flymike Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Hi Guys, I currently use a stc1000 temp controller and 300w element for one of my tanks heating. We are building a bigger multi tank,sump driven set up. The plan is to have the element in the sump. In my head I see 2x 500w elements heating more efficiently than 1x 1000w element (just by having more surface area in contact with the water) Am I right in thinking this? Thanks Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kinnadian Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Two heaters provide some backup in case one fails and allow more consistent heating throughout the water. This in itself is enough justification for 2 heaters, I believe I could speculate on the efficiency but it would only be opinion and not fact. While you have increased surface area, if the internal coils are allowed to cool down regularly then they have to be heated up before substantial heating can be done to the water. Glass heaters are inherently not efficient because glass is a poor conductor of heat, a titanium one would be better if you are concerned about efficiency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flymike Posted July 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Yeah, I was looking at the titanium elements. Currently using a stainless steel 300w unit on my 4' tank with roughly a 300l capacity inc the sump. The controller I use is an adjustable stc1000 temp controller. slimier to this http://www.trademe.co.nz/home-living/heating-cooling/other/auction-750159733.htm I have it set to 26deg with a .5deg differential, switches on at 25.5. I also have it set up to switch on a fan for cooling at 26.5deg. So it will not be like having 2 indavidualy controlled heaters, just one controller with 2 titanium elements. The power usage will be the same, so that's not an issue. Also plan to insulate the tanks with polystyrene on all sides, top and bottom, and just have it so I can remove the front and top for viewing and any work that needs to be carried out. That heat loss calculator at the top of the page is a neat tool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 If you were using regular aquarium heaters I'd agree about using two instead of one for reliability sake, but I think with the single element and controller it won't be such an issue. Can you share a link to the elements you're looking at? I'm currently using five 300W heaters on a controller in my sump, would be nice to replace them with something a little tidier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flymike Posted July 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 These are through Raymond (LOTOFISH on here) 1000w http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=748891962 500w http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=748890384 I have the 300w ss version, there designed to plug into weipro controllers, but I simply cut of the plug and wired it through my temperature controller via an extension cord If you were using regular aquarium heaters I'd agree about using two instead of one for reliability sake, but I think with the single element and controller it won't be such an issue. I wasn't thinking so much of safety, more for heat transfer (efficiency) from the surfaces of the element/s in contact with the water. A single 1000w element has a surface area of XXX (I dont know what it actully is), where as 2x 500w elements almost have twice that surface but the same total wattage 2x500w=1000w Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hovmoller Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 If you were using regular aquarium heaters I'd agree about using two instead of one for reliability sake, but I think with the single element and controller it won't be such an issue. Can you share a link to the elements you're looking at? I'm currently using five 300W heaters on a controller in my sump, would be nice to replace them with something a little tidier. I recently bought this pack: http://m.ebay.com/itm?itemId=190975238098 Comes with 2 x 300w SS heaters and a great price I reckon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 That certainly looks like a great deal, much better than trying to run multiple heaters in a sump. I've heard good thinks about the Ranco controllers too, I would have bought one with a couple of big titanium elements but I already had a pile of 300W heaters, and Henwards father-in-law built the controller for a pretty reasonable price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kinnadian Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 I have heard some poor things about Weipro. Another good thing about running 2 heaters rather than 1 is that the heaters have an internal temperature limit, if the heater is individually trying to heat the water and the internal temperature gets too hot, it will shut off regardless of the water temperature (this happens on my 300W heater for my 400L turtle tank). 2 heaters won't encounter this issue as frequently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flymike Posted July 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2014 I'm running one of those on another tank, with a single 300w element. I've got it set up with an in-line system after the canister, with the temp probe mid way down the back wall in the tank. I think it was a waipro mx1022 ?. Seems to work a treat, no issues with it loosing programming in power outages yet. The one thing that slightly annoys me, is that the relay click when it turns the element on/off is quite loud. I don't think that model can handle the 500-1000 watt elements though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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