Best heater and thermometer out there

[steveoutlaw]

I'm looking to have a heater in my sump, a little heater in my fuge and a heater hidden in my main tank (just in case). I'm looking for a good heater that will heat the water to 80 degrees if I put it on the 80 degree setting.

 

Also, looking for a digital thermometer that will give me an accurate reading. In the past I've been using the Coralife thermometers and I'm lucky if they get within 5 degrees of what the water temp actually is.

 

Thanks.

[BeltwayBandit]

My recommendation is a ranco controller and a titanium heating element (get the ones that do not incorporate a thermostat). I had far better temperature stability with the Ranco than with any previous combination of heaters. The ranco allows you not only to set the temperature, but also the differential (when it kicks on) so you can easily maintain water temp within half a degree if you need to.

 

Just my 2 cents.

 

BB

[Highland Reefer]

I am using the Aqua Logic NEMA 4x Temperature controller, which is giving me very good results. I wouldn't count on any of the heater's thermostats, because I find they are not very accurate. What I do is to set the heater's thermostats slightly higher than what temp. I actually want. I then plug the heaters into the Temperature controller to acutally control the temp. If the controller goes bad, than the worst that will happen is that the heater's own thermostat will shut off at a slightly higher temp.

[rrubberbandman]

"short of using a controller"

[lancer99]

I'm looking for a good heater that will heat the water to 80 degrees if I put it on the 80 degree setting.

I've tried lots of brands of heaters over the years, and have NEVER found one where the temperature setting was accurate.

 

Also, looking for a digital thermometer that will give me an accurate reading. In the past I've been using the Coralife thermometers and I'm lucky if they get within 5 degrees of what the water temp actually is.

 

Steve, just curious as to what you checked the temp with? I have one of the Coralife digis (a replacement for one that didn't work too well after I dropped it in the tank ) and it seems to agree, within a degree or two, with the rest of my thermometers.

 

-R