Heater

[Patrick@1]

Just put a heater in my new 125gal tank. The water temp was 73 after 4 hours it had risen to 76.5. On its way to that temp the heater did not stay on the whole time it cycled on and off. I went to bed last night got up this morning and the temp is still 76.5, and the heater "on" indication light is not on. Is this a bad heater or should I give it more time? The heater is the EHEIM Jager Aquarium Thermostat Heater 300w heater and is set to 82.

[Phillydubs]

Try to bump the temp to 86 and see where it goes. Sounds like the device to set the temp could be off as most are. I always play with mine until it is right on. Also what size heater and what is the temp in the room the tank is in. Your heater may be too small for the size of the tank and it's gonna fight to get to temp but never get there. It is also very normal for heaters to cycle on and off as they go.

[Patrick@1]

room temp is 75 and the heater is 300w

[Akili]

I suggest you use two 250 watt heaters placing them two feet from either side instead of one 300 watt. In my opinion 300 watt heater is not enough for a 125 gallon tank.

[farebox]

Get another EHEIM Jager 300w heater, place both on an temperature controller. Did that for my 125G tank before I built an sump.

[jim LI]

I use 2 - 300 watt in-line hydor heaters with a controller on my 72 gallon. i know that is over kill, but neither heater has to work hard.

[bluelagoon]

I have 2 Hydro 300 watt heaters on a 125 gal.six footer.Only one is set to come on and heat the tank and does a great job.The other is set to 80 degrees just for a back up,but never comes on.

[pitdogg2]

I suggest you use two 250 watt heaters placing them two feet from either side instead of one 300 watt. In my opinion 300 watt heater is not enough for a 125 gallon tank.

I agree with this^^^ I also know I have had 6 different newer Eheim Jager heaters where the light would be on but the element was not getting current. I have used them for years but have had a terrible time with this same problem. Eheim has a 3yr warranty and most all of mine were after that warranty by a few months. I contacted and have sent some back for them to "evaluate" they did send me a replacement but it was 100W when I sent them a 250W. I have given up on them as this is a reoccurring problem and I do not feel safe using them. I know ALL heaters can fail but honestly I had had it with these, if they just stopped working all together that would be different but they light up and make it appear as they are working. Keep a good accurate thermometer handy.

I still have an older Ebo-jager that you need to adjust with a coin or screwdriver it is going on 30yrs old and it still works perfectly.

[DJW]

Get another EHEIM Jager 300w heater, place both on an temperature controller. Did that for my 125G tank before I built an sump.

This is exactly how two of my tanks are heated, and it works perfectly. A couple of the Eheim heaters that I got last year came needing more calibration than they would adjust to, and I returned them. They have a red part that rotates so that they can be calibrated, but it won't go 6 degrees... it sounds like it is defective because the Eheims generally stay on until the temp setting is reached.

[Patrick@1]

Had another 300w of the same brand on order.( it was back ordered) I cancelled that and now have two aqua pro's on order.

[rickztahone]

2 controllers should preferably be hooked up to a controller. It is just plain easier to deal with.

[DISCUS STU]

Just put a heater in my new 125gal tank. The water temp was 73 after 4 hours it had risen to 76.5. On its way to that temp the heater did not stay on the whole time it cycled on and off. I went to bed last night got up this morning and the temp is still 76.5, and the heater "on" indication light is not on. Is this a bad heater or should I give it more time? The heater is the EHEIM Jager Aquarium Thermostat Heater 300w heater and is set to 82.

German precision aside (lol) the Eheim Jagers (formerly Ebo-Jager), which I use, need to be "noodled" to get them to the right temp. The desired temp. will usually not coincide to the actual dial setting. In other words, if you want 82 f. you usually have to set it at least a few degrees higher, maybe to 86 f. or so, and observe it to see if you need to further adjust it up or down.

While this is something of a PIA, once it's set it should be good for the duration. As these do not have a lifetime warranty you need to stay on top of their two year warranty, though I could be wrong as someone else posted they have a three year warranty. If the unit fails within the warranty period then Eheim has a bureau in Texas that needs to be contacted and they sent me a replacement unit without requiring me to send the old one back. I believe this was about a year ago. They only need verification of purchase. So it was relatively hassle free though this is the only one I've replaced from them.

I like these units even though they are very large when compared to some of the newer ones available.

If you really want absolute reliability then a separate temp. probe and a "Titanium" heater is probably best.

[Patrick@1]

STU I turned the heater up to 90 yesterday and 6 hours later the temp still had no budged above 76.5 and the heater light is cycling off and on like it was just trying to maintain the current temp.

[Akili]

2 controllers should preferably be hooked up to a controller. It is just plain easier to deal with.Rick you mean 2 heaters to one controller,2 controllers should preferably be hooked up to a controller don't make sense

[rickztahone]

Rick you mean 2 heaters to one controller,2 controllers should preferably be hooked up to a controller don't make sense

Haha, yeah, 2 heaters should be hooked up to 1 controller.thx for the clarification

[DISCUS STU]

STU I turned the heater up to 90 yesterday and 6 hours later the temp still had no budged above 76.5 and the heater light is cycling off and on like it was just trying to maintain the current temp.

In that case I would contact either the seller (maybe the easiest route) or Eheim directly. Here's the contact info. from when I did this myself, EHEIM Technical Support Department, EHEIM North America, P 514-624-2229 ext 1, F 514-624-2227, email: support@heimna.com