What Size Heater For 150 Gallon Aquarium

One of the most common questions nosotros get is, "Does my aquarium demand a heater?" Well, most fish are cold-blooded animals that rely on the surrounding waters to regulate their body temperature, and most freshwater pet fish are tropical species that enjoy balmy temperatures around 78-80°F. And then, if you lot normally keep your home cooler than that, then the respond is yeah.

Now it's true that the bulk of aquarium fish tin tolerate cooler temperatures than recommended because in nature, the environment dips several degrees at nighttime or during rainstorms. However, keeping the water at a steady warm temperature is less stressful on your fish and therefore helps prevent diseases. Some species – like goldfish, Japanese ricefish, and white deject mount minnows – enjoy libation temperatures and would be fine without a heater. Other fish – similar discus, ram cichlids, and certain Apistogramma cichlids – prefer hotter temperatures around 85°F and crave a heater.

What Size Aquarium Heater Do I Demand?

The full general rule of thumb is v watts (West) of heat per 1 gallon of h2o if a) you need to heat the water upwardly to 10 degrees to a higher place room temperature and b) you're using an aquarium lid to retain warmth and forestall evaporative cooling. For example, if you lot take a 20-gallon tank under those conditions, the suggested heater size is 100 watts. Notwithstanding, if your domicile is on the colder side at 65°F and you need to raise the water temperature by 15 degrees, then consider upsizing to the next available heater at 150 watts.

Aquarium heat size recommendations

Recommended heater sizes for different types of aquariums

Other factors that touch a fish tank's temperature include its location in your habitation. Is it placed in a sunny room, down in the basement, or right next to the air conditioner? Too, considering estrus naturally rises, the tanks at the bottom of an aquarium rack volition be cooler than the tanks at the top. Furthermore, equipment such as lighting and filtration contribute to the total heat produced in an aquarium. For example, a Fluval FX4 canister filter runs on 30 watts of power and therefore acts like a mini heater in your aquarium, slightly heating up the water equally information technology flows through the filter.

If yous own a larger tank that requires 200 watts of heat, a better idea is to purchase two 100W heaters rather than 1 200W heater. Using multiple, smaller heaters reduces the damage caused by equipment malfunction. If one of the heaters gets too hot, information technology's probable non powerful enough on its own to overheat the whole aquarium. If ane heater shuts off, so you accept a second heater equally a fill-in that will prevent the h2o from getting too cold.

Where Should I Put My Aquarium Heater?

There are many kinds of aquarium heaters, merely we're going to talk about the most common type – submersible heaters that operate completely underwater. The water current helps to spread the warmth from the heater to the rest of the tank, so ideally the heater should be placed right next to the filter output or pump for maximum flow. Install a thermometer in a corner opposite from the heater to make certain the heat is reaching the other side of the tank.

Some heaters must always be positioned vertically, while others tin lay down horizontally. If possible, we recommend mounting the heater at a 45 degree angle to become the best heat distribution. You tin conceal the heater by placing plants and decor in forepart of it or hiding it in the sump if yous accept 1.

Planted tank with aquarium heater at a 45 degree angle

Mountain the heater at a 45 degree angle and conceal it with tall plants or decorations.

Do You Leave the Aquarium Heater on All the Time?

Yep, you can exit the heater on 24/7. Aquarium heaters have an internal thermostat that turns off the rut when it reaches a specific temperature, thus keeping the water temperature within a few degrees of the desired setting.

When get-go installing the heater, let the equipment acclimate to the aquarium water's temperature for xx to 30 minutes before plugging it in, to foreclose breakage from temperature stupor. Also, the heater must ever be submersed in water when it's turned on. (Sometimes you'll see a line on the heater that marks the minimum water level.) Otherwise, information technology cannot accurately read the water temperature and correctly command the heating. If you leave the heater running while exposed to dry air, it may fire out or crack, so don't forget to unplug information technology or turn off the power strip when doing water changes.

Thankfully, heaters practise not require much maintenance unless yous want to utilise a toothbrush to gently scrub off algae. However, if you accept to remove the heater for some reason, manufacturers propose waiting at least 30 minutes for it to cool down before handling.

What Is the Best Aquarium Heater?

Out of all the supplies you need to purchase when setting upwardly a new fish tank, the aquarium heater is non 1 to skimp on. You want to detect a skillful quality brand that is safe and reliable because unproven brands may fail by overheating, shutting downwardly, or bully – all with disastrous results. We personally would non recommend getting a used heater considering yous have no idea if the previous possessor dropped information technology, left it running while out of water, and and so forth.

Fluval E Series heater

Our favorite pick so far is the Fluval Eastward Series heater considering of its excellent quality and full range of features, such as:

The LCD screen provides a big, digital temperature display with useful color indicators. (For instance, blue light means the water temperature is too cold, red means the h2o is as well hot, green means the water is merely right, and 'LF' ways the heater is in a low period area.)
The heater guard is a protective plastic cage effectually the heater that prevents fish from wedging themselves and getting stuck backside the heater. (Yes, I've really had fish dice this way.) This enclosure likewise shields the heater from larger fish species that may crash into information technology. The guard tin can be easily removed for cleaning.
The adjustable temperature feature is useful in case you need to raise the temperature to care for diseases or lower the temperature to induce breeding. Unlike near heaters that use temperature dials, the Fluval E Series has a unproblematic switch on summit that adds or subtracts from the fix temperature in 0.5 degree increments.
The dual temperature sensors provide extra reliability so that y'all get authentic, existent-time h2o temperature readings.
The 5-yr express warranty offers you peace of heed from heater malfunctions and manufacturing errors.

If you lot have a nano aquarium that holds half dozen gallons or less, consider using the Fluval 25W submersible heater that is preset to maintain a temperature of 76-78°F.

Bottom line: don't try to save coin on heat. Give your aquarium fish a warm and comfortable dwelling, and they'll thank you for it with hours and hours of entertainment.