CThompson Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Major house extensions at my place the last 8 months or so, tanks not getting the same attention they used to get. Came down to the tanks all off, flicked the switch on the circuitbreaker, tanks came on, searched, didn't see anything at first, put my hand into a tank, got the "tingle" nothing too shocking (pun intended) so I looked some more, I then found what you see in the below photos of the heater. I pulled the plug out (all heater till I found the right one) and lifted it above the water for the shots,it is otherwise as I found it. It looks like it went off like a fire cracker , or one of those little "party poppers" -this has never happened to me before, well not so dramatically anyway. It's a Sera heater, few years old, don't think I'll buy this brand again.... Do you think I have foundthe cause of my tanks flipping the circuit breaker? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattrox Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Glad that it didn't give you a bad shock! Sounds like a very dangerous situation. Glad it's sorted now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwah Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 that's happened to me once before, interestingly it was a sera heater! i bought it second hand off a mate, so i thought it was just a one off.. seems not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwah Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 oh and i'd love to see some updated shots of your tang tank.. i love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted July 25, 2011 Author Share Posted July 25, 2011 oh and i'd love to see some updated shots of your tang tank.. i love it! no you wouldn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted July 25, 2011 Author Share Posted July 25, 2011 Was that the actual water level in that tank? sump level was fine, heater fully underwater Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattrox Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 looks like the sump to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted July 25, 2011 Author Share Posted July 25, 2011 Glad that it didn't give you a bad shock! Sounds like a very dangerous situation. Glad it's sorted now. It was a tingle, but a verysolid tingle at that. I fortunately only got sprayed from the water from thespray bar, just thinking about it, asolid squirt without a break in the flow type of jet, so it would have been adifferent story had I shoved my hand in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobaltcraig Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Hi craig Most heaters made for the market place are not made to be fully submerged even though we all do it I am sure if you look at the heaters the are water level marks What I have been told for people in the industry is that when we do water changes with submerged heaters adding cool water then as it heats up water is drawn through the seal on to the element this can happen for years with no problem then all of a sudden bang I had a tronic heater that went the same way and I got a good sap of it but all the fish were ok If you look at some of the interenet stores who get there info from the manufactures you will see that unless stated fully submergable they arent Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted July 25, 2011 Author Share Posted July 25, 2011 Hi craig Most heaters made for the market place are not made to be fully submerged even though we all do it I am sure if you look at the heaters the are water level marks What I have been told for people in the industry is that when we do water changes with submerged heaters adding cool water then as it heats up water is drawn through the seal on to the element this can happen for years with no problem then all of a sudden bang I had a tronic heater that went the same way and I got a good sap of it but all the fish were ok If you look at some of the interenet stores who get there info from the manufactures you will see that unless stated fully submergable they arent Craig Yep, they aren't made to be fully submerged, but we all do it don't we. I am fully aware that their tops are not meant to go under water, but as you know, it can be difficult to organise, especially in a sump where the water level fluctuates, and even when at its full level a heater can't go vertically upright. I don't use cool water when I do water changes, it is always heated to somewhere near the tank's temperature, but I'd be surprised if water could get in with the temperature change you mention, as the rubber seal is squashed into the glass opening and not a net fit. That is, it holds its seal a bit like an O ring which can take pressure changes. But it might explain how water always does seem to condense inside the glass of most heaters, perhaps the rubber perishes and allows miniscule amounts of water to build up inside over time. Thanks for the comments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howard Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 Same thing happened to my oscar fry tank with the same sera heater! lost all fry and a once reliable heater. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquaholic Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 That usually happens when cold water hits a hot heater. I've done it a few times. Another down side of submersing a heater is the electrical cord goes stiff and then cracks. I got electrocuted once by a heater. Turn them of when you put your hand in a tank. No ones does it but people have died from faulty heaters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robdog013 Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 "No ones does it but people have died from faulty heaters" is this an accurate statement? are there any official reports that back this up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted July 26, 2011 Author Share Posted July 26, 2011 Would you believe I've hadan other Sera heater fail!! Had trouble with a spasmodicfault the last week, I thought the heater in the first photos was at fault. But the circuit breaker still kept ontripping off. I'd turned all the lights off and it still happened, and did thesame with the heaters, and was working my way one by one through the filters totry an isolate the issue. Trouble was, it would be hours or days before itwould trip out again. Came home this afternoon tothe tanks all off again, but this time, hey would only stay on for a few minutes at a time, which gave me an opportunity to work on the problem againand get fast results. Strangely I still couldn't isolate the trouble so I plugged all the gear to another power point on a different circuit breaker,thinking that perhaps the new circuit breaker was at fault. Well, there was amighty flare, a golden orange glow at one tank and before I could pull theplugs, an almighty BANG, and what a pong. This was the heater thatcaused it, don't understand why I could turn all the heaters off, and stillhave the circuit trip. Perhaps I have another issue brewing here. This makes it my third Seraheater that has tried to kill me. About an hour later Inoticed the few fish in the tank spinning out and dying. I caught them out andthey recovered in another tank. They must have been poisoned from toxins released in the explosion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robdog013 Posted July 26, 2011 Share Posted July 26, 2011 hmm better call in an electrician to check your wiring, one heater fair enough, but to have two heaters blow in extroardinary fashion indicates that there is a possibility of power surges etc hope you find the cause soon cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ducksta Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 There's a possibility that all the on/off's and surging associated with finding that first fault may have weakened some of the other gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattrox Posted July 27, 2011 Share Posted July 27, 2011 Or that if all the heaters were bought at once, they are ending their useful lives at the same time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted July 27, 2011 Author Share Posted July 27, 2011 Or that if all the heaters were bought at once, they are ending their useful lives at the same time? I did buy all the Sera heaters I had/have at the same time, but they have have died in the past as well as the two recent ones. I have decided the one that is still operating is coming out tonight, and will join its friends in the bin. Won't buy Sera heaters anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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