Dria Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 So I was watching Cory's livestream from last weekend and he talked for a while (unsurprisingly) about heaters. I had been planning on getting the ACO 100W for my tank upgrade later this year to a 29gallon, but since that won't be possible anymore I was doing some looking around at the various options. I've enjoyed my 50W and had no problem with it at all. One of the things he mentioned was about keeping the heater as small as possible for the size of the tank because less wattage means a lower failure rate no matter whose heater you're using. So, with that in mind, how small do we think I can go on a 29G? Most of the tables I've looked at say 100W for that size, but I think I probably don't need that much. I'm keeping my temp only about 5 degrees above my room temp which is pretty close so could I even get away with 50W? 75? Any anyone have heaters they particularly like that they want to recommend? Glass is an absolute no, I've had really bad experiences with them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Galabar Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I think a 50W would be fine. Consider a top for the tank, which will help with evaporation and insulation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dria Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 Oh yeah, I was planning on a glass top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepere Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I only have 50 watt heaters on my 29 gallon tanks.. I have them controlled by Inkbird controls programmed to turn on the heater when the tank drops to 74 degrees and turn them off when the tank hits 76. This works well with room temp as low as 66 degrees. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepere Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 On 2/2/2024 at 2:22 AM, Dria said: Glass is an absolute no, I've had really bad experiences with them. I am not sure, but it is entirely possible the co op heater has a glass tube inside the plastic housing… when I first bought heaters, I purchased Aqueon pro heaters as they marketed them as shatterproof since they dont have glass, but metal. Aluminum I believe, which that metal has a tendency to brittleness. True enough, but the metal does not mean the metal tube is free from catastrophic failure. I am not certain of the failure mechanism, but the have had incidences of the metal swelling at a point that results in a catastrophic failure of the metal tube splitting open. Cases where this killed all tank inhabitants… I removed all of the aqueon pro heaters… There are metal tube heaters constructed of Titanium as well. I don’t know if those are free from tube failure… without question the safest most reliable aquarium heater is one that is not in your tank, but rather heating your room the aquarium resides in. Unfortunately I prefer keeping my aquarium water about 3-4 degrees warmer than I like keeping the air temperature in the room my aquariums are kept in… 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefhugger Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I also use 50 watt heaters. One on a 29 gallon, and use 2 on my larger (50 & 70) gallon tanks. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt B Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 If I'm not mistaken, these are more or less the same as the Co-Op heaters. There is a 25 and 50 watt available. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMartins Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I’ve had good luck with the AQQA air pumps. Before ACO came out with theirs i bought an air pump and heater and they are still working after 2 years and both seem to be made well. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanked Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 I've been using a preset 50 watt Aqueon in the 29 for quite awhile. Room temperature is 60, the heater maintains 76 +- 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dria Posted February 2 Author Share Posted February 2 On 2/2/2024 at 1:53 AM, Pepere said: I only have 50 watt heaters on my 29 gallon tanks.. I have them controlled by Inkbird controls programmed to turn on the heater when the tank drops to 74 degrees and turn them off when the tank hits 76. This works well with room temp as low as 66 degrees. Inkbird is definitely one of my next purchases. Thank you for the tips! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quikv6 Posted February 2 Share Posted February 2 You should be okay with a 50w. I have one in a 20L and it can maintain 10-12 degrees above room temp rather easily. I also have 2-100W heaters in my 125, which does just fine as well. Being watt per gallon ratio is almost the same as yours would be with a 50W, you should be just fine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maximus Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 First question I ask myself is if I even need a heater. Setting aside whatever fish you may have or want, what does the tank sit at temp wise without a heater? Is it near the ground, and can you get it up higher to increase temp? Can you heat the room instead? As far as failure rates go, wattage has an impact but so does the frequency it turns on/off in order to maintain temp. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony s Posted February 3 Share Posted February 3 2 things when a heater looks exactly like something Cory discontinued, it’s probably from the same base manufacturer and has the same issues and yes you could heat your room/house to the recommended tank temperature. But could you be comfortable there Some people do that, primetime aquatics, but way too warm for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dria Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 Yeah, I know some people keep their house in the 70s just fine but my household isn't one. We sit around 67 generally and neither of us are comfortable much above 70. And while I think most of my tank inhabitants would be okay at 67, I doubt they would be particularly comfortable either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miranda Marie Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 Tagging onto this post to ask: Are there inkbirds that can control more than one aquarium or do you have to buy one for each tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dria Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 On 2/3/2024 at 8:20 PM, Miranda Marie said: Tagging onto this post to ask: Are there inkbirds that can control more than one aquarium or do you have to buy one for each tank? A really good question! I have seen one with two temp probes but I think that is more designed for redundancy than two tanks? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMartins Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 I would never have a heated aquarium without having an InkBird regulating the temp, even with the ACO heaters. It just adds a layer of “piece of mind” that can warn you of an issue before it’s too late!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Jank Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 On 2/4/2024 at 7:59 AM, TMartins said: I would never have a heated aquarium without having an InkBird regulating the temp, even with the ACO heaters. It just adds a layer of “piece of mind” that can warn you of an issue before it’s too late!!! I walked in my fish room last night after work and noticed my zebra pleco aquarium heater wasn’t showing the digital temperature readout and checked the plug…was plugged in. Unplugged and went to pull the heater out and the water was noticeably hot…got the heater out and the internals exploded. I put a spare new ACO heater in and it started climbing to 91 degrees…immediately started siphoning and filling with RODI room temperature water to get the temperature down to 82 where the heater was set but didn’t want to drop the temperature ten degrees that fast. Luckily my 13 adult breeder L046 were not harmed…they can withstand high 80 to 90 degrees but luckily I caught this in time!!!! II wanted to get temperature controllers but didn’t want to have to buy one for each tank that I use a heater in. I keep the room at 78 degrees but some of my fish like the water a little warmer. I wish there was a multi channel temperature controller! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepere Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 On 2/17/2024 at 11:14 AM, Mac Jank said: I wanted to get temperature controllers but didn’t want to have to buy one for each tank that I use a heater in. I keep the room at 78 degrees but some of my fish like the water a little warmer. I wish there was a multi channel temperature controller! Well, $25.00 for an inkbird controller. What is the value of the fish in your tank? 8 Green Neon Tetra at Aquahuna would tops off the cost of an Inkbird even before I pay the shipping for the fish. Most of my tanks have at least a hundred dollars of fish in them. I think it is pretty cheap insurance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mac Jank Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 On 2/17/2024 at 10:25 AM, Pepere said: Well, $25.00 for an inkbird controller. What is the value of the fish in your tank? 8 Green Neon Tetra at Aquahuna would tops off the cost of an Inkbird even before I pay the shipping for the fish. Most of my tanks have at least a hundred dollars of fish in them. I think it is pretty cheap insurance. Of course Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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