Large Tank Heaters! Tube or Inline

[ostrow]

Interesting. I used Ranco for 5 yrs or so before I got my Apex. I had no issues with it. But I have now run an Apex for 5+ years. Temp probe has had zero issues, ever. Calibrated once and it is still perfect, verified by two different floating thermometers. If there were problems it was long ago.

 

[slief]

Interesting. I used Ranco for 5 yrs or so before I got my Apex. I had no issues with it. But I have now run an Apex for 5+ years. Temp probe has had zero issues, ever. Calibrated once and it is still perfect, verified by two different floating thermometers. If there were problems it was long ago.

Me too. Been using the same Apex since it was first released in 2009 and have never had an issue with the temp probe nor do I know anybody that has. In that time, I have had a couple of the standard Ranco controllers fail on chillers. Either way, I would not run a heater without controller redundancy. A single controller even if it were a Ranco would not leave me feeling comfortable. I always install heaters with a combination of aquarium controller and a heater controller so there is a fail safe.

 

[Mrs. Music]

What are your plans for pumps and lighting? You may not even need a heater. I have a 500 gallon display with 700 gallon overall volume and I don't need heaters. I run LED lighting and very efficient pumps to transfer virtually no heat. I do live in Southern California but my house is routinely 70° during the winter months & my tank never drops below 74 which is just fine for a reef tank.

I know temp consistency is more important that the perfect number. My tank temp does not really vary between night and day. But it has dropped to 76.8 degrees this winter. I forgot a heater went bad this summer, and I did not replace it. So you are saying this is fine?

 

[wishntoboutside]

Anything at 76 or below will impact coral growth.

 

[jda]

It is interesting how a different climate can make a huge difference. Even in the summer months here in Colorado, tank heating is BY FAR my biggest expense. The very low humidity and with temps getting into the 50s at night even on 100 degree days, the evaporation and cool nights just suck temp right out of a tank.

I run submersible Laguna/Askoll/Mag pumps not only because of reliability, but for the extra warmth. When the halides are on, they take over the heating and spare the heaters a bit, but at no extra cost.

You can cool a tank to almost any desired temp with just fans and evaporation with humidity in the teens during the day in most of the hot months.

Perhaps when talking about heating, location and climate should be the first question asked.

 

[tkeracer619]

In my old house my tank would swing from 77 to 83 every day. I'd argue that a perfectly stable temp isn't always the best but more in regards to when something goes wrong I think tanks that swing will handle a temp extreme better.

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