marc Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 I am going to purchase some new heaters for the fish room.My choices for the 65 ltr tanks are 100w and 150watt. Another quandry is also for the 6 ltr betta tanks a choice of 25and 50 watt here. long or short as well ..now all i know is that less watts mean less running expense. how do you guys determin your selection on watts and heaters?. Note the the prices are the same for all those heaters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berryfriendly Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 I remember reading something that said to calculate 1.5w per litre of water. So 50ltr x 1.5 = 75w heater. Hope this helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
namezmud Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 More watts means the heater can use more power which in turns produce more heat. In a given tank the lower watt heater will use the same amount of power (thus $$$) per day (more or less). All heaters cut in when they detect the temp drops below a threshold, the lower watt heater will use less power for a longer time to heat the water back up to the desired temperature but the power used in total will be more or less the same. What should determine the heater you choose is the amount of water to keep warm AND the maxmimum difference between the desired water temperature and the room temperature. ie it takes more power to keep water 10dg above room temperature than 3dg above room temp. If you live in a house where the central heating is on 24/7 you can get away with a much smaller heater. Putting too big a heater in a small tank is more likely to cause hot/cold spots in the tank or boil the fish quickly if something goes wrong. As a side note, don't trust the heat setting on cheap heaters. Use a thermometer to check the temp as cheapies can be out but 3 or 4 dgC or more. Finally, where possible get the shortest heater possible. It makes it less likely to stick out of the water esp. when changing water. if you live in a cool climate and the tank is in a poorly insulated room go for a bigger heater. Most heaters have a table of tank size and temp difference on the box to help you choose. I'll look up a chart when I get home. Gut feeling is either 100W or 150W would be fine. For the betta tank the 25W is plenty big enough. Dean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splendidbetta Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 Edit: I just repeated the third last sentence in Namezmud's post :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marc Posted February 27, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 thanks guys . It is a warm climate in Brisbane in summer and the fish room is well insulated and holds temp well. infact , I got away with no heaters in the past with the Vts . I,m installing heaters to even out the climate and weather variables and for peace of mind. All year Optimum "betta" conditions here we come . I will also be upgrading the fleuros in the lights soon as well, and put them on a timer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted August 26, 2006 Report Share Posted August 26, 2006 I've just upgraded to 3ft tank and just wondering whether i would be better off to have 1x 150watt heater or 50watt on the left, center and right (3 in total) or 2 x 75watt on each end?. I'm just worried that some of the spot are too warm and too cold if i put just 1 heater in the middle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckie Posted August 26, 2006 Report Share Posted August 26, 2006 depends on how much the water circulates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 depends on how much the water circulates. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I'm using a canister filter wiht 1000L/Hour. Does that help anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckie Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 well if it moves the water around, you are unlikely to get warm or cold spots. I have a 4' tank with 1 heater at one end and just an airstone, and the temp is the same at both ends. HTH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 That much filtration won't allow cold spots. I have the same set up also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erren Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 So 1x 150watt heater for 3ftx 1ftx 1ft should be fine then. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
najrick Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 I've always worked on the principle 1 watt per litre of water. In our 3 ft tanks we use 150W with no problems or cold/hot spots. Spawn tanks we use 50W up to 100W depending on the size tank when full. In the barracks we have a 300W. Whether you have cheap or expensive heaters though definately invest in thermometers to get true readings. Cheers, Pat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callatya Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 Erren, I'd go with 2 x 75 OR 1 x 75 and 1 x 50 (because 1' tall is somewhat smaller than a standard 3') Not so much for the reason you are worried about, but for the fact that heaers can malfuntion, and if one heater dies, the other should be able to hold it steady until you can replace it, and if one heater gets stuck 'on' (which isn't that uncommon) the other's thermostat should pick up the change and it will not add to the problem, giving you time to notice before you end up with fish soup. If you have a single heater and it fails either on or off, the change is much more dramatic than if you had something lesser fail. I think 3 is overkill for a 3'. I have a single 50w on a 3' just to take the chill off and it copes wonderfully, but it is set to the lowest possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckie Posted August 27, 2006 Report Share Posted August 27, 2006 good idea, Abbey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leema Posted September 19, 2006 Report Share Posted September 19, 2006 Okay, I thought I'd bump this thread up for my question. Hope that's okay. I want to set up 220L tubs outside for bristlenoses. Over winter, in my pond, the water sat at 8C pretty consistantly. I want to heat these tubs to 20C. What wattage would be best? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Posted September 20, 2006 Report Share Posted September 20, 2006 2x 300 watts per tub. You'll need flow in the pond to disperse heat. There is no way one alone will do that job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbies Betta Posted September 20, 2006 Report Share Posted September 20, 2006 yep, I'd agree with Jess for outside tanks tubs, I always leave at least an extra 50W so that I know the heaters won't constantly be on and heating the water Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leema Posted September 20, 2006 Report Share Posted September 20, 2006 2x 300 watts per tub. You'll need flow in the pond to disperse heat. That's what I thought! Thanks. I'm going to stick a powerhead in each tub for agitation and flow. Thanks. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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