Best inexpensive heater/controller combo???

[dougers31]

Looking for a 50-75 watt heater for my 15gal frag tank build. Want something reliable without breaking the bank. Any thoughts on this heater? Has great reviews on Amazon but I'm only finding it available there and on ebay and I believe it's a fairly new item so that has me concerned a bit.

 

[lilpinto]

I used the Cobalt Aquatics Neo-Therm heater on my 25 gallon frag tank and very accurate. $38 on amazon

 

[ca1ore]

If you want inexpensive, then you are probably best advised to just use a credible heater with internal thermostat. After having all sorts of issues with the inkbird controller, I’d not trust anything cheap to run my tank. Ranco is a good choice, but it’s in the $75 range.

 

[dougers31]

If you want inexpensive, then you are probably best advised to just use a credible heater with internal thermostat. After having all sorts of issues with the inkbird controller, I’d not trust anything cheap to run my tank. Ranco is a good choice, but it’s in the $75 range.

Yeah I was toying with the idea of just running an eheim Jager heater... But was hoping to add a controller to that for redundancy. Willing to spend 70 or 80 bucks for a heater and or controller I could reasonably trust.

 

[mtraylor]

I like eheim heaters.

 

[Adamantium]

If you want inexpensive, then you are probably best advised to just use a credible heater with internal thermostat. After having all sorts of issues with the inkbird controller, I’d not trust anything cheap to run my tank. Ranco is a good choice, but it’s in the $75 range.

What kind of issues did you run into with InkBird? Mine seems to work well enough.

 

[ca1ore]

Had two, both drifted beyond the ability to compensate. Some say the probe needs to be isolated from salt water, so maybe that’s the problem. Either way, they were dirt cheap and I got what I paid for. I’d not trust them on a tank with valuable livestock.

 

[Jacked Reefer]

Cobalt neotherm is probably your best bet. Never heard of one failing

 

[jpas]

You should consider the cost of a heater failing.

The Ranco is a worthwhile investment

 

[dougers31]

You should consider the cost of a heater failing.

The Ranco is a worthwhile investment

Yeah I've been thinking about that of course... Still would like to find a reasonably priced heater controller combo though is there must be one out there... I thought I read somewhere that ranco's are down to about 50 bucks but maybe it was a different type of controller.

 

[jpas]

I did get a Ranco for $59 back in April.

 

[Flexin]

Cobalt neotherm is probably your best bet. Never heard of one failing

They do fail, just like anything else. Had one fail after 1.5 years. Fortunately I also had a temp range alarm running separately and notified me of the problem. So to the OP, either run two heaters with a second as a backup (which 15 gal may be too small) or in addition to a heater, have a temp alarm, or have a controller. But have some type of redundancy. My cobalt got stuck on and fortunately I was home to hear the alarm and take action. Running a backup heater will only help if the first does not turn on. Running a temp alarm will notify you of the problem, but you need to be there to take action. Depending on the controller, you can deal with on and/or off issues, but the more you spend in general, the better the options. You get what you pay for like most things, but even the cobalt heaters fail and tend to be more expensive. Also, don't buy a used heater so you have a warranty for replacement. Finally, consider how much your livestock/corals are worth to you, this normally justifies the cost for heating and redundancy. Hope this helps

 

[dougers31]

So I'm thinking of going with a bayite controller(with probe modification?) and an eheim jager heater... Still wondering if anyone has used the Hygger heater in the opening post. Would be cool if an electrical engineer or someone with some real expertise on how they work could do a review on them and some of the other controllers on the market. The way I look at it is my tank would probably maintain a temp of approx 70 degrees without a heater so my main concern would be overheating. If I set the heater at 79 and the controller at 76-77 I should be fine IMO. Still want to get the best bang for the buck though

 

[dougers31]

Sounds like the bayite controller temp probe isn't compatible with saltwater but I've seen where you can replace it with Crocsee NTC 10k 5 meters temp probe for about $8. Anybody done this and what were your results? Pic of controller and alternative temp probe below.... I've also heard of folks coating the probe in silicone.

 

[Saltyreef]

Ive been in the same boat as you for a few months after the immediate failure of two brand new 2nd generation via aqua titanium heaters with digital controllers.

They both do not turn on until the temp is well below the setpoint which causes the temps to drop to 73 and back to 78 within a few hours.

During my initial search for a digital controller i decided to go with these Hygger units as i feel i couldnt find a decent heater to run with a 3rd party controller. (Ive had the robust eheim jagger heater fail ON twice, once leaking voltage)

Due to this my current setup will currently be two 100w hygger titanium heaters with the controllers as redundency vs one larger heater and a failsafe device ive been reading up on which will turn off the heaters above 82 degrees thats called the smart temp security by auto aqua. ( very small unit)
This, to me, pending correct operation would be the most failsafe method possible.

Ill report back after a few weeks of use with these heaters. Just installed last night. Controller is acccurate to within 1 degree of tank. And the units are only off by .2 to .4 degrees compared to eachother. So far so good.

 

[Saltyreef]

Ok....reporting back with nearly 1 months use.
Heaters are extremely accurate and work amazing.
My tank hasnt dropped below 77 and never climbed past 78.5 with a 3rd external temp device.
It only started to drop once to 76 when i left the window open all night and ambient temp dropped to 55 degrees. But for 2x 100w heaters on an uncovered 40 breeder with 20 long sump, 22 degrees over ambient is pretty darn good.
These units, in just 1 months time have been better than any heater ive used in 10 years of reef keeping. My only gripe is the frosted costing over the numbers. I think its mainly to keep the bright lights from reflecting but maaaan is it hard to read.
Will report back with sustained use for 6 months or more if i remember. Price is hard to beat for a unit with a decent built in controller. I would rate these controllers better than the ink birds right off the bat due to being made especially for marine enviornment. More to come.

 

[Greybeard]

Like many, I watched the BRS video on using a Reefkeeper Lite as a heater controller. Add in using it as a light timer, and it makes pretty good sense from a financial point of view. So, I got one.

Fast forward.

Reefkeeper's are done for. I got used to having a controller, started to see what they could do for me, and bought an Apex.

Can't imagine running a reef tank today without a good controller.

Heater control is only one component of a fault tolerant aquarium setup. IMHO, a good controller is worth it's cost.

So... Apex EL would be my vote

 

[Saltyreef]

Like many, I watched the BRS video on using a Reefkeeper Lite as a heater controller. Add in using it as a light timer, and it makes pretty good sense from a financial point of view. So, I got one.

Fast forward.

Reefkeeper's are done for. I got used to having a controller, started to see what they could do for me, and bought an Apex.

Can't imagine running a reef tank today without a good controller.

Heater control is only one component of a fault tolerant aquarium setup. IMHO, a good controller is worth it's cost.

So... Apex EL would be my vote

I whole heartedly agree, but ive heard many horror stories in putting all eggs in one basket with an apex. A member of one of my local forums lost 40,000 in livestock after a 5 day vacation. He only had a 150gal but it was completely stocked with very very hard to find collectors pieces only found in the bay area. Some you cant even find anymore. Sad day on the forums
The heaters are the single most unreliable piece of equipment on any tank and i would not trust one single point of control for such a sensitive ecosystem. Im even weary of my two heaters on two seperate controllers lol. Makes me want another failsafe haha.
But i agree controllers are the way to go when u want to get serious.

 

[cyber_ecco]

What kind of issues did you run into with InkBird? Mine seems to work well enough.

Just FYI...Inkbird has a new version out with a aquarium sealed probe. So no more issues with the old style in saltwater. You can find it on Amazon. I cant say how good it is cause I haven't used it yet but they are shipping me one at the moment for testing. The older 308 model had problems with the probe in saltwater giving unreliable results. Hopefully this one is better. Its around $30 I think on Amazon.

 

[Adamantium]

Just FYI...Inkbird has a new version out with a aquarium sealed probe. So no more issues with the old style in saltwater. You can find it on Amazon. I cant say how good it is cause I haven't used it yet but they are shipping me one at the moment for testing. The older 308 model had problems with the probe in saltwater giving unreliable results. Hopefully this one is better. Its around $30 I think on Amazon.

Hmm, I have the C206, which came with a metal probe that seems to be holding up well after a few months. Good to know, though, thanks!