So you got yourself a 100l Tank and want to know how long it will take to heat the water to the required temperature?.
Generally, a 100 Watt heater. Will heat the tank’s water within a few hours but id give it 24 hours and use a separate thermometer. To make sure the water is maintaining its heat and that you have an accurate reading!
There are a few things to look into, however. Let’s take a more in-depth look at heating an aquarium for the safekeeping of our Fish!.
How Many Watts Does Heater Need?
As stated above 100 watts will easily heat a 100-litre tank. But 50 Watts is just about enough to heat 100l or 20 gallons of Tank.
But 75 watts would do the job even 100 watts would be ok as modern heaters only heat until the required temperature is achieved and then switch off so no chance of overheating.
So how many watts for our Fish Tanks?
The general rule of thumb is between 2.5 and 5 watts per 5 litres or 1 gallon of water!.
How Long To Heat To Room Temp?
Heating a Fish Tank To room temperature only takes minutes. No more than an hour even less if using room temperature water.
Most fish even cold water fish need around 70 degrees F and tropical fish will need more in the range of 80 degrees F!. So all in all it’s not worth worrying over room Temp. As most Tanks need to be kept a fair bit above room Temp, especially in winter.
How To Heat Tank Quickly?
Heating a Fish Tank Quickly should never be someone’s end goal. As we ultimately want the tank to heat evenly and be stable.
The most important thing is that the fish are healthy and happy. That being said there are a few things that will help heat an Aquarium faster.
One is to have the lid on so the tank is enclosed and also to have the fish tank lights on. Will help heat the water more quickly!. Lastly having a second heater running while heating to the required temperature will heat the water faster.
Best Way To Keep Temperature Stable?
Most modern heaters have incredible technology these days. And will turn on and off at the exact times and temperature that you have set it to.
So the water always remains stable but you do still need a good thermometer. Just to double-check everything is working.
Also keeping a good airflow with your filter helps by moving the water around the tank in the same direction. Making it easier for the heater to keep the water warm.
Is There A Heater That Heats Quicker?
There are loads of heaters out there and I mean loads thousands probably. All have advantages and some disadvantages but heating water quicker comes down to two main advantages.
The power and placement of a bigger heater will heat the water faster and having an internal heater directly inside the tank will heat slightly faster too!.
Does Where Heaters Placed In-Tank Help Heat Tank?
You can put the heater in theory anywhere you like. You could have a hang on the back heater. Or external for that matter.
But if you want to keep the water more stable and heat quickly so as to not put any strain on the heater and maybe save a few quid on energy bills.
You should place the heater just after the filter inside the tank. As this will heat the water as soon as it’s forced out of the filter meaning nice warm water is being circulated at all times!.
Why Heat Aquarium Anyway?
Fish are awesome as we know but the thing about fish is. They can’t regulate their own heat so we need to do this for them.
Even cold water fish need to be kept around 60 f as stated earlier!. Most of us live in places far below this, especially in winter.
Almost all other tropical and reef fish need warmer conditions to survive. Putting it bluntly if we don’t keep our fish warm they will die!.
Use Warm Water To Speed Heating Process Up?
As we discussed earlier in this article. We should not look to speed things up unnecessarily but yes you can. Use warm or at least lukewarm or room temperature water to help speed the process up.
The water would need to be treated properly with tapsafe or a similar product in order to be safe for the fish!. This will speed the process up maybe.
Cutting half the time of getting the water to the required temperature as most of the heating time is getting cold water heating in the first place.
Use Thermometer For Correct Temperature
How long does it take to heat our tanks?. Or speed the process up. Is not as important as the life and health of our fish but keeping the water conditions right is vital.
Of those conditions keeping the water warm enough is one of the most important!.
The only real way to do this is to have a very good thermometer don’t skimp on this. Buy a good one so you will always know the temperature of your tank!.
If you have a longer tank. Maybe put two thermometers one on each end and try not to put them right beside the heater.
Keep them on the other side even with a shorter tank. As you want an accurate reading. Putting by the heater the water will be warmer you need to make sure the furthest parts of the tank are warm enough too.
Conclusion!
Well in concluding this post you now know how to heat a 100l tank. Or any aquarium for that matter. Taking into account where to place heaters and using The general rule of thumb is between 2.5 and 5 watts per 5 litres or 1 gallon of water!. You can heat all your tanks safely hope this helped!.
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