Heater for 5.5 Aquarium Masters Recommendations

[Keeg]

Hello everybody,

In the upcoming months, I will be moving off to college with my 5.5 gallon tank. I do not know if the dorms have a stable temperature environment and I can say the ambient temperature will NOT be enough to keep it warm. In a perfect scenario, the heater would be fully submersible, small, and safe. Please let me know of any recommendations, I've tried the 5w and 25w heaters from aqueon= absolutely trash. I don't know if I should go out and purchase the 50w submersible (aqueon) due to the high wattage. A lot of the smaller heaters seem to have some consistent issues of under heating and over heating, that is why I have come to here 🙂

Thank you! 

[Isaac M]

Hello @Keeg, I personally do not use a heater in any of my aquariums as my house has a stable temperature environment. However, Aquarium Co-op sells a fluval heater on their website that is for 6 gallon aquariums and under. Given that Cory tests every product, I would trust that it will be safe and reliable. I will add a link to it below.

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/heater/products/fluval-nano-aquarium-heater-25watt

P.S. Good luck in college! 

[Streetwise]

@Keeg, for best advice, please clarify your aquarium inhabitants.

I only heat my Betta tank, and otherwise stick to cool-tolerant inhabitants.

[Keeg]

On 4/28/2021 at 8:58 PM, Streetwise said:

@Keeg, for best advice, please clarify your aquarium inhabitants.

I only heat my Betta tank, and otherwise stick to cool-tolerant inhabitants.

 I have a very very young female powder blue gourami going solo with tons of stem plants and caves made of wood. 🙂 

[xXInkedPhoenixX]

I'm with you @Keeg I have trust issues with heaters which is why I chose to go low tech- but a dorm environment can be a concern. Even if you have independent heating/cooling in rooms if you have a roommate there may be preferences that won't work for your tank. I agree with @Isaac M go with what Co-Op has, as Cory seems to be very diligent about testing products that he sells which is more than most can say about the retail world. Bring the heater with you- and you may or may not need it in the end. I see this particular Gourami has a tolerance per some sites from 72 to 82 that's a nice range, but we don't know if we can maintain that yet. 

My 2nd piece of advice is this:if you don't have one prepared already:MAKE A SMALL FISH FIRST AID KIT. Basic medications that will treat the majority of fish illnesses, maybe a breeder box in case Blue gets sick and you need her to float more at the top for comfort, other items that you can't get when it's 1 am on a Sunday morning. I see so many posts on this site with people who are desperate to help their sick fish and don't have meds on hand and worse some only have the option of ordering online. Before I got my fish I got great advice- have a kit. Buy the smallest quantities you can (API Super Ick for example comes in a small bottle), maybe a small bottle of Prime, I use Seachem Paraguard- or go with @Cory's medication trio! TRUST ME, doing this has been a literal life saver (fish) and stress reducer (me!). The heater will even be a great part of a first aid kit, like I said, I keep one around- you never know (actually I have 2)- I also have a battery powered air pump- it will keep both my sponge filters in my 20 gallon tanks going if the power goes out. BACK UP BACK UP BACK UP PLANS!

[Keeg]

On 4/29/2021 at 11:33 PM, xXInkedPhoenixX said:

I'm with you Keeg I have trust issues with heaters which is why I chose to go low tech- but a dorm environment can be a concern. Even if you have independent heating/cooling in rooms if you have a roommate there may be preferences that won't work for your tank. I agree with Isaac M go with what Co-Op has, as Cory seems to be very diligent about testing products that he sells which is more than most can say about the retail world. Bring the heater with you- and you may or may not need it in the end. I see this particular Gourami has a tolerance per some sites from 72 to 82 that's a nice range, but we don't know if we can maintain that yet. 

My 2nd piece of advice is this:if you don't have one prepared already:MAKE A SMALL FISH FIRST AID KIT. Basic medications that will treat the majority of fish illnesses, maybe a breeder box in case Blue gets sick and you need her to float more at the top for comfort, other items that you can't get when it's 1 am on a Sunday morning. I see so many posts on this site with people who are desperate to help their sick fish and don't have meds on hand and worse some only have the option of ordering online. Before I got my fish I got great advice- have a kit. Buy the smallest quantities you can (API Super Ick for example comes in a small bottle), maybe a small bottle of Prime, I use Seachem Paraguard- or go with cory's medication trio! TRUST ME, doing this has been a literal life saver (fish) and stress reducer (me!). The heater will even be a great part of a first aid kit, like I said, I keep one around- you never know (actually I have 2)- I also have a battery powered air pump- it will keep both my sponge filters in my 20 gallon tanks going if the power goes out. BACK UP BACK UP BACK UP PLANS!

Thank you so much for the advice, the funny thing is that I have a kit for my main tanks and never even thought about it for this one. I do the basic heater, api meds, filter, and air pump. I find it is wayyyy easier to prevent an illness than cure it, so the kit just sits there until a friend needs it lol. Thanks again, I will be ordering a month before I leave.