natural gas heater

[Jenzifer]

Anyone ever see one for aquariums?

 

[James77]

Some have tied heir aquariums into nat gas water heaters. I imagine you could also run a separate zone off a boiler as well and use pex tubing to heat the water. I'd personally be hesitant to do it simply because of the heating power of the boiler if something went wrong. It would have to be a very large aquarium to warrant it IMO.

 

[moondoggy4]

How big is your system? You do not live in a cold area, why not use a regular heater with a controller.

 

[Jenzifer]

Total water volume is 160 gal...sump is in the garage...gets prttty cold at night...heater is constantly on...elec bill over 300, have it on a controller set for 78.

 

[James77]

Look into insulation for the sump and piping to and from the sump. You can cover the sump as well to hold heat in.

How many heaters and what wattages are they?

 

[Jenzifer]

Yeah, think that will be what I have to do...wrap sump in insulation and insulating the pipe that runs under my house for about 20 feet. Using two 400w heaters

 

[James77]

Yeah that can add up. You could also build the sump it's own room. If you are using an external pump you could do an internal so the heat is kep in the water. That 1" pink foam at the home improvement stores is good insulation. You could also consider drawing skimmer air from a warmer part of the house, like an attic if you have one?