Check your thermometer daily

[Eric Schreiber]

Just a reminder to check your tank temperature every day. I was just
doing a little cleaning on my ten gallon Betta tank and noticed that
the water was really cold. I checked the thermomenter, and sure enough,
tank temperature was just under 70 degrees.

I'd checked it last night, and it was fine then. Sometime in the last
24 hours my heater failed. Not supposed to happen to this sort of
heater - an Ebo Jager type TS 50 watt submersible. The heating element
wire is clearly broken.

Luckily I have a spare 25 watt that should be able to do the job in the
short term.


--
Eric Schreiber
www.ericschreiber.com

[Nikki Casali]

Eric Schreiber wrote:

> Just a reminder to check your tank temperature every day. I was just
> doing a little cleaning on my ten gallon Betta tank and noticed that
> the water was really cold. I checked the thermomenter, and sure enough,
> tank temperature was just under 70 degrees.
>
> I'd checked it last night, and it was fine then. Sometime in the last
> 24 hours my heater failed. Not supposed to happen to this sort of
> heater - an Ebo Jager type TS 50 watt submersible. The heating element
> wire is clearly broken.
>
> Luckily I have a spare 25 watt that should be able to do the job in the
> short term.

I've got a fridge-freezer thermometer I use that has minimum and maximum
alarm points. The alarm will sound when those points are reached. I had
to commandeer it for use with my aquarium when my last heater became
unstable. I use it permanently now. It memorizes minimum and maximum
temperatures over any period. Useful to know sometimes.

Nikki

[ManWorld42]

Nikki Casali > wrote in message >...
> Eric Schreiber wrote:
>
> > Just a reminder to check your tank temperature every day. I was just
> > doing a little cleaning on my ten gallon Betta tank and noticed that
> > the water was really cold. I checked the thermomenter, and sure enough,
> > tank temperature was just under 70 degrees.
> >
> > I'd checked it last night, and it was fine then. Sometime in the last
> > 24 hours my heater failed. Not supposed to happen to this sort of
> > heater - an Ebo Jager type TS 50 watt submersible. The heating element
> > wire is clearly broken.
> >
> > Luckily I have a spare 25 watt that should be able to do the job in the
> > short term.
>
> I've got a fridge-freezer thermometer I use that has minimum and maximum
> alarm points. The alarm will sound when those points are reached. I had
> to commandeer it for use with my aquarium when my last heater became
> unstable. I use it permanently now. It memorizes minimum and maximum
> temperatures over any period. Useful to know sometimes.
>
> Nikki

Oregon Scientific makes some indoor/outdoor thermometers that are
useful for aquariums. The outdoor temperature is measured with a
waterproof probe that I drop into my tank to measure the water
temperature instead. Very accurate. They cost about $8 a piece at
Target. If you are willing to pay $30+ a thermometer, you can get
their thermometer with a wireless link to their main thermometer
units. These units support up to 3 remote probes. Max and Min are
recorded. Don't think there is an alarm feature on most units.

[Dick]

On 4 Oct 2004 00:09:34 -0700, (ManWorld42)
wrote:

>Nikki Casali > wrote in message >...
>> Eric Schreiber wrote:
>>
>> > Just a reminder to check your tank temperature every day. I was just
>> > doing a little cleaning on my ten gallon Betta tank and noticed that
>> > the water was really cold. I checked the thermomenter, and sure enough,
>> > tank temperature was just under 70 degrees.
>> >
>> > I'd checked it last night, and it was fine then. Sometime in the last
>> > 24 hours my heater failed. Not supposed to happen to this sort of
>> > heater - an Ebo Jager type TS 50 watt submersible. The heating element
>> > wire is clearly broken.
>> >
>> > Luckily I have a spare 25 watt that should be able to do the job in the
>> > short term.
>>
>> I've got a fridge-freezer thermometer I use that has minimum and maximum
>> alarm points. The alarm will sound when those points are reached. I had
>> to commandeer it for use with my aquarium when my last heater became
>> unstable. I use it permanently now. It memorizes minimum and maximum
>> temperatures over any period. Useful to know sometimes.
>>
>> Nikki
>
>Oregon Scientific makes some indoor/outdoor thermometers that are
>useful for aquariums. The outdoor temperature is measured with a
>waterproof probe that I drop into my tank to measure the water
>temperature instead. Very accurate. They cost about $8 a piece at
>Target. If you are willing to pay $30+ a thermometer, you can get
>their thermometer with a wireless link to their main thermometer
>units. These units support up to 3 remote probes. Max and Min are
>recorded. Don't think there is an alarm feature on most units.

Each of my tanks has a "Lifeguard" electronic thermometer. An alarm
can be set for min and max temperature. I have one tank that runs
close to the max I set of 82 degrees. It was eerie the first time I
heard it beeping, but I was able to open the top and evaporation
brought the temperature down.

They are about $30 each, but the peace of mind is worth it. Checking
the thermometer once a day sounds good, but I suspect the routine
would go by the wayside after awhile. The beep definitely got my
attention. Heaters do go bad.

dick