Heaters recommendations

[Tangcollector]

So my luck with heaters is rarely good. I used to use cobalts and they failed a lot earlier than the price would suggest. I switched to others with decent success. I did try the new and approved cobalts with poor success. The new ones I have had good luck with is the Fluval T series. Indicator light is 360 degree visibility and it has a blue light on when not heating and a red when it is. I find them to be accurate to a degree. What is everybody else using and what do they not recommend?

 

[mtruong]

Right now we are using ehiem thermo controls and jagers in our fish room. They have been going well for us and they were not all that expensive. Got them from amazon and paid $16 - $25 each for 100w and 50w. They come with an adjustable temp dial and LED display red for heating and green for on/at temp.

 

[JLW]

Depending on the size of the tank, I strongly recommend investing in a redundant controller. InkBird is kind of the industry standard for low to mid range controllers. You set the heater to heat up to 75°, and then set the Inkbird to turn off at 80° -- if your heater gets stuck "on," the inkbird will kick in and turn it off. You can get Inkbirds for as little as $30-40, and some of them also have WiFi capability.

And if you're going with a really big tank, or lots of expensive fish, investing in something like an Apex (or even an Apex JR or EL) can be worthwhile, especially for other features in it. Some of the other competing controllers will be fine, too, but I'm less familiar with them. The Hydros gets good reviews, and has a lot of WiFi capability. The GHLs are awesome, but they're only slowly becoming available (and compatible) in the US. (Of course, all of these devices are little more than fancy on / off switches if you don't know how to use them or don't use them to their potential).

 

[Becca]

I tend to use 2 undersized heaters and an inkbird controller. I like Eheim Jager heaters. Cobalts are horrendous - overpriced and fail in some spectacularly awful ways.

 

[Frank Cowherd]

I recommend using two or three smaller wattage heaters instead of one large wattage heater. If one of the smaller ones fails on it can only heat the water up much slower than a much higher wattage one could. That gives me more time to notice the rise in temperature. I use mainly ebo-jager 50W that are pretty reliable and seem to usually fail by not heating when they get water inside of them.

 

[chriscoli]

I'll also add a fun layer of complexity. I use these sensors in anything that's important enough to remotely monitor. YoLink Water Temperature Sensor
I've got them on 2 tanks inside that I want to monitor, plus an outside tub so I know if they freeze. Alerts go to my phone and I can set high/low temperature alerts. The range on YoLink products is awesome, I've only found one place in my yard the hub can't reach so far.

Downside: It requires that you get one of the YoLink hubs
Upside: They have lots of other aquarium-relevant products. I also use their water leak sensors with IFTTT to call my phone if there's an issue. Plus I have a sensor to let me know when my RO reservoir is almost empty.

 

[Jim Anderson]

Greg, I use Eheim Jager heaters and InkBird monitors.

 

[Tangcollector]

Depending on the size of the tank, I strongly recommend investing in a redundant controller. InkBird is kind of the industry standard for low to mid range controllers. You set the heater to heat up to 75°, and then set the Inkbird to turn off at 80° -- if your heater gets stuck "on," the inkbird will kick in and turn it off. You can get Inkbirds for as little as $30-40, and some of them also have WiFi capability.

And if you're going with a really big tank, or lots of expensive fish, investing in something like an Apex (or even an Apex JR or EL) can be worthwhile, especially for other features in it. Some of the other competing controllers will be fine, too, but I'm less familiar with them. The Hydros gets good reviews, and has a lot of WiFi capability. The GHLs are awesome, but they're only slowly becoming available (and compatible) in the US. (Of course, all of these devices are little more than fancy on / off switches if you don't know how to use them or don't use them to their potential).

I agree with a second controller
Better safe than sorry

 

[TEAMRamey]

I’m using the Eheim Jager heaters with InkBird monitors.

 

[Leffler817]

I’ve had good luck with Fluval M series heaters and the Aqueon glass heaters. I don’t remember the proper name but I know they’re not the PRO line. Those are plastic trash.

 

[olsj]

I tend to use 2 undersized heaters and an inkbird controller. I like Eheim Jager apkedi heaters. Cobalts are horrendous - overpriced and fail in some spectacularly awful ways.

It is hard to find perfect heater.

 

[Acara19]

A little late, but aquatop and eheim jagers last pretty long for me.