aquarium co op heater question?

[Elyse]

Hey everyone,

I am about to set up my 125 gallon aquarium. So excited to set up my first larger tank and have been looking into heaters. I'm used to using the eheim heaters but feel like the accuracy for calibrating them is so annoying and never accurate. I was thinking of maybe trying the 100w aquarium co op heaters but I think I'd have to use a TON of those to heat an aquarium that size. Thoughts on buying a ton of aquarium co op heaters vs buying several 200w eheim heaters...

I always use glass lids, would like to heat the aquarium to around 78 degrees, I have lights and canister filters that create some heat but in the winter my house gets down to around 62 degrees...

[nabokovfan87]

On 9/29/2023 at 8:39 PM, Elyse said:

Thoughts on buying a ton of aquarium co op heaters vs buying several 200w eheim heaters

I have definitely had major issues with certain eheim designs.  So it really depends on which one you're looking at.  They do have 3-4 different ones.  I wouldn't use eheim unless you have it set up to a specific controller with a secondary temp probe in the tank. 

I would look into other options outside of just eheim if you're trying to find a good one.  Especially for a tank that size.

I use the Fluval E-Series and have been extremely happy with them!

[Elyse]

I tried those heaters, they died on me in less than 6 months…

[quikv6]

Hey Elyse,

I can speak to this one: I have a 125 with two (2) of the original Co-op 100w heaters. I have one set to 77, and one set to 76... both on one Inkbird.

The tank maintains 77.5 degrees without a hitch.  In fact,  the one set to 76 never turns on unless it's during a water change. I keep the room cold as well (about 65) because I have an axolotl tank in addition.  So a room temp of 62 should be manageable with the two 100W heaters.  

Now... for my personal "cons" on the co-op heaters, which may be good food for thought:

1) The blazing red temp display is distracting, and to me,  is a personal eyesore.  I use an Inkbird, so I really wish there was a way to turn the display off. 

2) The suction cups...welp... they could be better.  I have cleaned the glass; straightened the cord to avoid tension.... and for me,  they just don't work. 

3) I don't think this applies to the newer versions,  but one of my heaters flashes "EL" which means end-of-life. Ironically,  it's the one that never kicks on.  It's barely ever been on.  Not only is that a bit frustrating,  but the flashing is incredibly annoying. The day the flashing started,  my big Oscar moved the heater all the way across the tank.  (Suction cups definitely didn't work.) He had never done that before,  so I guess the flashing drove him mad too.

Anyways...food for thought. Good luck!

Edited October 1, 2023 by quikv6

[Matt B]

My aquarium co-op heater just started flashing El.    

I'm trying to come up with a way to block the digital display.  I think there was a discussion somewhere here that  addresses this subject.   Any suggestions?