# Keeping large tanks heated?



## Subaru4wd (May 6, 2011)

I am planning every stage of setup for my new 88gal and the next step will be heating. I know how important it is to the fish to maintain a steady water temperature. 

Should I look for one heater large enough to handle the entire tank? or would it be better to have two to help disperse the heat across a larger area??

And what about heating the canister filter? The filter I will be using is a Eheim 2026 Pro2, or i might take my Rena XP2 off the 36gal if that proves to be better. I have seen some heaters for the Rena and was thinking of looking into that.

And kinda the same subject... but what about in the middle summer? What should I do to cool the tank? Obviously I will do my best not to keep the tank in direct sunlight, but in August temps often get above 100 here and I don't think it would take long for my tank to reach dangerous temps.

Thanks in advance


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## ReStart (Jan 3, 2011)

I only have one in each tank but if money were no object, I'd have two in each one. I have two Plenn Plaxx Cascade cannister filters on my bigger tanks but just use the tube heaters for simplicity.

I have central air conditioning and keep the house in the 70 - 75 range so that's no problem for me. I have declined opportunities to have colder water fish just because of the hassle of chilling water. Plus, I hear that you then may get condensate on the tank walls with dripping and all that mess. No thanks.

I have thought that if I lost power in the middle of summer, I might take my wc filler coil hose, drop some loops into the tank and run cold water through it, but that'd be pretty extreme.


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## NeonShark666 (Dec 13, 2010)

For large tanks it's best to have a heater at each end, this gives more even heating. The wattage for each heater you use should be half that recommended for your tank. If it is a very large tank, 100G plus, I would recommend a third heater with at least one being submerged. Another reason for having more than one heater is that they occasionaly get stuck and a smaller heater would not cause as much damage as a large one.


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Inline heaters are supposed to be awesome.Otherwise two,one at each end would be fine.


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## Subaru4wd (May 6, 2011)

Well I have gotten the tank pretty much setup and have started its cycle. I have no heater and no air pumps yet, but i do have substrate and some plants and will do a fishless cycle for a few weeks.

What I have noticed, now that its getting warmer out (california summers) my tank's water has been stable at 76 degree's. It hasn't been really hot out yet, highest so far was 94 the other day, next week its supposed to hit 100+ for a few days.

So now my new concern, isnt heating but cooling.


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

I have my air on,but in this house(two trailers attached,lol)Its not great cooling.I have a fan setup in the room the macs are in(who like water around 72-75)and that helps it stay down.The other tanks however,get to a nice balmy 86.Thats ok though,they are splendens and seem to love it.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

It has nothing to do with the temp outside....how cool or warm do you plan to keep the room it's in? Changing 50% water each week with cool water and keeping curtains/blinds closed in the room will help a lot. More water takes longer to change, so if you do big water changes regularly, that will keep the temp down enough. I've unplugged all of my heaters.


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## Subaru4wd (May 6, 2011)

jrman83 said:


> It has nothing to do with the temp outside....how cool or warm do you plan to keep the room it's in? Changing 50% water each week with cool water and keeping curtains/blinds closed in the room will help a lot. More water takes longer to change, so if you do big water changes regularly, that will keep the temp down enough. I've unplugged all of my heaters.


I try to keep the inside of my house under 80 degree's. I run the AC but have the thermostat set to 74, sometimes 76. Somedays when there is nobody home, I do not run any A/C and the inside of the home could reach 85+ easy.

50% water changes a week is out of the question. I am planning on 30% water changes every 3 weeks, but I am hoping with enough live plants I wont have to worry much about vacuuming.

However, I do have my canister filter sitting inside a bucket in my stand... incase it leaks it doesnt get all over the floor. I suppose I could fill that bucket with frozen ice packs or something


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## beaslbob (May 29, 2009)

IMHO aquariums in rooms air conditioned (and heated) at comfortable human levels do not need heaters. In fact the heaters themselves will kill more fish then if they had been left out.


my .02


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## BBradbury (Apr 22, 2011)

Hello Subaru...

An 88 G tank is a small monster. In my opinion, two 200 watt heaters placed at opposite ends of the tank and set for 76 degrees, should keep the tank temp fairly consistent.

Maintaining a consistent tank temp in the middle of the summer can be a challenge if you don't have AC, but you have such a large tank, all you'd need to do is open the windows early in the morning and then close everything up late morning. The insulation in your home should keep the tank temp within reason even during the summer months.

B


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## holly12 (Apr 21, 2011)

You'll know if one heater is enough, by placing the heater in one corner and a crystal thermometer in the total opposite corner and it reads the temp' you have the thermometer set at. (For instance, my 20g has the heater (100 Watt) in the back right corner and the thermometer is in the front left corner. I set the heater for 85 because it helps speed cycling a bit, and the thermometer has been at a steady 84-85 since set.)

I'm planning on doing the same with my 36g tank. (The heater it came with has a dial you turn but no numbers, so I'll have to keep an eye on the thermometer until I've got it at the right temp'. Basically turn it on, let it run for 24 hrs, check temp'. If it's not right, turn the dial a bit and re-check in 24 hrs. Once it's at the temp' I want and stays there for a few days, I know I've hit the right number, lol.) It's a 200 Watt so it should be ok for the 36g... came with the tank kit.... If it doesn't work, I've got a spare heater around here, good for a tank up to 45g that I can try.

However, I did read something that said you should have 3-5watts of heating per gallon.... so if you went with the max of 5W X 88g you end up with 440 watts. Divide that between 2 (because I don't think you're going to want a huge 450 watt heater), and you get 220 watts per heater. Then get two, 250 heaters (since there are no 220's, lol). I read somewhere else that two 300Watt heaters are needed for a 75g. So, if you get two 250's or two 300's I'd think you'll be safe.

I noticed you said you didn't have the heater in yet. If you do put it in now, it may help cycle the tank faster, (just going by the fishless cycling instructions posted in the forum by rtbob.)

As for cooling, the house air conditioning should be enough... if not, unplug the heater for a few hours at a time?


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Personally, I wouldn't want my temp to get above 85 in the Summer. If the house is not kept cool the temp can rise slowly. One of my tanks will hit 83 by the end of the week even keeping the house in 74-75, but it gets a small shot of direct sun on the very end for about a hour a day. My water change (50%) brings the temp back to 79F to start off the week.

Heater rule of thumb I think is 2-3 wpg and then make that a little higher based on how warm the room will be kept. I use 5-6wpg, but I keep my house at 63 in the Winter. I like the the two heater plan. I use one and a controller with my larger tanks. 800W heaters.


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

As its been mentioned, you really need to look at your in house temperatures. In my room without airconditioning, it can reach up to 83 degrees inside when it's 90 outside. The best thing to do is keep your windows and door closed in the day, and open at night. This keeps the hot air out during the day and cool air flowing in at night. 
Right now is the best chance to see what your tank temps will be without bothering your fish. so as it cycles, check the daily outdoor temp, room temp, and tank temp and record them to get an idea of what you'll experience down the road. 
For cooling, you could use a fan over the water. The evaporation will help cool your tank and give you a reason to add cool water back to it. 
Another thing would be to run your lights in the mornings or evenings to keep them from further heating your tank. 

For heating your tank, you could just get one large heater and install it next to a powerhead to move the heated water around the tank. I use this method and it works well enough for me. 
This is also something you need to look at for temperatures. As jrman mentioned, he needs a lot of heating due to the low temperature he keeps inside of his home during winter. If you keep your temperatures higher and more constantly higher, then you'll need less wattage to help keep your temperatures in the tank steady.


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## BBradbury (Apr 22, 2011)

jrman83 said:


> Personally, I wouldn't want my temp to get above 85 in the Summer. If the house is not kept cool the temp can rise slowly. One of my tanks will hit 83 by the end of the week even keeping the house in 74-75, but it gets a small shot of direct sun on the very end for about a hour a day. My water change (50%) brings the temp back to 79F to start off the week.
> 
> Heater rule of thumb I think is 2-3 wpg and then make that a little higher based on how warm the room will be kept. I use 5-6wpg, but I keep my house at 63 in the Winter. I like the the two heater plan. I use one and a controller with my larger tanks. 800W heaters.


Good morning jr...

Whoa. That's a pretty chilly winter temp. You'd have to wear a coat in the house. Not familiar with the winter temps in MD, but don't think I'd be comfortable in 63 degrees in my place here in Colorado. You must have have the tank heating down to a science. Afraid the heaters in my tanks would have to work overtime to keep the water temp at 76 degrees if I kept my place at 63. Not much of a utility bill though.

B


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## NeonShark666 (Dec 13, 2010)

It's best to heat a large tank with two or three heaters with at least one being submerged. This gives a more uniform heat and prevents cooking your fish if a heater gets stuck. If you have problems with high temperatues in the the summer you need to install and air conditioning or aquarium chiller in your fish room. Most aquarium fish are very stressed above 90 degrees and die above 95.


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## mk4gti (Jun 15, 2010)

In my 90 gallon i have one jager 300 or 350 watt heater placed horizontaly. I take my heaters out in the summer.


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## Subaru4wd (May 6, 2011)

63 degrees inside your house? You live in a meatlocker?? Sheesh! I like to keep the house close to 78 in the winter and close to 72 in the summer, but my house has a TON of windows (all that suck) and we have some pretty extreme summers. Its supposed to hit 101 next tuesday, that will be a good day to do some tests.


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Ouch 63 is brrrrrrrr,lol.It gets cold here in winter,but not too bad,and the summers are hot.I too have tons of sucky windows and a very large sliding glass door,which is not sealed well at all.Of course we just moved in three months ago,so things need work.Still 63.brrrrr,lol


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I don't like the heat that your typical house heaters put out. The air is very dry and dries my nose out to the point it burns. I prefer to wear sweatpants and sweatshirts and keep the house cooler. Accounted for better sleep at night also. I may have to bump it up a little next year. My 3-400W heaters that I had in my smaller tanks stayed on near continuous. My heater wasn't on all that much, but my power bill didn't show that.


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

Thats what I love about SC.Its humid,lol.When I lived in OK the heat was so dry I would have nosebleeds.

Still, I cant stand being cold,lol.I used to sleep with 9(yes,nine) blankets on my bed during the winter,because I cant get warm.


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## holly12 (Apr 21, 2011)

My parents in law keep the house at about 63 in the winter, (which here in Canada is 16 or 17 degrees Celsius) and yeah, even by Canadians it's considered too cold. Every one thinks they are nuts!! (What I don't get, is in the winter they keep the heat at 17 degrees, but in the summer they keep the air conditioning at 23-24 degrees.... shouldn't it be the other way around? lol.... weird...)

We live in their basement and we were so cold this past winter (cold air falls!!) we went out and got our own little space heater. We were soooo toasty!!! It was fantastic! We set it to 70 - 72 and enjoyed the winter that way! (Hey, when your cats are burrowing under heavy blankets because their fur coats aren't keeping them warm, you've gotta' do something! Lol!) I've got it on video - poor kitty!

Anyhoo, whatever works I guess. For jrman, I agree that the cooler temp helps with sleeping.... I just hope the constant running of the tank heaters doesn't cause them to get stuck or short out.


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