Two quick questions- heaters and storing live rock no longer needed

[makai531]

1. I need to buy some heaters. All of mine are in use and want to have some as back up. Looking for suggestions on quality heaters that won't break the bank if not necessary.

 

2. Have live rock that I won't be using in the near future. Have kept it in a heated bucket with flow which now is unnecessary. Should I just put it outside to dry out and die, then clean it up when I need it next? I seen many threads on the process of cleaning/curing dry, "previously live" rock.

[gmerek2]

1) all the heaters I have used eventually break and are junk so no advice, just use two undersized heaters so if one try's to fry everything it won't heat the tank up enough to kill and vice versa.

2) yes let dry out and research acid bath if you want to use again

[sen5241b]

Titanium heaters are the way to go. I've had very good results with them. I replace them about every 2 years and never had a problem. Glass heaters can break --rather easily.

[Origami]

I've used titanium heaters and several brands along the way. Today, I use Ebo Jager heaters (now available as Eheim Jager) because of their reliability of history. All are run by my Apex controller (I stagger their settings). I don't trust any heater's built-in controller to tell you the truth so I'll either use a controller like an Apex or a more reliable temperature controller like a Ranco. I keep all three of them tucked away in my sump. They don't get bumped around where I keep them, so I've had no problem with breakage. Their envelopes are pretty thick, still, so they're pretty durable.

[sen5241b]

Some glass heaters have shatter resistant glass and some don't.