heater cables for substrate..thoughts?

NewObsession

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Aug 27, 2007
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Was just curious what everyone's opinion was on heater cables for substrate. When I first looked into planted tanks I was told by someone at a LFS when I inquired about a particular grass that it needed heated substrate. It occurred to me that scrolling through the post on here there are tons of discussions on CO2, lighting and frts, but I don't recall seeing anything about cables and was just wondering what you thoughts/experiences on them are and how much of an impact they may make.
 
sum it up its a waste....


FYI, you can build them as well, I spent 8$ for a 20 gal.
Do a DIY search on how to make.......

However, they do NOT boost or increase and amplify plant growth in any way.
So that is simply put, a myth.
It's never once been shown in any study.

If you are more curious, you can set up a very simple test using your tank as model.

Turn the cables off, let things settle in for several month.
Turn cables on.
Look at plants, tank etc.
Turn cables off after a few months.

In the summer, many folk's temps go up too high to use their cables at all.
Plant growth is no different.

One can only concluded that the effects pose no added significant, measurable differences w or w/o cables.

After seeing these patterns for several years and on multiple tanks, as well as looking into the fundamental basis and reasoning for cables to begin with, none of the logic makes any sense, nor do the results obtained from 7 samples measured over 7 years for all tanks, and 10 years for 2 of the tanks.

The best anyone ever argued for cables was George Booth about 8-10 years ago.

But even he admitted they where not significant and the patterns he saw, (we both used the top of the line Dupla cables, far better and more accurate in terms of temps than the cheap knock offs today) he cannot say where from the heating cables.

Adding further to this, Tropica did a study to see the flow rates of no heat vs heating cables and found optimal growth at no heat applications, this was measured as a function of redox values, the main driver in aquatic wetland soils.

Such broad and long term work on this topic is really crushing to the argument for their use.


Regards,
Tom Barr
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http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=143258
 
I am curious when folks will stop wondering if they work and stop buying them so the method can and should die the quiet death it long deserves:)

LFS's are about 25 years behind the times in most cases.

Regards,
Tom Barr
 
No one has ever stated they are bad really, but perhaps if you used soil etc in the start.

But they do not help either.

Regards,
Tom Barr
 
I am curious when folks will stop wondering if they work and stop buying them so the method can and should die the quiet death it long deserves:)

LFS's are about 25 years behind the times in most cases.

Regards,
Tom Barr

there is a sucker born ever minute. you dont think they make betta water for the heck of it..... lol
 
Hey betta water tastes great....Wait a minute do they mean Betta like the fish not like BETTER NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

yeah seriously, the whole sucker born a minute is the truth.
 
Well, much of the same methods for baloney they use in the diet pill business(Billions yearly), is used right here in this hobby.

They take a lot of it from the same page.

Check out Hydrilla pills sometime, they fused aquatic plants and hooky health pills:)

Here's a whole list of Aqua schister's:

http://www.chem1.com/CQ/

http://www.chem1.com/acad/sci/pseudosci.html

I tear one of these hucksters apart about once a year.
Recently in our own local aquarium society, some gal with a PhD from Berekely, (and of course she claimed and used the degree as support, not logic, not data, not results, not science, not once:) ), I do not mention my degrees. And she underestimated me:devil:

She claimed that she had a new type of Science to promote her research, it seems well known good journals had conspired against her. So not being able to pass the muster there, she had to come up with a whole new type of science, but of course claimed it was not mainstream, but also not Pseudoscience. hohoho........

Ionized water steer manure she was hocking to the club..........
She also claimed that this professor was out of touch and old, retired and not abreast with "new research", so discrediting the critics who use logic and science:)

It got better, but you get the idea.
I became interested in exposing such aqua schisters from being in this hobby and seeing it all the time and then becoming mad about it and decided to do something.

So I tear into them when they stick their long long necks out.
They deserve no less.

Give those links a read, they are quite helpful.

Regards,
Tom Barr
 
Steer manure as in a cow manure? That would probably be so high in phosporous you would have water growing in your algae tank.
 
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