1 Or 2 Heaters For 55g Tank

[HasGills]

Hi,

This is my first venture into the aquarium world, so be gentle.

Last weekend I purchased a 55G (48x18x14) tank along with 1 x Jager Eheim 300w heater and 2215 Eheim Classic filter.

These items where recommended by my LFS but im concerned about the heater after reading some articles.
The heater states it will heat upto 1000L tank but how effective will it be? Am I better off with 2 less powerfull heaters?

Also, is the 2215 Filter a good option?


Finally, should I also invest is a quarantine tank for introducing new fish into the tank?

Cheers
HasGills

 

[Miss Wiggle]

a 300w heater should be more than ample for your tank

the eheim's are also very good filters, i'm not familiar enough with the model to say if that's good enough but as far as the brand goes your probably doing fine!!

having a spare tank to use as quarantine/hospital is always a good idea IMO, there's a pinned topic about it in the emergencies section (i think) if you want some further reading on the subject. Just make sure the tank is big enough to hold the biggest fish you have/plan on getting for a few weeks without stressing it out.

 

[skiltrip]

people seem to recommend to lower wattage heaters over one higher wattage heater as a safety measure.

*if one dies, and shuts off, there is still one running, keeping water warm.
*if one dies, and stays locked ON, it's a lower wattage and won't heat your water up as brutally. the second heater, if functionally properly won't come on at all if the other is stuck on.

300watts is a LOT for that 55 i think. I have a 150watt in my 37g, used 125watts for a long time in that tank.

you'll be fine as long as it's working properly, but if it does malfuntion, it's gonna heat that water up pretty harshly.

personally, i'd back down on the wattage, or get two lower wattage heaters.

 

[raptorrex]

people seem to recommend to lower wattage heaters over one higher wattage heater as a safety measure.

*if one dies, and shuts off, there is still one running, keeping water warm.
*if one dies, and stays locked ON, it's a lower wattage and won't heat your water up as brutally. the second heater, if functionally properly won't come on at all if the other is stuck on.

300watts is a LOT for that 55 i think. I have a 150watt in my 37g, used 125watts for a long time in that tank.

you'll be fine as long as it's working properly, but if it does malfuntion, it's gonna heat that water up pretty harshly.

personally, i'd back down on the wattage, or get two lower wattage heaters.

yup two 125's will do the job nicely!! or two 150's may be better!

 

[HasGills]

Thanks for the tips/advice everyone..

Ill have a talk to my LFS and see if they will change the Jager 300W for 2 smaller ones.. The 300w came with the tank so I might have to pay a small changeover fee but it seems the sensible option..

Ill do a bit more reading on the spare/quarantine tank before going any further..

Cheers
HasGills