Fish Tank Heater
What could I use to warm my fish tank instead of a heater for fish?
My fish tank is really cold, but I'm not allowed to buy a fish tank heater. Is there anything I could use as an alternative?
Is there anything made for fish that I could put inside instead of a heater to make it warm?
I have mollies, I don't know what the temperature is, and my dad doesn't want to spend money on a heater. >___>
If your fish tank has lights in the hood, this will help raise the water temperature. If it does not, you could even point a desk lamp at it.
Even though sunlight does cause algae to bloom, the temperature of the water is more important. If you have goldfish, they prefer cooler, room temp. water. Tropical fish however, such as Platies, Barbs, Danios, Glofish, Guppies etc. prefer 74 to 80 degrees.
Heaters are not very expensive. Talk to whoever is saying you can not have one and explain that the fish need it. They have a very long life, are fairly inexpensive and don't use much electricity. Most heaters have an automatic shut off, and you can set the temperature to your desired level. The heater will turn off and on as needed. You just need to make sure that the heater is submerged to the water level marked on the heater.
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Well, I'm sure that some of you new aquarists out there already know about the necessary accessories to be put in an aquarium, or to be specific, in tropical aquariums. The heater is one of the necessary items that are vital to any tropical aquarium, because it regulates the freshwater aquarium temperature, making it a more or less exact replica of a tropical fish's natural habitat, enabling it to do the activities it normally would on natural conditions. However, proper methods of placing this important item also have a considerable significance, if you want to achieve the full effect of this important aquarium accessory.
Factors Affecting Heater Efficiency
There are several factors according to which the efficiency of an aquarium heater can be rated. Some consider the overall wattage of the unit; others consider the actual temperature setting, and still others suggest the use of multiple heaters in a single fish tank. However, the proper placement of the heater in the aquarium is one criterion that, in my opinion, should not be missed, regardless of the size, the volume, and the general population of aquatic life in the aquarium.
Proper Placement Means Finding the Overall Water Flow
If you want a generic place to place the heater for maximum freshwater aquarium temperature control, find a good spot where the water flows abundantly. This place could either be an inlet or outlet from other mechanical sources - such as a filter -, from spots where water would usually flow (like the area around a power head or any other commercial aquarium water pump), or from any other source where water would usually flow, as long as good circulation can be achieved. This way, heated water from these areas could easily flow around the tank, heating it, as well as easing the circulation method.
Heat Circulation in a Liquid
If you need a more in depth explanation for this technique, it's relatively simple. Liquids, by themselves, are just like any other kind of matter in the universe. They contain mass in equated amounts throughout the solution. Heating one area of the liquid doesn't necessarily raise the temperature of the whole liquid, because you're just raising the temperature of that specific area where the heater is.
The reason why the whole liquid gets heated over time is because the warmer part of the liquid rises, allowing the cooler liquid to flow downwards, and then the cooler water gets heated, making it rise again and allowing the next "batch" of cooler liquid to go down and get heated. This process is repeated until a uniform temperature is achieved.
The water in an aquarium works the same way, but because of the relatively large volume of water present in these kind of liquid containers, waiting for the water to circulate by itself by just letting the heater do all the work just isn't practical, plus you risk stressing the fish when the water is not heated enough at a certain period of time. This is why proper placement of the heater is as equally important as the other criteria, and besides, if it's something for the betterment of your fish, wouldn't you try following a helpful advice anyway?
Sandra Gaffney is a freshwater aquarium expert. For more great tips on freshwater aquarium temperature, visit http://www.myfreshwateraquariumsecrets.com/
Many thanks for reading our Fish Tank Heater article
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