Glass heaters, why?

[Foxfire]

I am honestly lost - why do people buy glass enclosed aquarium heaters? Metal offers all the same features but will never exploded nor ever shatter. Better still, since discus must have very large WC, you never need fear a hot heater cracking ... it makes zero sense to me to own a fragile glass enclosed piece of equipment that contains high voltage/current metal elements that can glow red hot and are keep underwater and could be easily exposed to air and then quickly again to water by a simple mistake. I don't get the advantages to glass units except being a little cheaper but for discus, considering the price of these fish, I don't see that as a good reason.

I'd be interested to learn some great advantages that I am overlooking to these units that can explod or shatter so easily.

[katurner35]

the only things I can think of are:If you are getting water in your heater you con see it with glass and glass does not conduct electricity.

[ericatdallas]

I buy them because I'm cheap... I've never had a problem with them and to me saving the $20-30 per heater is worth it to me. It's a risk and cost analysis scenario. I'm sure for the people with more tanks they're looking at a hefty savings. Besides, if the glass shatters, that's what GFCI and circuit breakers are for. You could also buy an aquarium grounding probe if you're really worried about the electricity.

If I weren't cheap or if I made more money I would probably buy titanium heaters.

It's like buying insurance. If you ever need it you're glad you have it.

[moon_knight1971]

+1 also, it's always good to have spare heaters just in case the one in the tank goes out and at their price point and effectiveness they make more sense to me

[rosyrobyn]

The glass heaters that I have (old ebo jagers) have never given me problems - and some of them are more than a couple of years old. The one titanium heater I had went on the fritz in less than a year. Personally, I'll be investing in a heater controller to help me sleep at night.

[Jhhnn]

I buy glass heaters because that's what Eheim Jager offers, and they're arguably the best on the market. The 2mm thick Schott-Duran borosilicate glass is actually pretty tough, provided you're not beating the heaters against sharp objects. Lab techs cook some really nasty stuff in it, for example.

And I haven't had any blow up, cook my fish, shock me, get recalled or otherwise malfunction in a dangerous fashion, which can't be said for some of the titanium heater experiences of others. (Cough) Marineland Stealth Pro... (Cough)

I always have spares, but haven't used any in the 2 years since I came back to fish keeping. Heaters are a poor place to try to save money, imho.

[Joander123]

I'm all about titanium now... yes more expensive.. but more powerful, and less breakable. I use 2x finnex 500watt titanium heaters on a separate controller.. i used to use eheim-jagar, and never had any issues with them (they were used on a controller too FWIW) but they couldn't heat the water any where near fast enough after a water change.. so i upgraded to titanium. Very happy so far.

[pekored]

Glass heaters:
- Glass does not conduct electricity. Very important
- Glass is very inert. Does not react with other materials in chemical reactions. Very many metals would react with the water or trace chemicals in the water. Trace amounts of the metal might migrate into the water ... not good. (Titanium, although expensive, has properties that excell compared to others. Gold is the most inert and resistant to corrosion, etc., but hey ... who needs their tank robbed of that $3000 gold heater)
- Glass can take fairly large temperature swings (Pyrex)

I'm done. :)

[strawberryblonde]

I use Jagers cuz they're fairly inexpensive and they've never given me any problems. Then again, I don't have a hugemongous tank or gigantic WR's that need to be heated quickly.

No danger of accidentally exposing it to air while it's still on during a WC, because I'm, ummmmm, OCD? I just unplug the suckers before I even start siphoning out the water. Only time they even see the light of day is when I do more than a 50% WC.

[ericatdallas]

Yeah, I have my heaters on a circuit breaker. I just flip the switch when I do WCs.

[Condor]

I have fried a titanium heater before, by exposing it to air during a wc... Won bros I think.

Adrian

[Foxfire]

Thanks - looks like cost is the main issue. I like the idea of a master breaker for all heaters - a master temp controller (I have one but still haven't installed it) is a good point for all types of heaters. I realize any heater (even Ti) will cook if left on and out of the water, but at least it will not shatter if you forget and add water back (guilty - age, the mind is the second thing to go ... .) Thanks again for the answers!

[Bud]

My 1.5 cents,Iv always wondered about the trace amounts of metal in tank,my glass heaters 3" off bottom,in between two sponge filters,below an ac 110 so plenty of circulating current.Its never expopsed to air(3" off bottom,with a 50%w/c daily)and changed water is aged and preheated so theres no chance of thermal shock.Oh ya what was the other thing.............$$$$$$$$.

[TURQ64]

If you believe the literature, the current Ebo's have an automatic shut-off for dry condition incidents..

[Jhhnn]

My Jagers are near horizontal below the water change mark- I'd do the same with titanium elements, if I had any.

Not that I recommend it, but there's this vid-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbDFbcd8kA0

[obsessed]

i am currently using 2 x 300W ViaAqua titaniums to heat 100 gallons to 85F in a stock tank (6 tanks at that). The tanks are uninsulated and covered with a plastic tarp, in a 65F room .... they are keeping up well, and we have had them at 90F.

i have had these off and on for a long time in my discus tanks also and like them, using 1 x 300W tp heat 110 gallons of aged water. i have had a few quit "prematurely tho, and other last for years... in all, the element failed it seems, if i am checking the electrical circuitry correctly.

[Foxfire]

My 1.5 cents,Iv always wondered about the trace amounts of metal in tank,my glass heaters 3" off bottom,in between two sponge filters,below an ac 110 so plenty of circulating current.Its never expopsed to air(3" off bottom,with a 50%w/c daily)and changed water is aged and preheated so theres no chance of thermal shock.Oh ya what was the other thing.............$$$$$$$$.

Need to clear up a point here - glass most certainly does 'etch' material into the water even releasing components including metals that form its matrix. While Ti can leach, Ti is nontoxic but that is not true of all glasses (of course, an aquarium mfg would use a safe glass but all bets are off on China produced heaters. Sorry for this statement but after the lead in children's toys, I'll never trust their products again - again, not fair since I never have tested their products but they live on cutting corners for Wal-Mart ... did it again, sorry.)

Any one who thinks glass is inert has not studied the science of glass.

[obsessed]

And as far as leaching, i "would" worry a lot more about the caulking than metal or glass. But I don't, even when i recaulk a tank, let dry well, fill er up with water for a few days, change it and go.
BUT... my girlfriend has this steel pot for making turkish coffee SW 18/8... same as all cookware.... but where was that really made. it could have radioactive cobalt in it for all i know...i blame it for my decling vitality... or maybe its just because i'm 55..

[Foxfire]

And as far as leaching, i "would" worry a lot more about the caulking than metal or glass. But I don't, even when i recaulk a tank, let dry well, fill er up with water for a few days, change it and go.
BUT... my girlfriend has this steel pot for making turkish coffee SW 18/8... same as all cookware.... but where was that really made. it could have radioactive cobalt in it for all i know...i blame it for my decling vitality... or maybe its just because i'm 55..

I vote for the 55 since I'll soon be the 54

[Darrell Ward]

Need to clear up a point here - glass most certainly does 'etch' material into the water even releasing components including metals that form its matrix. While Ti can leach, Ti is nontoxic but that is not true of all glasses (of course, an aquarium mfg would use a safe glass but all bets are off on China produced heaters. Sorry for this statement but after the lead in children's toys, I'll never trust their products again - again, not fair since I never have tested their products but they live on cutting corners for Wal-Mart ... did it again, sorry.)

Any one who thinks glass is inert has not studied the science of glass.

I agree. I made a similar post about the gamble of using aquarium products from China awhile back, and was basically laughed at, but safety standards, or lack of, are indeed different in different countries. Basically, glass is used in aquarium heaters because it conducts heat very well, and evenly. Titanium, and stainless steel also do a good job, but can sometimes have "hot spots" that overheat, and burn out the heater, often wrecking the controller in the process. Glass is still the cheapest option, making it the most popular.

[fishorama]

I vote for the 55 since I'll soon be the 54

Me too! very soon. I've had old jaegers, visitherms, stealths, plus a few others, no experience with titanium, none seemed really awful but eventually fail...I may try new jaegers +/or ETH in lines next. I'm not good at unplugging, I guess I missed OCD gene, lol

[Bud]

After all these posts I still went ahead and purchased a new jager to replace my recalled stealth.(Made in germany).3 year guarantee,good reputation,my breeder uses on ALL his tanks and loves them.Although the directions tell you to use the factory clip up towards the head of the unit cuz the "bottom gets hot", to me theres a chance of the fish smashing it into the glass(Im going to put my own clip on the bottom anyways).It also says to mount it vertically(and its getting mounted horizontly)and at a depth of no greater than .3 meters(mines only 2" above that maximum).Guess you cant have everything huh?

[Foxfire]

After all these posts I still went ahead and purchased a new jager to replace my recalled stealth.(Made in germany).3 year guarantee,good reputation,my breeder uses on ALL his tanks and loves them.Although the directions tell you to use the factory clip up towards the head of the unit cuz the "bottom gets hot", to me theres a chance of the fish smashing it into the glass(Im going to put my own clip on the bottom anyways).It also says to mount it vertically(and its getting mounted horizontly)and at a depth of no greater than .3 meters(mines only 2" above that maximum).Guess you cant have everything huh?

I wonder why the company says vertical? Is it because the temp sensor may not work correctly? I'd check on that because an issue like that can bite - companies often have good reasons to give specific requirements for their equipment. Only my two cents but companies do know their own and what does and does not work.

[Bud]

Ya I would lean towards that theory but I just seen like 30 (or more) breeder tanks with them just layin in there.Accually I was thinkin more like a 45* angle.Today Im home all day, so I can babysit now.Maybe Ill call breeder to double check.

[obsessed]

Vertical? i need to read instructions i guess... my stealths are just lying near horizontal too! but haven't any of those burn out, tho they haven't gotten a huge work out until lately

[Darrell Ward]

Mine are usually carefully placed with the suction cups until they crap out, then they just lie on the bottom with no noticeable effects either way. I've noticed in tanks with breeding pairs, if you don't lay the heater on the bottom, they will lay eggs on the heater, even if they have access to cones. Stupid fish!

[obsessed]

that s 1/2 the reason mine are on the bottom, and i can do a daily 95% water change if i want to without any unplugging

[moon_knight1971]

You would think that someone would invent weighted adapters for those that like to place the heaters horizontally on the bottom of the tank.

[Ryan]

I invested in two titanium heaters with external controllers a couple of years ago when people were praising them. I had them less than six months when I came home one day to find all my fish acting strange, and my temperature was down in the 60s! I don't know what failed, or why, but it wasn't worth the cost for me to try replacing the controllers and heaters with new ones. I got online and bought a ton of Stealths, and they've done their job for the past two years. A bunch of them started failing, but considering how cheap they were and how much longer they lasted compared to my titaniums, I think I got my money's worth.

Now with the Stealth recall I'm not sure what to do.

[Moon]

I still some of the old green Ebo Jager heaters. These are over 25 years old and still work fine.
That says something about glass heaters. I recently got 3 Finnex titanium heaters. One of the failed in less than 6 months.
Ryan, Stealth heaters are gauranteed for life. You can return your old heaters and have them replaced by new ones from Marineland.

[Ryan]

Ryan, Stealth heaters are gauranteed for life. You can return your old heaters and have them replaced by new ones from Marineland.

With the recall, I'm afraid to get new Stealths right now. :(

[ref0716]

I spoke with United Pet Group (Marineland's parent company) two days ago. They are sending me 15 of the "New and Improved" Visi-Therm glass heaters to replace my Stealths (now discontinued), my StealthPro units (red and green lights), and my leaky glass Visi-Therm units. They have a voluntary "stop sale" order on StealthPro models, so they offer the Visi-Therm as a replacement until they can figure out what's up with the StealthPro model. I was advised to quit using the StealthPro, as they have been known to break and blister from overheating.
Their heaters may have turned to junk for the past couple of years (and the future, too?), but their customer service can not be beat. Give them a call.
Richard