Heater adjustment?

[xxnonamexx]

I bought a Eheim heater for my 120 gal. I set it to 73 and my tank temp is 75 and the heating unit is still on WTH. I moved the red ring first then found out you need to move the blue ring (lousy instructions) But now I moved the blue ring to 73 last night and today the tank is 75 WTH do I do to have it accurate. Thanks

 

[MatthewScars]

You 100% need a controller for this. $100 for a RKL will save your tank.

Set the controller to whatever you like, then the actual heater to 5 degrees warmer.

 

[xxnonamexx]

controller? Can you link me to one? Why do I need a controller I thought once temp is met this will shut off? Thanks

 

[MatthewScars]

controller? Can you link me to one? Why do I need a controller I thought once temp is met this will shut off? Thanks

http://www.digitalaquatics.com/saltwater/RKL

Ok, so say your heater breaks and cant tell the temp any more and just keeps it on for 24+ hours and your tank is now at 100 degrees and everything is dead.

Conversely what if it malfunctioned and didnt know the temp and just stayed off? Then your stuff would die.

You need to have two heaters on a controller for redundancy.

Do you trust ALL the money you put into your system and ALL the work you have done on a $30 heater?

 

[xxnonamexx]

When it was set up in my other house i never used a heater and it was fine. I think I will wait until I put the MAG 9 back in to generate heat and I might not need the heater at all. I have faith the heater will work. If it shuts off it will be great thats what they are supposed to do it is a brand new heater. I will write to the company. Why waste money on a controller when that is the job of the heater? I appreciate your help. Thanks

 

[MatthewScars]

When it was set up in my other house i never used a heater and it was fine. I think I will wait until I put the MAG 9 back in to generate heat and I might not need the heater at all. I have faith the heater will work. If it shuts off it will be great thats what they are supposed to do it is a brand new heater. I will write to the company. Why waste money on a controller when that is the job of the heater? I appreciate your help. Thanks

Wow, ok. Good luck, bro.

 

[KathyC]

http://www.digitalaquatics.com/saltwater/RKL

Ok, so say your heater breaks and cant tell the temp any more and just keeps it on for 24+ hours and your tank is now at 100 degrees and everything is dead.

Conversely what if it malfunctioned and didnt know the temp and just stayed off? Then your stuff would die.

You need to have two heaters on a controller for redundancy.

Do you trust ALL the money you put into your system and ALL the work you have done on a $30 heater?

The poster is correct..heaters are the most notorious item for killing entire tanks, and by far the weakest piece of ewuipment we own.

Most folks who require a 300W heater will have 2 - 150W heaters..in the event one fails, the other will maintain a temo that won't drop too low, and conversely if one 'sticks', you will have some time to notice the temp spike and hopefully save the tank before it gets cooked.

Most folks also do run their heaters (and chillers) off of a controller because that is the ONLY way you can be sure it won't harm you tank when it breaks (because at some point it WILL break).
The controller will tell it when to go on, and will automatically shut it off if the temp goes too high.

While heaters - as you can tell from the new one you are dealing with now - can maintain a temp in a certain range, they are not always perfect.

A controller is a great investment and you can often find used ones in our Marketplace for a lower cost.
They are great for controlling so many aspecs of your tank..including turning off the lights if the tank gets too warm during the summer becuase you can priogram the controller to say..'if tank temp reaches 80 degrees turn off the lights and the heater'.
So they are far more than an on/off switch