Heater Question

[ejv1013]

This might sound like a dumb question but I'm curious should I put my heater in my main display or in my sump which is better thanks.

[schatzi]

In the sump it's out of sight and some would say provides a nicer looking DT. Works just fine to heat the water either way

[ejv1013]

Ok thanks, if thats the case then ill put in in refuge sense is out of sight . Just wanted to make sure that it wouldn't effect performance.

[nlgill13]

it won't effect performance, but if you have a power outage you will want it in the main display (unless you run your sump pump and heater at the same time during a power outage [this is a good way to have it set up by the way])

[PRDubois]

+1 for in the sump
Just remember if the power goes out to move it

[aleonn]

I put my heater in the skimmer section of my sump. The refugium section doesn't provide enough flow, and the return section can dry out to expose the heater.

[kduen]

Originally Posted by nlgill13

it won't effect performance, but if you have a power outage you will want it in the main display (unless you run your sump pump and heater at the same time during a power outage [this is a good way to have it set up by the way])

If the power is out it won't matter where the heater is since there will be no power for the heater to work. Unless you have a UPS, generator or a inverter and then if you did have one of those there is no reason not to power up the return pump and the heater.

[zeeter]

I found out the hard way that if your sump doesn't have a large enough capacity it cannot heat up the water quickly enough before it returns back to the DT. I keep mine in the DT hidden behind some rocks. Though a lot of the reason for that is that my sump is a rubbermaid container and I'm worried if the suction cup comes lose it may fall and melt the rubber.

BTW: Has anyone else ever had a heater shatter during operation? Happened to me and I can just imagine how the fish must have felt swimming through all of those tiny shards of glass. Heater was in the sump at the time so I imagine the pump wasn't so crazy about the situation, either.

[ejv1013]

:/ Now I am thinking I should keep it in the DT. I think it would be safer good points you made Kduen/Zeeter. Zeeter Poor fish they must of gone though a very horrible time swimming in the glass did they survive?

[sslak]

Why keep it in the DT?

Keep it in the sump. If the power is out and water stops flowing, then it doesn't matter where the heater is...there's no power to make the heater work anyway!!!

[cjk76]

Originally Posted by zeeter

I found out the hard way that if your sump doesn't have a large enough capacity it cannot heat up the water quickly enough before it returns back to the DT.

This doesn't make sense. Heat into the system is heat into the system. The only way it wouldn't make it up to the DT is if all the heat was dissapated before entering the pump. You said you had a rubbermaid container. Was this container in a cold area? Was it very shallow? Did it have fans constantly blowing over it?

As for a power outage, you could buy a generator for about the price of a battery backup. This could easily run the sump pump, heater, skimmer, and lights while you watch TV and laugh at the neighbors.

[kduen]

I would say that 99% of people that have sumps place their heater in the sump. Like cjk76 said heat is heat, if the heater is too small for the combined volume of water between the sump and the display then no it will not heat the water to the correct temp. Like most have said here put it in the sump and dont worry about it that's where mine and 99% of others are.

[aleonn]

Some people also place their heater in their overflow (provided the heater always remains submerged, even in power-out situations). Just make sure the temperature sensor is also in the overflow.

[MemphisTigers]

Sump

[rich19020]

I keep 1 in the overflow in the display tank and the other in the sump. I keep them both on JBJ controllers. My feeling is that I want to make sure if a controller or heater malfuntions and stays on my chiller will offset it. Also if 1 heater malfuntions and does not work at all the other will stay on.

I guess I'm wearing belts and suspenders.

[zeeter]

Originally Posted by ejv1013

Zeeter Poor fish they must of gone though a very horrible time swimming in the glass did they survive?

Strangely, they seemed undisturbed by the problem. I think I was more worried about it than they were.

[zeeter]

Originally Posted by cjk76

This doesn't make sense. Heat into the system is heat into the system. The only way it wouldn't make it up to the DT is if all the heat was dissapated before entering the pump. You said you had a rubbermaid container. Was this container in a cold area? Was it very shallow? Did it have fans constantly blowing over it?

The system in my basement that feeds 8 tanks (3 20's and 5 29's) uses a 20 gallon hard plastic sump (not the system that uses the rubbermaid). This is the one where i had the trouble. Having that much water volume requires a lot of flow, so the water doesn't stay in the sump for a very long time and therefore it doesn't have time to heat up.

I put one of my heaters into one of the 29gl tanks and suddenly the water temperature began to stabilize in the system. I put a second one in there and now I don't have any problems at all.

[cjk76]

Originally Posted by zeeter

I put one of my heaters into one of the 29gl tanks and suddenly the water temperature began to stabilize in the system. I put a second one in there and now I don't have any problems at all.

I'm sorry, I must have missed something. I am still perplexed why the sump would not have worked. If anything, I thought that more flow was actually better for the heater. Maybe you didn't have enough wattage to heat all your systems?

Anyway, you can't argue with results. I'm glad you found something that works. I'm looking forward to anyone else that had similar problems.

[zeeter]

Originally Posted by cjk76

I'm sorry, I must have missed something. I am still perplexed why the sump would not have worked. If anything, I thought that more flow was actually better for the heater. Maybe you didn't have enough wattage to heat all your systems?

Anyway, you can't argue with results. I'm glad you found something that works. I'm looking forward to anyone else that had similar problems.

I think normally you're right. It's just that we went through a cold spell here and the water in the tanks was cooling off faster than it could be replaced with warm water. Since the water was staying in the tanks longer than it was staying in the sump it made sense to me that heating that water would be more efficient than heating the sump water.

[want2reef]

Sump.

[rogermccray]

Put them in the sump, a friend of mine had one of his blow up and was very glad that it was in his sump and not his DT.

For the person that said it was in the overflow, why does it matter if the probe is in the overflow as well? You want your whole system to be the same temp so the probe should be fine wherever. I actually like to keep mine some distance away from the heater so it doesn't get any heat straight from the heater and not give a correct reading.

[Danzig]

It doesn't matter its doing the same thing either way. Put it in the sump for aesthetic reasons.

[dlp211]

In the sump on a controller.

Redundancy is key. I have 3 heaters in my sump, on a Ranco controller on an Apex controller. The temp probe for the Apex is my DT and the temp probe for the Ranco is in the sump.

[glenns]

I have two heaters which split the wattage required for my tank. One is in the sump, the other is in the overflow. If there is a long outage or I'm traveling, I place the one in the over flow in the DT. I put it in the DT while traveling in case return pump fails to restart, after an outage the DT won't get too cold.

[sslak]

Originally Posted by rogermccray

For the person that said it was in the overflow, why does it matter if the probe is in the overflow as well?

Because if the pump fails and your probe is in the sump but the heater is in the overflow, the tank will cook because the temp in the sump will never rise no matter how long the heater is on.

Temp probe should be in the display. Worst case scenario...the sump gets cooked if the return pump fails.

I don't like having the temp probe in the sump, because I'm always working down there cleaning the skimmer, doing water changes, etc. and I'm afraid it could get knocked out accidentally. Keeping it in the overflow assures that it's out of the way of all the cleaning etc.