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I was wondering how long tank heaters generally should last.

I have a 45 gal. with a 200 watt rena cal top light excel heater that is almost three years old. There is a little condensation inside the glass and the pilot light flickers a little which it did not used to do. It still maintains the correct temp, but I'm wondering if it is wearing out and if I should replace it before it causes problems.

Mike

3 years sound reasonable. i picked up a cheap one, lasted about 8 months. now i'm using rena heater too.

The heater in my 10 gallon is at least 6 years old, if not more. Condensation inside the heater isn't good... it will start to corrode the metal inside, and eventually wear it out. it's probably time to start looking to buy a new one...

Thanks for the input. I ordered two Ebo-Jagers this morning, a 100 watt for the 20 and a 200 watt for the 45. I've read good things about the ebo-jagers, so I'll give them a try.

Also ordered a penguin 125 for the 20 to replace the aquaclear 150, not very impressed with the aquaclear. I have a penguin 330 on the 45 and have been very happy with it.

Mike

The heater in my 29g is about 8 or 9 years old. It's some no-name brand and it doesn't look very nice, but it keeps a very steady temp and works very well. It's only a 50 watt, so I add another 50 watt heater (Tronic...it works very well too) so it can stay a bit warmer. The Tronic heater is about 5-6 years old, and it still works wonderfully and maintains a constant temperature very well.

All of my heaters are more than 5 years old, and only one of them (Tetra's Whisper heater) doesn't work anymore. It doesn't have a good seal on it, and if your waterlevel fluctuates more than 3mm it will either be too high and get wet inside, or too low and burn up.

My main heater in my 29g flickers quite a bit when it turns on and off, but it's been doing it for atleast 3 years and it still works fine. So you might not need your new ones. I'd keep using the ones you previously had and keep the new ones in a drawer until the old ones die (I'm guessing atleast a few years).

HTH

my visitherm heater claims to have a lifetime warranty, and works very well, though I haven't had it long.

A "Lifetime Warranty" means that it's the ITEM'S Lifetime. So it isn't guarranteed to last YOUR entire life, just the said object's average life. Look on the box to see how long this "Lifetime Warranty" is good for

i've had a whisper heater quite on me in about 6-7 weeks after i first started using it
it really depends on multiple aspects

This is what hagen has to say about the condensation...

The problem of condensation from a heater element is rather common. In general, it is the result of the drying process of the ceramic element, since it is heated it will remove all humidity from the element, but when cooled, there is a chance that atmospheric humidity will enter the ceramic core rather rapidly. The environment of the Italian area where the heaters are manufactured and assembled is quite humid, so when the ceramic core is sealed within the watertight tube, any humidity that the ceramic core had within it was trapped. When the unit is heated again, that moisture naturally is expelled and will occasionally show as condensate on the tube. It has been my experience that the droplets slowly dissipate and it is not an indication of a failing heater.

Hi,
Discus is correct. Unless cracked, or the top is not
correctly sealed, some moisture is always "locked in" at
manufacture.

The problem with the moisture is that it will eventually
corrode the electrical connections for the wires. If
you look closely, none of the connections are soldered.
They are all wrapped, or bound together by copper or brass
rivits that have been compressed around the wires. The
combination of brass, nichrome wire, and copper wire
will eventually corrode.

Each time the thermal contacts break connection, there
is a small spark. That arc transfers some material from
one contact to the other. Eventually that causes a build
up of material on one side and pitting on the other.
Flickering of the pilot light is an indication of this
build up as the two contacts come together to complete
the circuit. In the old days before hermetically sealed
heaters, we would pull the top off (UNPLUG IT FIRST!)
and run our wife's emery board, or some fine emery paper
or some fine sandpaper across the contacts to "burnish
them up" and then put the whole thing back together
and be good for another couple of years.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Good info, thanks.

Mike