Thermometer Hubris

[WrenFeenix]

Sooo... I think found out why my betta’s been biting his fins:

The pH today was 7.8, when it’s normally 7.2. I also noticed black particles in the water.

Don’t use metal thermometers, they said.
They’ll rust and contaminate your water, they said.
I didn’t listen because I thought my thermometer was made of aluminum. Even aluminum is a bad idea.

I put carbon in the filter. Hopefully he’ll be okay. I’ll check my other equipment for rust tomorrow, since I stressed him out with a thorough water change. I’ll also try to get some almond leaves and do daily water changes.

 

[Mongo75]

Since you've had a taste of Crow, and are probably looking for a new thermometer, I have this one, , and really like it.

 

[Lakefish]

Weird. I wonder what you have in your water that is reacting with it. Do you have access to municipal water test results? I've got a thermometer that looks just like that, stainless steel and probably above twenty years old. No problems, no black stuff. And most likely there is still a rusty nail or two buried in the substrate somewhere because years ago I read somewhere that is good for the plants. Not sure if that has made any difference to them but never bothered looking for the nails since. Hasn't bothered the fish any. But here we have surface water that is very clean, neutral, low mineral content. Not much to react with.

 

[Mongo75]

Weird. I wonder what you have in your water that is reacting with it. Do you have access to municipal water test results? I've got a thermometer that looks just like that, stainless steel and probably above twenty years old. No problems, no black stuff.

I didn't think of it initially, but you started me wondering. I wonder if there's a very slight current running through the water, causing electrolysis to occur...

 

[WrenFeenix]

It’s probably the salt. My bettas fins were ragged, so I treated the tank with salt. The thermometer is old and must’ve been degrading already, but the salt obviously corroded it, exacerbating the issue by HOLY OXIDATION BATMAN. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t stainless steel since it was so pliable (that’s why I thought it was aluminum), and water’s pretty hard here normally.

I feel horrible. I hope he’s okay.

My Inkbird heater controller was off a degree today; it got more accurate for some reason. I hope the metal didn’t damage it; it’s the plastic coated aquarium probe version, so I don’t see how it would.

 

[WrenFeenix]

Since you've had a taste of Crow, and are probably looking for a new thermometer, I have this one, , and really like it.

He has my goldfish’s floating glass thermometer right now, since my goldfish doesn’t really need it anyway, but I am going to get that thermometer. The glass one’s hard to read below eye level.

 

[Mongo75]

It’s probably the salt. My bettas fins were ragged, so I treated the tank with salt. The thermometer is old and must’ve been degrading already, but the salt obviously corroded it, exacerbating the issue by HOLY OXIDATION BATMAN. The water’s pretty hard here normally.

I feel horrible. I hope he’s okay.

My Inkbird heater controller was off a degree today; it got more accurate for some reason. I hope the metal didn’t damage it; it’s the plastic coated aquarium probe version, so I don’t see how it would.

When you say your Inkbird got more accurate, do you mean between the damaged thermometer and the one from your goldfish? That could just be the difference between the two thermometers. I have the Inkbird 1000 controller, and made a DIY controller. We probably have the same probe tip, and I don't see how anything could affect it unless it's been nicked or something. Salt may have affected the thermometer, but I hope it wouldn't be enough damage to cause any harm to your livestock. I guess right now, you just have to keep a really close watch on your fish, and hope for the best.

 

[WrenFeenix]

When you say your Inkbird got more accurate, do you mean between the damaged thermometer and the one from your goldfish? That could just be the difference between the two thermometers. I have the Inkbird 1000 controller, and made a DIY controller. We probably have the same probe tip, and I don't see how anything could affect it unless it's been nicked or something. Salt may have affected the thermometer, but I hope it wouldn't be enough damage to cause any harm to your livestock. I guess right now, you just have to keep a really close watch on your fish, and hope for the best.

I technically have 3 thermometers in the tank: the Inkbird, the floating glass one, and the E-100 heater. The heater and the thermometer read the same, so I’m inclined to think the Inkbird is off. It was never really accurate anyway, but it was consistent, so it worked.

My betta is alert and eating, but he’s shredded his fins pretty bad and mopes on his leaf when I’m not around.

 

[Mongo75]

I technically have 3 thermometers in the tank: the Inkbird, the floating glass one, and the E-100 heater. The heater and the thermometer read the same, so I’m inclined to think the Inkbird is off. It was never really accurate anyway, but it was consistent, so it worked.

My betta is alert and eating, but he’s shredded his fins pretty bad and mopes on his leaf when I’m not around.

You can always re-calibrate the inkbird and see if it drifts off again. I've only been running mine for a week, and haven't noticed any problems, but I keep my "real" thermometer in the tank, because it's what I calibrated the inkbird to, and I trust it.

 

[WrenFeenix]

Welp, I have no idea what the temp of my water is now. It could be anywhere between 78F and 81F:
My glass thermometer reads 79F, but looks to be a tiny bit higher than that.
My Inkbird reads 79.2F.
My heater reads 78F.
The only other thermometers I have are a meat thermometer, which reads 90F, and a digital candy thermometer, which reads 80.2F.

Hopefully my Inkbird stays close enough in range that it functions correctly and shuts off if it gets too hot. It’s set to shut off at 80F.
I’m worried my heater is malfunctioning; all thermometers in the tank usually measure less than 79F. Ive had this heater for only 6 months, so it’s not old. I have a back-up heater, but it’s not a E-100.

Do you think I should switch to the other heater? It a glass Aqueon 100W and has been used even less than the E-100.

My betta seems to be feeling better today.

 

[Mongo75]

When I was testing my DIY controller, I did basic calibration tests by using two coffee mugs, One with ice water and the other at room temp. I put my thermometer and the probe both in the ice water, and compared the two after 10 minutes. The inkbird read 2° higher than the thermometer so I set the calibration to -2. Then I repeated it in the room temp water. The inkbird was spot on, but I wasn't convinced, so I repeated the process a few more times as the ice melted and the temp was increasing, and it always tracked right along with the analog thermometer in both the room temp water and the warming ice water.

When I bought my analog thermometer, I took the average temp from several different thermometers in the same area, averaged their temp readings, and bought the one that was closest to the average. It may not be 100% accurate, but it was the best method I can think of, to get one that's as close to accurate as possible.

Looking at your profile, I'm guessing this is your 10 gallon with the Betta. They're comfortable between 78 and 80°, so I would leave it as it is, get the new "easier to read" thermometer, and just watch what happens. No hobby or home thermometer is accurate unless you've got a lab quality one, so being in the ballpark should be ok, as long as your inkbird turns it on and off when it's supposed to.

 

[WrenFeenix]

I did a water change and checked all my hardware, and I don’t see anything wrong. Cleaned it all good and put it back.

I could only find almond leaves on Amazon.