Jehmco Titanium Heater w/Controller

[David Rose]

I thought I would switch over to a titanium heater with controller for my water storage barrel and decided to try one from Jehmco. I've always been pleased with all my purchases from Jehmco, but for this one item I can not recommend them based on my experience.

"Product # TSH-500 - $42
Titanium Submersible Htr. 500w - unbreakable titanium shroud 500 watts required controller"

'Product # WBPHC-D58 - $44.95
Pro-Heat Controller, D-58, 800 watt max"

I purchased the above in 10/2010 units and the heater failed within 30 days and I was told there was no manufacturer's guarantee for this unit and was informed of all the possible ways the unit could fail as a result of user error. I replaced it a second time and now this unit has failed as well within 8 months.

As for the controller is consistently reads 4 degrees higher than actual, which in all fairness I was warned about and given the setting range extends to 102, I was fine with taking the variance into consideration when checking temp for water changes.

Perhaps this is just my experience or has anyone else had a similar experience with this heater & controller?

[scottthomas]

Sorry to hear about your results with the heater and controller. I have a 1000 W Titaniam heater and a controller for my water storage tank. Over 1 year and so far no real problems. The controller reads only about 1 degree off and has functioned perfectly so far. I purchased a bulkhead fitting for the heater as recommended by John at Jehmco. He said it would add years of life to the heater because having the cord submerged would shorten the lifespan. However, I had to end up submerging the heater as the short end sticking out of the bulkhead became super hot, expanding the bulkhead and causing leaking. Even the power cord reached high temps that concerned me.

[Darrell Ward]

David,those titanium heaters are hit or miss on longevity. The controllers will last for many years if a bad heater doesn't fry them. For whatever reason, those titanium heaters don't seem to be as good as they use to be. In my case, I used the Ranco controllers that JEHMCO sells. I've had 2-500 watt heaters on the controller in my 240's sump for over 5 years, still good. I've had 3- 500 watt titanium heaters and a 1000 watt I had lying around burn out, with 2 controllers trashed on a 125 gal. in the last 2 1/2 years. I gave up, and have been using Jagers on all tanks except the 240 gal., total of 7 heaters, with no problems at all.

[alpine]

When the D58 controller came out I bought them for all my tanks with the WON Titanium heaters . Wanted the best quality and tech for my tanks . Went to Detroit for a dog show for three days and when I came back home I noticed my three females which I had ain a 75 tank by themselves very still , upright but very still , weel I touched the water and it felt extremely hot. It seems there were storms around my house and somehow the D58 got stuck on , it boiled my fish . I called the Won company and the lady in charge was extremely rude and totally disconsiderate , even when on to tell me that could never happen with their heater controllers. Now I use Stealth heaters , Marineland has the best customer service , I hear some people have had some problems with them but I am sticking with them .
From my experience = Saty Away from WON !

Roberto.

[alpine]

John at Jehmco sold me a comercial controller for my 125 tank for two heaters and it was Great !

Roberto.

[csarkar001]

quickly went through two titanium heaters and finally the third one has been working flawlessly for six months.

on a side note, i prefer the digital aquatics system controller instead of a dedicated temperature controller because just for a few dollars more, you get to control the lights, see the pH and so much more ...

http://www.digitalaquatics.com/

[David Rose]

Sorry to hear about your results with the heater and controller. I have a 1000 W Titaniam heater and a controller for my water storage tank. Over 1 year and so far no real problems. The controller reads only about 1 degree off and has functioned perfectly so far. I purchased a bulkhead fitting for the heater as recommended by John at Jehmco. He said it would add years of life to the heater because having the cord submerged would shorten the lifespan. However, I had to end up submerging the heater as the short end sticking out of the bulkhead became super hot, expanding the bulkhead and causing leaking. Even the power cord reached high temps that concerned me.

Thanks Scott...my model isn't listed on Jehmco's website, but I think the only difference mine has a 10' cord. I do drop my heater in the top main rather than through a bulkhead, but I wasn't aware that submerging the cord could pose problems. Which model do you have?



David,those titanium heaters are hit or miss on longevity. The controllers will last for many years if a bad heater doesn't fry them. For whatever reason, those titanium heaters don't seem to be as good as they use to be. In my case, I used the Ranco controllers that JEHMCO sells. I've had 2-500 watt heaters on the controller in my 240's sump for over 5 years, still good. I've had 3- 500 watt titanium heaters and a 1000 watt I had lying around burn out, with 2 controllers trashed on a 125 gal. in the last 2 1/2 years. I gave up, and have been using Jagers on all tanks except the 240 gal., total of 7 heaters, with no problems at all.

I use regular 250W Jagers on my main tank and they've held up great. I wish they had something more powerful for my 100G barrel. I've been trying the Finnex brand from Kensfish.com and so far they've held up well on the couple of tanks that I use them.



John at Jehmco sold me a comercial controller for my 125 tank for two heaters and it was Great !

Roberto.


quickly went through two titanium heaters and finally the third one has been working flawlessly for six months.

on a side note, i prefer the digital aquatics system controller instead of a dedicated temperature controller because just for a few dollars more, you get to control the lights, see the pH and so much more ...

http://www.digitalaquatics.com/

Thanks....they look great...very well may be my next purchase! :)

[Darrell Ward]

John at Jehmco sold me a comercial controller for my 125 tank for two heaters and it was Great !

Roberto.

Yeah, that's a Ranco, the same ones I have. Remove the JEHMCO sticker from the front, and you'll see the "Ranco" label.

[scottthomas]

What a coincidence! After just replying to this post about my titanium heater working fine for over one year, it stopped working sometime last night. Thats just weird:alien:. I am not sure who makes these heaters as there is no label on it that I can find. I am going to call Jehmco and ask today. However, like Darrell I have the Ranco controllers and they have also worked great so far. (Knock on Wood)

[David Rose]

What a coincidence! After just replying to this post about my titanium heater working fine for over one year, it stopped working sometime last night. Thats just weird:alien:. I am not sure who makes these heaters as there is no label on it that I can find. I am going to call Jehmco and ask today. However, like Darrell I have the Ranco controllers and they have also worked great so far. (Knock on Wood)


Sorry to have jinxed you :(

[David Rose]

Does anyone have a recommendation as to where to by good heating probes?

[Jhhnn]

I've had really good results plugging eheim jager heaters into finnex hc-0800 controllers from Kensfish. The sensor probes on the controllers have kinda short leads, limiting versatility, and the dial indication isn't particularly accurate, but my oldest has just been working, giving steady temps for nearly a year. I calibrate the jagers and set them to 88-90F, use the finnex to actually control the temp at a lower value. It's a safety against cooked fish...

[Willie]

...The sensor probes on the controllers have kinda short leads, limiting versatility, and the dial indication isn't particularly accurate, but my oldest has just been working, giving steady temps for nearly a year..

Satisfaction comes from lowering expectations! :rolleyes2:

Willie

[machine77]

I only use via aqua titanium heaters and never had a problem! I own 4 of them and never replaced or had a single problem.! Just my 2 cents.

Nolan

[subcooler]

John at Jehmco sold me a comercial controller for my 125 tank for two heaters and it was Great !

Roberto.


I have purchased a few titanium heaters from Jehmco over the years.

I had a problem once with one & contacted John @ Jehmco-He replaced the heater for me(although, I ordered additional stuff & he avoided shipping)!

Peace,
Rob

[David Rose]

John and Jehmco in general are excellent to deal with. I just think he got a lemon with this particular heater/manufacturer. :(

[nc0gnet0]

I have a titanium 500 watt finnex probe on order, I will let you know how it works.

[subcooler]

John and Jehmco in general are excellent to deal with. I just think he got a lemon with this particular heater/manufacturer. :(

I'll let you know after I call John today, as the replacement heater has failed now.Found tank temp sitting @ 80degrees over the weeekend.Fortunately, the tank was all adults & temp swing seems to have caused no problems!

I need to find another heater manufacturer that I can have faith in!

Peace,
Rob

[Jennie]

Hmmm very interesting david as that was the heater I was going to order.
As for the rest of replies it was my understanding that the glass heaters worked better???
So I purchased 2 250 watt jagers with a seperate controller at the advice of jehmco for the 125 gallon.
hope I don't have problems with these items.

[David Rose]

Hmmm very interesting david as that was the heater I was going to order.
As for the rest of replies it was my understanding that the glass heaters worked better???
So I purchased 2 250 watt jagers with a seperate controller at the advice of jehmco for the 125 gallon.
hope I don't have problems with these items.


Before I started IGO PRO, I purchased Eheim Jagers over a year ago. They are still in use and never a problem. I think Eheim heaters are the most reliable on the market for glass heaters. The only problem is if you need higher wattage such as 500-1000Ws. Then I've found the Finnex titanium heaters with controllers to be reliable, but I would highly recommend reading the details to be sure to get one with auto-shutoff should they over heat or be exposed to air, so you don't cook your fish. For digital models, also look for an auto temp reset feature, so you don't have to run around the house to reset your target temp and alarm settings. I'm notorious for forgetting to monitor my water level to make sure my heaters are still submerged during water changes...LOL I've lost more heating elements due to stupidity than reliability.

I use 250W Jagers in my house 140G and Finnex 500W in my four season room 125G tank. There are certain models of Finnex that do not have the auto-shutoff, so caution is needed depending on your application. For instance, I used a 500W and 800W titanium w/controller in my water storage barrel, but I haven't found a model at this high of watts that has auto-shutoff.

Kensfish has great prices on the Finnex, but you may have to call Ken's place to find the right model with auto-shutoff.

I've had several models and wattages of Finnex now. If you have questions about specific model numbers, PM me given I don't know the numbers off the top of my head. I do know the blue colored digital controller model - I don't like. If power goes off, it only resets to 80. There is a white dial a temp 500W controller model that has auto-shutoff that I do like It comes in lower Watts) and use and I also use the 800W with separate components so the heating element is replaceable. No auto-shutoff, but I deal with it for my water storage barrel.

Personally, I'm liking the dial a temp models better these days, because you don't have to worry about them resetting during power outages. As for resetting themselves and having auto-shutoff, some models do and some don't, AGAIN make sure you read the details and contact the seller when doubt.

(now I wish I sold Finnex....LOL)

[Jennie]

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