New 10 Gallon, (Recurring Theme)

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#21
what do you guys suggest I put my temperature set to? ive heard like 78, then ive seen 83, Ill put it on like 82 now, and then adjust it when someone suggests something. Im gonna go enter into the world of salt now!
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#23
o good call, I had it at 83 then moved it down. Im waiting now for the heater to get the water warmed up, the one thing I don tlike about the visitherm as opposed to Ebo Jagers is Ebo's have ornage lights to show their on, but Im sure the visitherm is doing fine. I'm taking pictures of before and after in the first stages, and the bucket things I got to show their layout. Ill post back after I finish and get all my hydromter readings/
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#25
on your visitherm, is their like a fish on the top that lights up, my heater doesnt seem to be heating my water and Im not sure if it was on, the water should be heated by now its been about a hour or two. On the box theirs a red like fish looking thingy on the top, is that the light you see on yours?

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produ...060&GCID=C12188x002&ref=3474&subref=AA&ctt=62

that is what I have the 100 watt version, if you click on the enlarge you can see a like fish thing on the top that looks as if it would light up to indicate it was on. It never says it does but I think it does when its on. The water just wont heat up and I don tknow if its the heater. I bought a surge protector and had some difficulty getting the heater plug to go into it but I got it, and when i plug a lamp into the surge protector it works, am I just being impatient or am I right to say that the tank should be heated after 2 hours!
 

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1979camaro

Ultimate Fish
Oct 22, 2002
5,862
2
0
43
San Ramon, CA
#26
interesting...that is a totally different visitherm than i have. depending on how cold your water is it is impossible to say whether the tank should be heated or not, but it should be heating up some

to me that fish like thing doesn't look like it is designed to light up. have you tried plugging the heater into the wall outlet directly and seeing what it does?
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#27
Well its getting late so Im gonna stop worrying about the heater for tonight and just take my reading now.

The first reading came as the following:

Salinity:28.4

Specific Gravity: 1.021

If my tank isnt heated up by tommorow when I wake up, Im gonna call my lfs and try and get them to take it back even though I took it out how am I suppose to know it wouldnt work? Anyway Im hoping I dont have to take it back, and I have a feeling that light is suppose to be on the top and just isnt...
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#28
well idk how but my water just started like heating up after i took my readings. So im gonna leave it alone for now ( i was gonan take it out and try it in a normal outlet in my kitchen, but Im gonna let it go for now and wait till morning).

The readings seem to be in order and the store water came through. So ill keep using water from them. Thats about all I can do for today and just gotta wait till tommorow to order that stuff from bigals and then go from their. Thanks for all the help so far Camaro, I really appreciate it
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#30
well I woke up this morning and went over and check on the temperature. My thermometer finally had a reading of 74 degrees. My heater is set at 79 degrees as of last night. Is it just me or is this water heating up extremly slow? Its been about 10-11 hours since I turned my heater on. Im gonna wait for the temp to get to atleast 78-79 to take another salinity and sg reading, which better be by tonight...
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#31
Bad News: Today at around like 200 I left for tennis and my room was stuffy so I opened 2 windows in my room open to get some fresh air. I left and my temperature was still around 74. I was hoping to come home to a 78-79 temperature range and when I walked in the temperature had gone DOWN! the thermometer has a bottom temp of 72 degrees, and the temperature is displayed by a green mark. If its not green then its inbetween the blue mark and a tan mark. The tan mark is on top and when i left this morning the tan mark was on 76 and the blue mark was on 72, so I believed the temperatue was between 73-75 degrees, and when I cam home the tan mark had gone down to 72 degrees.

Im guessing the problem was the windows being opened, but how can a 100 watt heater not heat a 16 gallon tank???? is their something wrong here or would a open window hurt the tank that much? It was about 50 degrees today/
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#34
Im gonna return it the heater, and the store should take it back despite it being opened, i mean how was i suppose to know its busted without opening it. Worst case scenario i have to wait fro marineland to send me a new one but Im not waiting a month for a friggen heater..... wow im pretty pist off now... stupid heater

On the bright side I did order my two powerheads and test kit from big als today, and hopefully will order my light tommorow, i was contemplating buying a ebo jager from bigals aswell but decided not to because Im not letting this stupid broken heater defeat me into buying a new one and having 30 dollars go down the drain :mad:
 

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OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#35
Ok I took the heater out of the tank today to dry it and repackage it so I can return it to the store. When I took the heater out it was very warm and seemed to be "heating" but there were no results from it so theirfore it was defective and I will return it, and instead just order a Ebo Jager from bigals. And upon closer inspection the thing on the top didnt seem to light up, but on the box it was red but Im pretty sure it doesnt light up, and I will be returning it to the store soon. Damn Heater
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#37
thats true, that would have been bad to have it work then die on me once I thought the tank was stable :eek:,

anyway I ordered my two powerheads, saltwater mastertest kit (ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, and ph, and a thermometer for my tank to replace the old one i ripped off *crazysmil. Im gonna reorder a Ebo-Jager tonight from bigals as well as my light.

About my light, I am rethinking my choice of the 130 watt light as opposed to the 96 watt... now I know the 130 watt is better but the 96 would be sufficent right. Lord your 96 is working well right?? Ill make the decision by tonight but do you think the 130 is deffintly worth it?
 

OCCFan023

Superstar Fish
Jul 29, 2004
1,817
5
0
36
New Jersey
#39
I am very new and have been getting help along the way, I was gonna use my biowheel for water movemoent because I had one on hand, but decided to just get 2 powerheads. Watermovement is neccassary in fresh and extremly important for salt tanks. It eliminates dead spots, gives fish currents like in the wild, and is good for your live rock and corals if you have them, some corals dont like too much though. Thats the basics (i think) on water movement.


Anyway, i am thinking of chaning to a FOWLR tank for a couple of reasons. One is the price of the lights (i know its not that much but since im in high school right now I need to save for everything possible, and my mom is really agaisnt a 100 dollar light, and also when I go away to college I dont know how well some coral will fair so i think I may just got with a small like 36-50 watt light, its painfull to try and not go with corals but I think im gonna have to go with a less expensive one, but Ill see what happens.

Are there any corals I could have with a 65 watt hood? or should i just go with a 36 watt for the light and no coral?
 

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