Stealth Heaters

[Quantum Aquaria]

I use to swear by these things... indestructable, unbreakable... now, i'm still shaking.

 

I'm was in the process of mixing some salt, and testing the water to see if it's warm enough yet... well, when i ttouched the water, it was room temperature and so i lifted the stealth heater of the water... touched the bottom and it was cold.

 

No sooner did I touch it, i heard a tiny sizzling noise... not sure what it was, i continue to hold it to further investigate, then, the sizzling noise got a bit louder... I then tossed the heater back into the mixing bucket... as it's been tossed into the water, a loud pop and smoke come from it... freaked me out. Luckily, I wasn't holding on to it when it blew up.

 

The heater itself looks in tact and no damage, but obviously, it blew up internally. Now, I know that they've recalled some models back lately, but the ones I have are not part of those recalls... anyhow, just a bit of warning to everyone. I'm gonna go through now and recycle all my stealth heaters.

[benjipang]

wow.... you definitely want to complain to the vendor... I have the marineland stealth too and now I am thinking whether I should buy a new one instead.

[Origami]

All stealth heaters were subject to a recall recently. There's a thread on it here somewhere. United Pet Group was sending out free replacements. Petsmart was also taking them back. Look for the thread for additional detail.

 

Glad that you're ok.

[Kevin Garrison]

Been there... had this happen... only mine literally split the plastic apart. Their customer service was great, I read them the numbers off the heater, they said my replacement was on the way. No hassle, no arguments, it seems like they at least own up to issues revolving around defects and try to make it right.

[Quantum Aquaria]

i'll have to look up those threads. wasn't aware that the recall involved all stealth heaters. I'll have to look for the thread and contact customer service.

[Origami]

Steve, here's the latest that we have on this:

http://www.wamas.org/forums/topic/41885-heater-recall/page__view__findpost__p__363220

[Quantum Aquaria]

Steve, here's the latest that we have on this:

http://www.wamas.org/forums/topic/41885-heater-recall/page__view__findpost__p__363220

 

Thanks. Definitely gonna go through my stockpile today to pull out all my stealth heaters.

[sportzfish]

I just called last week and got all 4 of my stealth heaters replaced after procrastinating. One of my heaters was releasing a little bit of electricity into the water and that finally got me to make the call.

[Origami]

Just as a note, I've been a defender of the original generation of Stealth heaters, implicated in apparently far fewer incidents than the newer "Stealth Pro" version with the light built into the top. However, the company, in executing the recall opted to take the whole line off the market, and to replace all of them (of all wattages) for aquarists. I don't think you'll be seeing the name "Stealth" used on a heater for a long, long time to come. The name's poisoned.

 

So, even if your old Stealths have been serving you well for years, you may consider getting the free replacements because 1) it may fail catastrophically and you can't say that you weren't warned; 2) you may not have much of a resale market; but, more importantly (on the resale note), 3) you should not offer a recalled product up for sale.