How Exactly Does Heaters Work?

[Durbkat]

You know how some heaters have a thermostat in it and when you set it to a temp and once it reaches the set temp it turns off? Well say if you have a 50 watt heater in a 1g and you set the temp to 78F would it just heat it up to that temp or would it make the tank hotter than that?

 

[Squid]

Should just heat up to that temp.. although i understand that the thermostats on some heaters are a little inaccurate..

Squid

 

[Durbkat]

Cool thanks.

 

[naefearjustbeer]

If your heater is to high a wattge for a small tank the temperature will vary too much and the temperature will overshoot.

 

[IovaykInD]

That is why if you use a heater that is rated for a larger tank, you could cook your fish. But if it's too low for the tank, it'll make your fish die from coldness..

 

[naefearjustbeer]

What happens ideally is that the thermostat will be set to 78 and you tank should control around about 76-82. If your heater is too small It will take absoluteley ages for it to get up to temperature as the heater does not have enough wattage to heat the volume of water your temperature will cycle very slowly between the upper and lower limits. In the worst case scenario the cooling effect of the ambient temperature where you keep you tank could mean that your heater is on all the time and it will never reach your desired temp.
The other way with too big a heater is that your water will heat up really quicky and you could end up with the temperature of the water overshooting and your tank may go up to 90 and back down to 76 several times a day. there is also the risk of your tank having spots of hot and cold water.

 

[Durbkat]

So should I unplug the heater tonight so tommorow I can watch what happens with the temp during the day?

 

[IovaykInD]

If you have a one gallon tank..you should not use the 50w heater. Just get one of those heater pads that go under the tank, you really don't want to fry your betta.

 

[_cRaCkEr_]

Get a separate thermometer so u can measure it accurately. Don't forget you need to have some water disiturbance so it can circulate

 

[Ami]

You could have a heater without a thermostat though and those are the ones to look out for as they can cause problems in a small tank.

I have a 3g (might be 2.5g, can't remember at mo) with a 50w heater in it, it's set at 26c, but heats to 28c. There is circulation and I keep an eye on it, so it's okay at the mo.

However, the one I had before didn't have a thermostat either and I stupidly didn't turn it off when doing a water change. It got exposed to the air, immediately over heated, and melted the plastic casing right into my poor bettas tank.

Not a good thing to do.
)

 

[Durbkat]

Well I unplugged the heater last night but noticed that the water was cloudy this morning and still is now. What does that mean?