heaters with quality thermostat

B

badguitarist

New member
HI,
I am just curious if anyone has found a brand of heater with a quality thermostat in it? I have tried just about every brand and am not happy with any of them. Currently I have Ebo-jager, Visi-therm (these are not the stealth heaters that had so many problems, although I had some of them at one point), Gen-x and Hydor heaters, in every last brand some of the thermostats have quite working relatively quickly (under 2 years, most much quicker, some right out of the box.) I'm not saying every last heater doesn't work but if I buy half a dozen it seams over half of them will quite working within that 2 year time frame.

I do not understand this as I have a few Ebo-jager and via-aqua heaters that are 10+ years old and still work fine, I don't remember this being such a big problem years ago. In fact, Ebo-Jager used to be the standard top of the line heater. has any one else noticed in new heaters the thermostats just aren't as good?

A controller is not a good option as I have many systems (my own and ones I maintain) so that would be cost prohibitive.

My question is has anyone found a heater that has a thermostat that works consistently?

Thanks,
Kyle
 
A controller is not a good option as I have many systems (my own and ones I maintain) so that would be cost prohibitive.

$125 RKL Lite Controller is cheap insuranace for controlling heaters and lights from over heating a tank.
 
A controller is not a good option as I have many systems (my own and ones I maintain) so that would be cost prohibitive.

$125 RKL Lite Controller is cheap insuranace for controlling heaters and lights from over heating a tank
Click to expand...

+50

otherwise Ebo Jaeger for life w/o controller ..... but consider the cost of your livestock; then the $125 seems pretty reasonable
 
Let me rephrase the part about controllers, I am not willing to buy them, I would have to buy 8 just to start and more as I go, and just like heaters controllers will break.

back to my original question, has anyone found a heater that works consistently well. As stated above I do not trust Ebo anymore.
 
Ranco if you want to sleep well. Otherwise pick one and hope for the best. When heaters fail, it is almost always the control mechanism (ignoring those that explode).
 
seams like everything is turning into low quality but its just a heater. buy a new one. things break; thats expected with anything. ive been running my tanks with the simple aqueon heaters and they work just fine. will they break in a few years? yea sure its expected. im sure turning on and off all day 24/7 im sure thats some wear and tear that will shorten its life. now if its something very expensive i can see why you would be mad. but this is something so cheap. just go buy a new one and a back up.

ps: having a tank controller is a good investment. yes eventually it will break but so will everything else on your tank, car, house, TV,... the list goes on. at least a tank controller can tell you if your temperature drops so you can react before your corals do. good luck buddy but i really think your crying over spilled milk.
 
snorvich and hippiesmell, thanks for giving me good answers to my question.

snorvich I will definitely be looking into Ranco heaters

Scarface70706, The issue is that I buy over a dozen heaters a year, I have many many systems, some my own some others. If it were just one or two tanks you are right it would be a simple solution of replacing heaters or adding a computer. maybe I notice it more than others because I do have so many systems. As so far I do simply do what you have said and replace them when they break I am looking for a better solution; a quality product that will last

I guess people are kinda missing the point I have been doing this many years and it has only seemed to start being an issue in the last 2-3 years

Ps if you are going to add derogatory or negative feedback I would simply request that you not post, Thanks

"good luck buddy but i really think your crying over spilled milk."
 
hippiesmell,
I just looked up the finnex heaters that may be a good option I am assuming they are external thermostats that may be built sturdier, is that correct? I did have good luck with via-aqua titanium heaters with external thermostats at one point, in fact I still have a few of them.
Thanks,
Kyle
 
badguitarist said:
Snorvich,

http://www.pexsupply.com/Ranco-ETC-Controls-1614000?gclid=CKuFt9eGqawCFQJ8hwod6yJnBg

Is that what you are talking about? I really do like that Idea and its in a price range I can accept! I just briefly read about them (will read more on them when its not past my bedtime) but it sounds like they are an external temperature probe that you would plug your heaters into, Is that correct?

Thanks again for the good input
Kyle
Click to expand...

Yes, it is just an external controller that you plug your heater into. You would need one for each tank.

Look into the JBJ True Temp which is basically a heater and controller (with external probe) in one. The issue there is that there is no redundancy. The beauty of the Ranco, RKL, Apex, or whatever other controller you like is that there is redundancy.

I hate to say it based on your original post, but short of using a controller the Jager (now by Eheim) is the most reliable internally regulated heater out there.
 
Seem you have just having bad luck with heaters. My trusty 13 years old Jagger still going strong. It works hard in the winter months because im running a 200w on a 110 gallon tank. Lots of people will back me up on Jagger heaters as they till today one of the best money can buy.
 
Yea the ranco are looking pretty good, It looks like I can buy 5 of them for around 250 bucks, thats exactly what I'm looking for.

And Zaheda, I also have a couple Ebo-jager that are 10+ years old that still work great. from my experience it seems the new ones are not built to the same standard that the old ones were built to, I have talked to others who have been doing it for a long time that have said the same thing. probably has something to do with them being bought by eheim (weird as eheim is a quite reputable company)

Thanks,
Kyle
 
badguitarist said:
Snorvich,

http://www.pexsupply.com/Ranco-ETC-Controls-1614000?gclid=CKuFt9eGqawCFQJ8hwod6yJnBg

Is that what you are talking about? I really do like that Idea and its in a price range I can accept! I just briefly read about them (will read more on them when its not past my bedtime) but it sounds like they are an external temperature probe that you would plug your heaters into, Is that correct?

Thanks again for the good input
Kyle
Click to expand...

Yes. However, that may not be the best price around. I too have multiple tanks (plus I keep my water change water heated) and these have been bullet proof for me.
 
badguitarist said:
I also have a couple Ebo-jager that are 10+ years old that still work great. from my experience it seems the new ones are not built to the same standard that the old ones were built to, I have talked to others who have been doing it for a long time that have said the same thing. probably has something to do with them being bought by eheim (weird as eheim is a quite reputable company)

Thanks,
Kyle
Click to expand...

Yes, that too has been my experience. Although Eheim has been a good brand for me, the old Ebo-jager seem much better quality.
 
yea multiple tanks with a bunch of heaters going out would **** me off too. im sorry your having some trouble and i apologies if i sounded rude because that's not the case its hard to show emotions in text. anyways back on subject it does seam to be almost all products not just aquarium equipment but everything. my expensive coffee maker just went out a few days ago and for the longest time on my last laptop ive been having a lot of quality issues on high dollar stuff. i think its a way for companies to save money and use lower quality elements into making their stuff to maximize profit. like i hear all the time from my father "They just dont make things like they use to back in the day" idk so far ive had luck with my cheapo aqueon heater. im sure people stay away from them but i like mine a lot. very consistent temp and very user friendly. but i havent had it for awhile so i cant tell you how long its life span is.

ps: i read some where that you can get a tank controller and its for like big fish tank stores that controls multiple tanks off one controller. might want to look into it if you have a bunch of tanks good luck
 
snorvich,

I am in luck. I was talking to my dad tonight (he keeps tanks too) and was telling him about Ranco's and he piped up and said he has one that he bought for a project with his orchids that he never ended up using. I will be grabbing that next time I'm at their place. I will be able to test it for free before actually spending money. If all goes well I will be buying a bunch of them.
 
Snorvich,

I still have not picked that ranco controller from my dad but I still have a few questions:

Looking at them online how do you wire them up? it looks like you have to wire in your own power supply but then how do you hook them up to heaters? It also stated that the probe cannot be submerged in water. What is the solution to this?

Sorry for the questions, hope to hear from you soon,

Thanks,
Kyle
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

F
New Heater Help
Replies
8
Views
535
wvned
wvned
D
Filter and heater for 125G
Replies
4
Views
255
wvned
wvned
Itchy Trigger
Heaters for Sump and for Storage Tanks
Replies
2
Views
904
aquaman67
aquaman67
oceangopher
Tankpocalypse Now
Replies
2
Views
191
Reefing102
Reefing102
S
Novice Aquarist - Sump & Equipment Questions
Replies
9
Views
369
wvned
wvned
Back
Top