What's with submursible heaters lately?

Taari

Taari

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Nov 4, 2010
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I just had 2 of my small heaters die on me in a row while trying to use them for my betta tank. They were old and had been used for several years, so maybe it was their time. I went to 4 different places looking for a new heater and was appalled at the prices and crappy selection. The only brands I could find were Aquaeon, Tetra, and Top Fin. What happened to Visi-therm? My Visi-therm stealth has been running in first my 45g, then my 20 long, and now my 40 for about 4-5 years without a single problem and after price matching it from Bigalsonline.com it was only about $17. The smallest wattage heater I saw at any of the 4 stores I went to was a 25 watt for $17. That was a Top Fin heater, meant for a 5 gallon aquarium, and yet the tube itself was about 10" long and almost 2" diameter at its widest point. That's as long, and fatter than my Visi-therm stealth, and about 175 watts less power.

The Aquaeon ones were no better, just as long or longer, only slightly thinner, and even more expensive. 50 watts for $32.99 (on sale for $22.69), a 100 watt for $36.99 (on sale for $24.89) and so on.

I'm just appalled at the prices, and that they think a 10"+ heater can fit in a tank smaller than 5.5 gallons.
 
From my experience, there is a sweet spot when it comes to pricing. I forget exactly where but if I remember correctly it was around the 40g mark. Everything below or above that mark is more expensive. Also seems dimensions get worse, relatively, above and below that mark.

And I agree that sometimes it seems like no one put any thought into the dimensions for the things.
Could be the recall on why you arn't seeing stealth heaters. Not sure if that has been sorted out yet.
 
Try Hydor. Italian Made, Super High Quality. Shatter Resistant Glass. Not the cheapest, but I use them in all my tanks.

Also, if you have a Stealth Heater. Google the recall on all of them. You might be able to get your money back on your old one. Before it explodes in your tank. My friend had one explode in his 29 gallon tank and broke the glass and everything.
 
Also, one more thing. Good heaters are UL listed. Make sure that the UL symbol is on the back. UL Heaters are more expensive because a heater made to UL standards is safer and more reliable. Some Home insurance policies even have exclusions if a non-UL product fails and causes major damage i.e. burns your house down. I don't know about you, but I will pay an extra $10 knowing that I did not buy the cheapest electrical device to place into water.
 
Wow, thanks for the heads up. I just called petsmart and the manager said I could bring it back, no reciept or anything and they would exchange it for another one. I'm going to try and run it over there tonight because it's making me nervous now >.<

Also I just checked the box of the Tetra heater I just got at walmart for $14.50 and it says it meets UL standards.
 
I've had luck with the AquaClear slim (~8") and Elite mini (~4) in all three of my small tanks. They were both under $15 if that means anything. The top adjustable part has to be above water, though. I have the Tetra submersible, but the temp is preset so I'm not a huge fan of it, but it otherwise does the job. It's fatter than the other two.
I like the Elite one the most.

I linked the two heaters to a site where shipping is always free, if you can't find them cheaper anywhere else (if you were interested in buying them, anyway).
 
Just got back from Petsmart with a $40 fluval 150 watt heater. It's shiny. I don't think I like the fact that you can't submerse it all the way though...the top bulb part has to stay out of the water, which makes it a bit hard to mount on the side of a tank with a plastic frame. I also don't really like the fact that you can only drop the water level an inch without moving it or unplugging it. I do usually 20% water changes weekly. I'm used to being able to put the heater horizontally against the substrate.
 
Yes, it was a free exchange for the visi them. I wouldn't have bought it for that price :p
 
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