Tank temp 102 :(

[MARINECRITTERS]

I guess i would feel a little better if it ended up being the heater... just seems like a coincidence that it malfunctioned the same time i decided to do a lights out, its possible i may have bumped it or something when i was putting the blankets over the tank.... i had to move the wire bundle to get the blanket under it... so i know i def moved it a little....

Thank you for the suggestion of getting two half powered heaters.... I will def do that. Does anyone have thoughts on this brand? (ViaAqua)

http://www.amazon.com/ViaAqua-200-W...e=UTF8&qid=1381187052&sr=1-4&keywords=viaaqua

also do any of you know if there is any hope for any of my corals? zoas, palys, toadstools, lots of mushys, gorgonian, star polyps?

I would not buy the via aqua, others ( including me ), have experienced this heater failing, either reading improper temperatures, or just completely turning off.
I recommend eheim jager for heaters.
It would be smart investing in a tank controller to prevent this from happening again.

 

[cloak]

Isn't a "controller"like being at home all the time? I'm not sure if all these broken heaters were twisted when you were asleep, on vacation, or just not paying attention... I'll play those odds...

FWIW, my tank varies between 76-85 throughout the year.

One side of the spectrum on the hottest day in summer, the coldest in winter... Good stuff...

 

[EllieSuz]

There has never been a better time to invest in a controller. I keep two heaters, controlled by a Digital Aquatics ReefKeeper Lite. If a heater should get overheated like yours did, or just stuck in the "on" position, the controller will read the rising temperature and turn off the electricity to the heater. If one heater just quits working, the other one will keep a safe temperature. There are a lot of similar threads to yours. This is not an unusual situation, but it's fixable.

 

[KeepNitReel]

Get a Reef Angel plus controller for $269, comes with two float valves for ATO, Ph probe & temp probe.

 

[Bowels]

hmm lol interesting... wish i had known about this sooner lol i have a hydor wavemaker and a ato, a digital aquatics reefkeeper lite would have actually saved me money and prob do a better job. Il def get one

 

[SUMIXAM]

well maximus im not sure what a controller even does.... lol but it sounds like it would have helped this issue.

Think of it as a smart power cord, you plug your equipment into it and then program it to do certain things on its own. For example let's say the temperature rises over 82 degrees you can have it shut off your heater and lights to help bring the temp back down. You can spend around $200 for the smaller controllers or around $500 for an upgraded version. The common ones are Digital Aquatics ReefKeeper and Neptune Apex controllers. You should at least read up/watch some videos on them see if they pique your interest.

 

[cloak]

If your tank is all mucked up with TAP, well that's understandable. If your tank is all mucked up with RO/DI, Whoa!!! Something is wrong... A heater is no problem IME/IMO. (play those odds)

 

[EllieSuz]

I think the RK Lite is $130 with a temperature probe, and one four outlet strip. I also use the controller to turn fans on and off in the summer and my tank doesn't fluctuate more than a degree or two all summer. My lights are regulated by the controller too. I'm not trying to sell you on a particular brand or price point, but hope you'll research them and consider the possibility.

 

[Bowels]

Hey cloak, my tank wasnt ALL mucked up, the reason i did the three day lights out was i had a lot of cayno... had my water professionally tested because I was testing it and all my levels were fine... pros said they were top notch as well... cayno was from bad lighting, hasnt replaced my mh bulb in 2 years, and my t5s needed replacing a year ago... plus the tank does get a tad bit of light in the deep summer and deep winter from the windo but i use blinds to block it out... its never direct. I use RODI and have it tested regularily, its a/ok.

 

[Bowels]

So I hadn't noticed because we use batteries on all of our clocks but the coffee machine clock was reset, and we had a bunch of thunder storms this morning, I bet I got a power spike or something that took the heater out. Nothing else is affected, I have everything in the house on good surge strips including the heater. Also id like to report my turbo snail it's alive and sucking the glass again. I'm going tu give the limpits and star fish until morning to revive or I'm scooping them out

 

[Bugcrusher]

Build yourself an LED fixture, lots cheapeer than buying one and you get to pick good LEDs for it. Several build blogs on the forums. I have built 2 of them and they work just fine. Also have a RK Lite controller to control a heater, just set your temp on the module and no worries it will maintain it because the controllers controls the power to the heater. $119.95 online!

 

[Cymonous]

Let's bring back old threads....