Thermometer questions?

[fsn77]

Personally, I don't like the glass thermometers as there's too many chances for them to break. I've had fish break them, broke them myself moving rocks around (in fw tanks), dropped a couple, etc. The ones with the paper card inside can also become inaccurate if bumped or shaken, as that card is typically not firmly attached to anything, at least not in the ones I've seen.

I hope your "mercury" thermometer is actually an alcohol thermometer (red fluid). The availability of mercury thermometers to the general public was reduced a couple of years ago, but even then I don't think I've ever seen an actual mercury thermometer designed for aquarium use.

I'm not a fan of the flat stick-on LCD thermometers.

I do like the digital display thermometers with the wired probe. They seem to work within the accuracy range they claim to have pretty well.

 

[snickle]

I use the digital ones on all my tanks. They are accurate within reason. One will report 78 the other will report 79.

Close enough

 

[5xevy]

I'm also one of the ones that lean toward the digitals. The glass ones can break. The stick-on ones you put on the tank...I don't know, I just have a hard time reading those.

I like the digitals because I find them pretty accurate. I have them on all of my fresh and saltwater tanks. You can put them in your sump too.

I prefer the hydrometer thermometer... the ones that float in your tank or sump and give readings for salinity and tempature... they are also nice for doing water changes.

Careful though they do break... like mine did today when i dropped it into the bath tub.

Guess its time to get a new one :huh:

Are you talking about the Red Sea ones? I had one of those and not only did I have a tough time reading the temp (again, could be me with that one), but I found the hydrometer very inaccurate after a short amount of use, which wasn't a risk I was willing to take. This includes when it was in the tank and for water changes. Then again, I'm not a fan of the plastic hydrometers in general...

 

[Germanman]

i use the pinpoint wireless thermometer one unit reads all my tanks and can be set to read different levels with extra probes...i love it and its very accurate.

 

[Dustin83]

Exactly what I have.

What about placement? I have mine directly above the sand bed in the main tank. It's the furthest point from where my return pump feeds water back in...

Yeah, I also have mine on the side of the tank towards the bottom right above the sand bed. I wanted to make sure it doesn't get in the way of viewing.

It seems like the digital ones are the popular choice here. I forgot to mention one thing which a lot of people have said here, that digital ones will give you a precise reading to 1/10 of degree. That's the disadvantage of having the black strip. Each slot is in increment of 2 degrees. So it's impossible to tell EXACTLY what the temperature is... But for me, as long as the reading is between 78 and 82, I'm happy, so it works for me.