My Aqueon Pro 100 heater is running too low.

My issue is what the title says. I have the dial on my Aqueon heater set to 80 degrees (since that is the temperature I plan to keep it for the fish I eventually plan to keep), but according to my hang-on thermometer, the temperature in the tank was about 74 degrees as of last night. I currently have six albino cories and plan to add cardinal tetras and a GBR.

Do I need to buy a new heater? I don't want to raise the dial any more for fear of cooking the fish. Is something wrong, or is a 100 watt heater not strong enough for my 20 gallon? The Eheim Jager heaters in my betta tank and 10 gallon quarantine are both set at 80 degrees, and that is the actual temperature of the water in these tanks. I'm unsure of why this is happening. While the tank was cycling and there weren't any fish yet, I wasn't paying attention to the temperature, so I'm not sure if this is a new occurrence or not.

I'm debating if I should fix the issue with the heater running low, or switch tacks and get a Bolivian Ram and a school of neon tetras while I have the temperature at 74 degrees. Thoughts?

 

Have you tried unplugging it and plugging it back in? My Aqueon heater stopped heating for a bit, but I unplugged it, plugged it back in, and it started working again. Disappointed because I haven't had it that long, but that fixed it.

If the heater can't be fixed, I'd still get another one, regardless of your change in stocking plans.

 

Interesting... I put a new Aqueon Pro 100 in my 20 gallon before I got my betta. No problems for me so far, but I'll let you know if I run into any.

And I agree with TexasDomer if you cannot get it functioning again, get another heater.

 

I do have an aqueon (out of many) that is way off. I ignore the dial setting and just adjust it slowly so my thermometer is the right temperature. It has never failed, just calibrated really poorly for some reason. None of them are exact but usually fairly close.

 

Yeah, it's probably just a calibration issue. I have two 250W Aqueon Pro heaters and I had to bump them to 83* to get the tank to 80*. I just tweak the dial, ignoring the temps on the dial, and watch my thermometer until I get the right temp. Just make sure to adjust a little at a time and wait 24 hrs before adjusting again.

 

I have a 100 watt maintaining a 30 gal at 78 so I'm sure yours can keep up the 20. Room temp isn't below 60 right? I don't go by dial settings, like other said rely on thermometer and adjust slowly. Thermometers can be bad too so you may want to check that.

 

When I got home from work yesterday, I tried unplugging my heater and plugging it back in, and saw no change. Then I thought of what abrooks12376 said.

I took the thermometer from my 10 gallon quarantine and stuck it alongside the one reading 74 degrees in the 20 gallon. This was the result:




For the sake of argument, I tried putting the thermometer on the right in my other two tanks, and I still got the same reading of 74 degrees - so either the thermometer is bad or I have 3 faulty heaters. I'm guessing it isn't the latter.

What causes thermometers to go bad? The liquid isn't stuck there, as I tried running it under hot tap water and it shot up. Could the calibration be off? Either way, I doubt it's any good, so I'll toss it later.

 

Sometimes they're just bad.. when buying them take.5 off.the shelf and if 4/5 read the same pick one of those.

 

Good advice. Thank you! I'll keep that in mind when I pick another one up. I'm just relieved that my heaters all seem to be fine.