Moisture inside heater

[foresthall]

While doing tank maintenance today, I noticed there was a small amount of moisture inside my submersible heater. I just tried contacting Aqueon but they are closed for the day. My tank is 20 gallons and this heater is a 100w. I have a spare preset 50w heater. Would that work in the meantime or will the heater be safe for a few days while I wait to get a replacement one?

 

[Xander]

You generally don't want to mess with the risk of electric shock, or god forbid it fails on and you find a batch of aquarium soup. I would get that thing out of there ASAP.

The 50W will have to work overtime, unless the room's temperature isn't all too cold right now, but it will do in a pinch.

 

[foresthall]

That's what I thought. I just got a reply back from Aqueon and they said its normal for condensation to occur just above the coils because they are manufactured in a country that gets a lot of humidity and it gets trapped in the heater. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I don't think it's ever happened before and it's only 5 months old. It should be under warranty but they keep telling me it's normal