What Is The Best Brand of Heater?

[samcatj]

Has anyone ever used a Via Aqua Titanium Heater with an external thermostat? If so, can you share with me your thoughts about this brand?

What other brand of heater seems to be the most reliable?

Is the rule of 5 watts per gallon a good measure to use when setting up heaters in your aquarium?

Thanks in advance for all of the information.

Samcatj

[Willie]

I bought 10 Via Aqua titaniums three years ago. Eight are still working. Not a great percentage, but that seems par for the course for heaters. Nice thing about Via Aquas is that none have overheated on me. Discus can handle a dying heater, but not one stuck on. If you run large tanks, you need titanium heaters for their high heat output.

Willie

[diablocanine]

If you have a large tank, you can get a commercial rated temperature controller and 2 heaters for around $100 @
http://www.jehmco.com/PRODUCTS_/HARDWARE_/Temperature_Controller/temperature_controller.html

Talk to John, he will help you pick the right stuff and probably give you a deal. Good place to get sponge filters too.

[alpine]

From my experience ( less than a year ) Do Not Buy WON Titanium Heaters !!
Lost two out of four keeping discus since april this year.
Mine had LCD controlers.

roberto.

[dixiedog]

I use two 300W Visitherms in my 75 gallon. No complaints.

[Barb Newell]

I like Visitherms. When they fail, they seem to stick 'off' which is better than jamming 'on'. Also, they have a lifetime warranty. All you have to do is call the 1-800 number and a new one is at your door within 2 or 3 days, very few questions asked.

Barb

[White Worm]

Visitherm stealth by marineland. Fish cant break them. Black cover on the outside make them easy to conceal and dont send off any electrical current. Keep perfect temp.

[April]

the visitherms i had..break..to pieces..if the water level gets lower than them..they get very very hot. i broke all mine..ok..so im not very good at remembering to unplug..and i do 90 percent wcs..so..no good for me. of course im sure they are great for more responsible conscientious discus keepers. : ) they do heat very well though. no shortage of heat. thinner glass..so more heat thrown out. ive heard they use alot less power than the ebos also. from a discus store here. he said his electrical bill went way down..after he switched.
i like..the hydors. those seem to be excellent. no smashing..they shut off when the water goes missing..ive had no problem with mine.

[georgiadawgger]

Ebo-jager...or now the Eheim ebo-jager...Got 2 of em and they work flawlessly...set the temp on the dial and that's the temp you will get so long as its sized correctly for your tank. They are still fully submersible...in order for them to get their UL listing they HAD to put a water line and a warning on them...but still manufactured as they have been.

[cobaltblue]

Ill second the Ebos. I have two Ebos, and hydor and a rena cal and the ebos work the best, are the most accurate, and use a thicker glass than some. I like the ebos.;)

[Ryan]

Ebos used to be the favorite on the forums, but the quality in the last few years has really gone downhill. I have used the smaller wattage Ebos with some success, but the 200w that I am using are no good. I have two of them in a 55 gallon tank with their dials set to 88, and they barely keep the tank at 80 - 81. Out of the four that I bought, two just quit working. They stopped coming on one day. I'm just glad they didn't stick on and cook the fish.

I think this time around I'll try the Visitherms. Haven't used those yet, but people seem to be having an okay time with them.

Ryan

[raglanroad]

remember the 3 monkeys?
See no Ebo, Hear no Ebo, Speak no Ebo?

replaced my failed Ebos with Visitherm Stealth, but too early to say much except nice so far.

[Discusgeo2]

I too have quit buying the Won Titanium heaters and switched over to Jali Titanium. I have a few 300W ones. I added 1 to a 100 gal tank and it will brought the temp up to 95 degrees without any problems. I am also trying the new Ebo's 125 in a 29 gal tank and seem to be doing well but they are only a couple of months old. I get my Jali's at Custom Aquatic

[Greg Richardson]

Hi April. I do mostly 90% wc also. I lay mine flat on the bottom so I don't break them. I've had a few situations where placement of the cord didn't allow me to lay them all the way down on the bottom and yep broke a few myself.

[April]

i usually lay mine on the bottom..well the ebos..as their suctions dont work.
but..those things..if they were on the bottom with only a tiny bit of water..i think the fish could get a burn also if they rub against them with only a tiny bit of water. however..ive heard the stealths are good. i may try one with the guard on it.

[Ryan]

My complaint about all heaters is the length of the cord. I keep my Ebos near the bottom (or on the bottom, depending on how quickly the suction cups fail) and they have to plug into my surge protector strips which are located on the floor behind the stand. The cords don't reach if you have a tall stand sometimes. My 55 gallons are on the black iron stands and I have to put a box or something behind the stand for the power strips to sit on, otherwise the heaters can't be near the bottom. I wish they'd come out with longer cords for them (meanwhile, the Tetra air pumps I bought have a mile of power cord on them, and they sit on the floor about a foot away from the power strip... all that extra cord for nothing. They should clue heater manufacturers in).

Ryan

[Greg Richardson]

Ryan. Exactly. I'd gladly pay another buck or two for another 6 ft of cord.
To much cord I'd rather have.
You can always wrap it up and put a twist tie on it.

I run into many items not related to discus. Same situation.
Longer cord would help bigtime with the quality use of their product.

But nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

[Greg Richardson]

April. Interesting thought. Yep. So far maybe I'm just lucky.
Need to have luck in something lately! LOL!

Hopefully next summer be able to stop back again your way if our family vacation works out. Would love to see your fish again.
Maybe bring home a bit of Canada with me!

[troyclark]

Lets see,

I bought 6 Won Bros 350's and only one is still working. (less than a year) I also have three Won Bros 500's and none of them is currently working. All the controllers went out and I cut the cords off the 350's and put plug in ends on them and used a Jalli controller. Very steady now. I also use the Jalli controllers for the 500's and they work flawlessly. The controllers on the Wons are junk.

I then bought three visitherm stealth 300's and now only one works. I returned the other two and got the ViaAqua titaniums and they work great so far. I also have two of the ViaAqua stainless steel ones and they work great also.

All my older blue top Ebos are going out sporatically. They are between 1-3 years old. The newer ones are still working great.

To replace them I think I will be investing in more of the ViaQua's.

HTH

Troy