how big of a heater do i need?

[Isaac01]

hi reef central, im kinda new to the hobby and looking for some advise. i'm not sure if i need a 200w or 300w heater, i got a 75g tank with a 20g sump, but the sump only runs about 13g in it and the tank prob more like 65g im guessing because i put about 50pounds of dry pukani and about 10pounds of dry sand. so the 200w will cover 80g and 300w cover 100g, the price diffrence isnt much but i do have space limitations in my sump and dont wanna run 2 heaters, what do yall think? im going with a Finnex Hang-On Digital Controller Aquarium Heater, Titanium Tube

 

[Fishfreak_MA]

How cold does your house get? If you live in a warm climate then 200 is probably fine but you'd need to consider a chiller on hot days. If you live in a cold climate where you don't keep your house at 70 or better I'd go with the 300. For me I have a 300 in a 65 gallon with sump and also use the finnex digital controller for it. I've had no issues with it keeping the temp steady and o keep my house at around 67 degrees when we're gone and 60 when no one is there. To me I'd rather have a little extra power than not enough. Plus I figure if I ever loose power in winter and have to run the portable generator I'll likely need all the 300 w and then some as my house does not have heat without power.

 

[Isaac01]

I Live in northern california and i keep my temp in house mid 70's all year round

 

[Sandnukka15]

I would use a 300..... i use a 200 on my 65 with 20 gallon sump. I live in pa and house temp during winter is usually around 69 and water temp in the tank stays at 76.... hope this helps

 

[toothybugs]

I would opt for 2-3 instead of 1 if at all possible - I'll have to try and find you the article for this (or if someone beats me to it, awesome) but due to the control mechanism, when a heater fails (and it will) they tend to stick in the 'on' position at full power. A big heater will crank your tank up faster than a smaller one, so if a small one fails you have a better chance of catching it. My 40B system at home (soon to be 140!) is running 2x200W and will become 3x when I make my upgrade shortly.

At a minimum, get the best heaters you can afford - for my non-controlled tanks I like Eheim Jagers. But ideally run your heating through a proven control mechanism like a Ranco ETC 111000, especially if you are just running one.

 

[toothybugs]

Here we go!

http://www.beananimal.com/articles/aquarium-heaters-what-you-need-to-know!.aspx