How to Decide What Heater You Need for your Reef Tank

[ReefStable]

Temperatures are starting to FALL so it's time to ask yourself, do you have the right heater for your reef?

Here is a reference to help you decide the best heater for your reef tank!

What Heater Do I Need for My Aquarium?

Picking an aquarium heater can be difficult. Trying to decide which type, how big, built in controllers, there's a lot. This guide should answer what heater do I need for my aquarium.

reefstable.com

 

[Reefer Matt]

Temperatures are starting to FALL so it's time to ask yourself, do you have the right heater for your reef?

Here is a reference to help you decide the best heater for your reef tank!

What Heater Do I Need for My Aquarium?

Picking an aquarium heater can be difficult. Trying to decide which type, how big, built in controllers, there's a lot. This guide should answer what heater do I need for my aquarium.

reefstable.com

Good tips! I just went back to the heaters I used to use (Aqueon Pro). I like heaters with a built in thermostat, and then back them up with a controller. I’m having problems with Eheim heaters staying on regardless of temp setting. But these things are constantly submerged in saltwater and cycle on and off multiple times. They should be considered consumable products and replaced regularly, imo.

 

[ReefStable]

Good tips! I just went back to the heaters I used to use (Aqueon Pro). I like heaters with a built in thermostat, and then back them up with a controller. I’m having problems with Eheim heaters staying on regardless of temp setting. But these things are constantly submerged in saltwater and cycle on and off multiple times. They should be considered consumable products and replaced regularly, imo.

Fully agreed that they should be considered consumable products and need replacing.

While I agree that there should be redundancy in thermostat control, I don't believe that the built in control is accurate enough to make it work. Which seems to be supported by your statement above. This is mostly because the heater has the thermometer built in. So when it gets hot, it causes a change in the thermometer, but that isn't going to match the water temperature.

So I tend not to use built in temperature controllers, and if I do, I set them to a higher limit. But I do use an inkbird controller, and back it up with a reef controller, such as the Apex or Hydros.