Heaters in the winter

[lordroad]

It's dipping into the low fifties here at night and my heaters are all turned on and steady at 78 or 80, or at least that's what they read when it was warmer only a few days ago. However, when I wake up, the gauge on the side of the tank reads 74 or 72... do I have to turn up the heat when it gets colder, or is this just my room temperature showing on the cheap temp readout? (It's the kind you stick onto the glass)

My room temperature will stay at 70 or so during the winter, and the tank that gets the brunt of the cold and the heat is the one that's only an inch off the floor. I live in a basement appartment and am using a Whisper heater for the low to the ground tank.

 

[TurbineSurgeon]

It might not hurt to put either a bigger heater or an additional one. The usual recommendation is 5 watts per gallon. I have a tank that sits close to a window against an outside wall, and I noticed the temperature dropping faster than the heater could keep up last winter. I put an additional heater in there (bringing the heating total to 8 watts per gallon in a 75 gallon tank) and it helped a lot.

Also make sure that you have adequate water movement as that will have a significant impact on how effectively the heater(s) does its job.