Heater and how to set up.

[gregoryalln854]

I was looking to get a new heater or heaters for my Red Sea 350xl. I’ve read that you want to run 2 heaters on a temperature controller. I’ve read mixed reviews on glass vs titanium. I’m still unsure what ones to go with and I have a few questions on how to set it up.
1. If a heater has a dial on it and you set it up to a temp controller then do you set the heater temp on high and rely on the temp controller to turn it off?
2. if running 2 heaters do you put them in separate chambers?
3. what is a good temp controller? I have AI 26hd’s and Nero 5 wave maker that are programmed, is there a WiFi controller for a heater?
4. How many watts for my heater?
I was leaning towards the fennex but not sure where to buy these. Some come with controllers, some are just an element. Do I need a controller if it comes with one?

 

[JumboShrimp]

I just bought my first temperature controller package (600 W titanium heater, plus controller) from Bulk Reef Supply and I'm very happy with it. (I actually bought two sets, one for each 150 gallon tank.) The heaters themselves do not have temperature dials-- the controller does all the work. Best wishes!

 

[Reef.]

I was looking to get a new heater or heaters for my Red Sea 350xl. I’ve read that you want to run 2 heaters on a temperature controller. I’ve read mixed reviews on glass vs titanium. I’m still unsure what ones to go with and I have a few questions on how to set it up.
1. If a heater has a dial on it and you set it up to a temp controller then do you set the heater temp on high and rely on the temp controller to turn it off?
2. if running 2 heaters do you put them in separate chambers?
3. what is a good temp controller? I have AI 26hd’s and Nero 5 wave maker that are programmed, is there a WiFi controller for a heater?
4. How many watts for my heater?
I was leaning towards the fennex but not sure where to buy these. Some come with controllers, some are just an element. Do I need a controller if it comes with one?

depends on the controller you buy, some you can do it either way, some you have to use the controller and set the heater slightly higher, don’t set too high as if your controller fails, then the tank will heat to whatever you set your heaters at.

No need to separate them, probably best together, not touching.

depends on how much you want to spend, I have an inkbird and recommend them. It’s cheap and Wi-fi and Amazon Alex controllable.

wattage is based on tank size and room temp, if in a cooler part of the country you will likely need more wattage, also you need to decide if you want 2 heaters that will only be enough to heat the full tank together or both heaters to be able to heat your tank separately if one fails, if you live in a hot climate vs a colder one will have a bearing on this.

many titanium heater don’t come with a build in thermostat so if you go for one of these you need a controller, but miss out of the safety aspect as if the controller fails your heater becomes uncontrollable and will cook your tank.

Eheim heaters are good, glass is fine if you don’t do throwing them around and removing them from the tank whilst still switch on or having them in a place in the tank that will uncover them when doing water changes, some have safety measures to cut off if out of water too.

 

[NickC]

I have two ehiem jaegers plugged into a ranco. Heaters are set to 80f, ranco set to 78f.

If the ranco fails to turn off the heaters (unlikely), then the heaters should shut off on their own. This is the most reliable and safest way to run heaters that I have found over the years.