Another Aqueon PRO heater bites the dust !

You have been warned yet again. I had an Aqueon Pro heater failure today, thankfully I have heat controllers on all of my tanks and they work. My controller warned me that my normal 80 degrees tank was falling and it was at 74 degrees. I just messaged Aqueon and I'm waiting to see what they say. I have had no less than three of these heaters fail in the last year and a half. I will not
be purchasing Aqueon heaters anymore as they just are not reliable.

All of my heaters came from Ken's and I have let him know this as well. It's nice that Aqueon has a lifetime warranty, but that won't help you if your fish end up dead because of heater failure. I hope others here that may have had a similar experience will take the time to let your aquarium retailer know so they will pass along this information and possibly get a recall going and also do something about product quality. I hate to complain to Ken's about this issue again but the fact is these heaters are failing and the proof is online on forums just like this one if you take the time to look (00)

Ive seen these issues on the forums regarding the Aqueon Pro's. Kind of reminds me of the big stealth heater issue sometime back. Good that you let Ken's know about the issue too.

Glad you caught your problem early.  I still feel sick when I think of how my fish died from overheated water. I've been looking for a good deal on some controllers.  Until I get those, I'm paying more attention to the temps on the tanks and not assuming the heaters are all working like they should be.

So I spoke with the service rep today at Aqueon and again they will replace the heater, that said they had no other information regarding these Pro heaters as far as them not working correctly. She was nice but it was also obvious that they have no real intention of having a product recall. I told her they should check forums and they would see that others are having issues with these heaters as well but I really doubt they will pay any attention to forums.
After our talk it was clear however that to really get anything done more people need to call in regarding this problem and I highly suggest that more people take the needed time to let them know. I am happy that I no longer have any of the Pro Heaters left in my tanks, I do however have the standard versions so time will tell if those will hold up. If not I will gladly switch brands (again) and I won't be looking back. I would also recommend letting the retailer where you purchased your heaters know as well, maybe they will stop carrying the garbage !

Are they replacing the old heater with same model or with something else of your choice?

I told them I never want to see a Pro ever again, so I went with there standard model. I have one now and so far it seems okay. Something I forgot to mention here is that the Pro that died was only a few months old and it was the replacement for the Pro that over heated in the first place. I'm taking the replacement and if nothing else I will use it as a temporary backup, other than that I will NEVER purchase another Aqueon heater again. They don't work period !

Im glad I didnt buy one.... but even though I use a different type, Ive had my issues too. I like the Hydor inline heaters but I had one fail in the off position and it was only four months old. I sent it in and they fixed it but its hard to trust a product that has failed already.

I recently heard of the Cobalt Neo-Therm specifically the 200watt ones melting and smelling up peoples homes. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I would pay decent money for a good quality heater but it seems they have a price point in mind and dont go above that. I did recently get a controller and am looking to try it out on one of my tanks. Its one of the commercial ranco types that they use for beer and food related stuff.

I just checked out that post, what a bunch of >#%€#¥€%£€< ! I saw those for sale at Ken's and I thought they were over priced, and now not only over priced but dangerous too. It sure seems like heater manufacturers have dropped the ball with regards to quality. Someday I hope someone will build a proper heater again, how hard can it be ? As things stand now it seems as though we are being taken to the cleaners. Heaters have just become that much more expensive because now we have to invest in heat controllers simply because we can no longer rely on heater thermostats working properly (00)

I still have 7 of the Aqueon Pros running in tanks and have never had any problems until that failure recently. They've been in use for about three years.  Now I don't trust them. Most of them were replacements for the Stealth heaters that were recalled.  I had never had any problems with those either.  

DMD, is that controller you're going to try an expensive one?  I'm looking for a good price because I'm going to need several.    

Its not bad at about $50 on Amazon but you will have to wire in your own plugs. The thing that I really like is that these are designed for commercial usage. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Thanks.  I don't think I'd want to do any wiring though!  

The one I got from Jemco is for use with two heaters and and they will wire it as such for you. It's heavy duty too but the read out is a little hard to read with just grey numerals.

There are also the finnex controllers which require no wiring. They only handle up to 300 watt heaters though.

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Cory, Finnex is what I've been looking at, but I read that the 300 is not compatible with Aqueon Pros.

That is interesting. I didn't know that. I wonder if the Aqueon heaters are pulling more than the wattage they're supposed too. Because Finnex recommends using the ones that are rated for 800 watts.

The Finnex I mentioned is good for 800 watts. I'm not sure why the type or brand of heater would matter ?

On the cobalt Neo-therms. The manufacturer had problems with the 200s due to ow hot they got. I hear the new ones have a casing that can withstand the heat now. But I'd wait a while to make sure you were getting new models from where ever you order it.

I'm thinking of giving Jäger another shot. It's been a few years and maybe the quality has bounced back.

I don't think their quality is near what it was. I've had 3 returns on them in the last month. I only carry them because people "swear" by them.

So in your own opinion what do you think is the best heater regarding dependability ? I actually think it sucks so bad that we just can't trust our heaters to work like they used to. If there wasn't such a focus on greed I think quality would be better. As long as people are willing to keep shelling out money for mediocre products nothing will probably change. On the other hand if some manufacturer was willing to invest in heater quality and actually built one with longevity in mind they would control the heater market and potentially make a killing.

Lee

I think the most reliable heater right now are the Neo therms. If you've been on the GSAS airstone, Erik has been running tests on heaters for over a year now. he's got like 20 tanks with probes setup to record data to a web server etc. The two best performing heaters are the old ebo jaeger heaters that are green from 15+ years ago and the neo therm heaters.

Aquarium Co-Op wrote:On the cobalt Neo-therms. The manufacturer had problems with the 200s due to ow hot they got. I hear the new ones have a casing that can withstand the heat now. But I'd wait a while to make sure you were getting new models from where ever you order it.

Do you know how to tell the difference? I have been wanting to do a Neo-therm in my puffers little tank.

If you've been on the GSAS airstone, Erik has been running tests on heaters for over a year now.

I looked back at the Aqueon Pro review and in the conclusion, he said that it wasn't going to stick "on" due to mechanical failure. I wonder if he'd want to take mine apart and have a look at it.

So I wonder how many of the Neo Therm heaters it would take to heat my 210 ?

finray56 wrote:So I wonder how many of the Neo Therm heaters it would take to heat my 210 ?

They say a 125g needs 400 watts, two of the 200 watt units. An 80 gallon needs 300 watts, one 200 watt and one 100 watt. Putting all that info together I would guess you would need 4 of the 200 watt units for a 210g.

Well that's a bit spendy dontcha think. So I would need another heat controller too as my Jemco only has two plugs now were getting somewhere . My tank that cost me $500 would cost nearly as much to heat the darn thing, do you see where this is going LOL (OO)

So I guess I'll use the heaters I have now with my heat controllers until I figure out what brand of heater to try next. I like the Neo Therms but they seem kinda pricey for the amount of wattage you get. Seems like I should only need 2 x 300 watt heaters at best. Oh well I guess we can close this thread .

I have a 210g also, I heat mine with two of the Hydor 300 watt in line that I custom plumbed into a FX5 line. Those Cobalt would break me too!

Actually I wish they would just find the old blue print for the old green Jagers and start making them again, tried and true they just worked !

finray56 wrote:Actually I wish they would just find the old blue print for the old green Jagers and start making them again, tried and true they just worked !

They probably used all the good stuff like Lead, Mercury, Asbestos, radioactive waste... thats why they worked so well.

Or, because corporates are greedy money people that purposely make sub-par products these days, "forcing" us to buy more products, after a heater craps out on them... They make more money that way. Heh.

*shrug* I like DMD's answer better! LOL!

Unfortunately both answers are probably somewhat true (OO)

Betty wrote:

If you've been on the GSAS airstone, Erik has been running tests on heaters for over a year now.

I looked back at the Aqueon Pro review and in the conclusion, he said that it wasn't going to stick "on" due to mechanical failure. I wonder if he'd want to take mine apart and have a look at it.

I can send him mine too, it got stuck in the 'on' position too, but luckily I realized the tank was WAY too hot before it fried all my fish. Aqueon replaced it but I still have the old one which stays on no matter what, so yeah, it is definitely more than possible for them to get stuck 'on.'

Anyone try the fluval heaters they have a petsmart? I have been considering trying one out but don't want to pay 20 dollars extra for a Fluval logo. I suppose if it works, though, it would be worth it. edit; also I guess FLuval has 2 tiers like aqueon, M for mechanincal and E for electronic. Which ones are more reliable?


Also, those cobalt heaters are pretty pricey, but if you have several hundred dollars worth of fish, it would be worth it I guess. I don't have several hundred dollars worth of fish, so I need something cheaper, but I don't want to continue supporting shoddy workmanship.

LuminousAphid wrote:

Betty wrote:

If you've been on the GSAS airstone, Erik has been running tests on heaters for over a year now.

I looked back at the Aqueon Pro review and in the conclusion, he said that it wasn't going to stick "on" due to mechanical failure. I wonder if he'd want to take mine apart and have a look at it.

I can send him mine too, it got stuck in the 'on' position too, but luckily I realized the tank was WAY too hot before it fried all my fish. Aqueon replaced it but I still have the old one which stays on no matter what, so yeah, it is definitely more than possible for them to get stuck 'on.'

Anyone try the fluval heaters they have a petsmart? I have been considering trying one out but don't want to pay 20 dollars extra for a Fluval logo. I suppose if it works, though, it would be worth it. edit; also I guess FLuval has 2 tiers like aqueon, M for mechanincal and E for electronic. Which ones are more reliable?

Also, those cobalt heaters are pretty pricey, but if you have several hundred dollars worth of fish, it would be worth it I guess. I don't have several hundred dollars worth of fish, so I need something cheaper, but I don't want to continue supporting shoddy workmanship.

I have one of the Fluval M heaters and it's been working for a couple of years now.  One thing that I did not know when I bought it was that submersible did not mean fully submersible.  It has a minimum and maximum water level, so it has to stick up out of the tank a little.

If I knew the Cobalt heater wouldn't malfunction, I wouldn't mind paying -- it's probably not as expensive as buying a heater and then a temperature controller separately.  Even though my fish aren't all that expensive, I still feel sick thinking of how they died and don't want it to happen to any others.  

Betty wrote:I have one of the Fluval M heaters and it's been working for a couple of years now.  One thing that I did not know when I bought it was that submersible did not mean fully submersible.  It has a minimum and maximum water level, so it has to stick up out of the tank a little.

If I knew the Cobalt heater wouldn't malfunction, I wouldn't mind paying -- it's probably not as expensive as buying a heater and then a temperature controller separately.  Even though my fish aren't all that expensive, I still feel sick thinking of how they died and don't want it to happen to any others.  

I have one of the Fluval M on my 72g bowfront, it was put in place after my Hydor inline went dead. I never paid attention to the minimum and maximum water level and have it submerged fully. Ive had no issue with it but even the picture on Fluvals site shows it with the top out of the water....
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I'm sorry but it seems as though Fluval and other company's would like to redefine the meaning of the word submersible, unfortunately it only means one thing that something works when submerged under water. What's with these company's trying to get over on you by interpreting language solely to benefit their products. If the heater box said the heater was partly submersible people would most likely not purchase the product because of this. So in the end they decide that it will benefit them more if they just stretch the truth a bit and lie so you will purchase their heater.

I also remember this issue from before because Jäger tried the same mischief, they sold the heater as submersible but when you got the heater home the inside instructions claimed you could only submerge the heater to the water level line. I suggest these company's read the dictionary and try using some honesty to sell their products.

I'm of the opinion that most people are putting much more heater capacity in their tanks than they really require. Our 75 gallon tank is getting along very well using 2 75 watt Eheim heaters set so that they are staged in heat levels.

Keep in mind, the average temp level of the room the tank is located in plays a huge part in how much wattage a person needs to maintain a set temp. our living room is normally hovering around 72 degrees and any heater only needs to raise the tank temp by 5 degrees, so those pair do a great job.

If one fails in the "on" position, then it will take it quite some time to raise the temp too much to support life.

D.