I covered the indicator light, and made a shield out of 1 1/4 inch rigid tubing perforated with holes. I heated the bottom of the tube and pressed it into a rounded shot-glass to close the end. I heated the top end from the inside which softens it just right so that you can press the tube up and over the head of the heater for a snap fit.

hth!

-Rogue

 

[cjm033]

i think im gonna do my little diy job or the titanium heater its a throw up between the 2 still depending on my money thanks for the help,Chris

 

[mojodeli]

I use a bit of pvc with holes drilled in it for water flow. Works like a charm.

 

[kennerd]

I have the same 5 gal setup for my small green smasher. Take a look @ my home page. I have a small visi-therm I think (it's the short, stubby, fat 50w, rather than a longer skinny one like the ebo's), and never had a problem. He's probably too small to really makeka difference and I keep the heater horizontally suctioned to the back wall about 2/3 of the way up from the bottom.

I think the main consideration is what type of mantis you want in such a small volume: be sure to keep a smaller variety anyway. A peacock will get a bit too large for such a tank.