what's the most reliable brand & type heater?

[mysterybox]

There seems to be an unusually large amount of issues with stuck on heaters lately. So what's the most reliable brand & type heater? Just looking for a 250 to 300 watt heater. I might also put it on a controller.

[reefergeorge]

Ranco is the way to go with some titanium tubes.

[twon8]

i would go with 2 150 watters instead. that way if one heater sticks on or goes out you've got another to help out.

[pjf]

I have an Eheim Jager on a Medusa controller.

I've had two Jager heaters that stopped working but have been lucky enough not to have one stick in the ON position.

I'm not claiming that the Jager is more reliable but I like the fact that it can be recalibrated if it drifts. Once or twice a year, I calibrate my Jager heaters. The greatest drift that I've seen is 5 degrees. I have a titanium heater that drifted 4 degrees and it cannot be recalibrated. This titanium heater also has a "bouncing" thermostat (see review of Finnex).

You may want to get 2 or 3 heaters that total 2-3 watts per gallon. This will guard against a single heater failure.

[reef / aholic]

Visi-Therm Stealth Heater and Ranco - ETC Dual Stage Controller

[jim2371]

My brand-new Stealth 200W heater stuck in the on position out of the box... tank to 87 before I realized what was happening (time for a controller!) Some of my corals will likely bleach in a couple more days. After discovering the issue I shut off the MH, and used a fan for quick cooling; did NOT add ice cubes or do anything drastic. Temp in the 30g Finnex came down to 79 within about 30 minutes. Replaced the 200W with two 100s... tank now stable at 80 at night, and 80-81 w/the MH. Some say not to use 2 smaller heaters, but it makes me feel more comfortable.