UFO Posted March 16, 2003 Share Posted March 16, 2003 Hi to all, I'm not sure if this is the correct place for this or if it's of any use to anyone but here it is anyway... I was concerned about the hardwater deposits and salts (unsure but think they must be from the hydro feed as well) gathering on me ol fish tank heater, i have taken one large plastic bottle and placed the heater inside (having first removed the neck of the bottle. i then filled with tap water and sealed the heater in the full bottle with silicon sealant, leaving the heat control adjustable bit free! i use a large water butt, and flood and drain, to add to my plight my growroom is outside and has no utilities (except power) so a large constant supply of water is pref! anyway, the results are pretty good, the water temps are fine (if not a little lower) and the heater/bottle look fine, the other benifit is that in the event of a fault/oversight and all the water being used, the heater will not burn out, due to it being sealed in the full bottle. as i said before, i'm not sure this will be of any use to most people, but i'm sure it can be scaled down here it is (not pretty) ufo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sal Posted March 16, 2003 Share Posted March 16, 2003 Wont the water in the bottle evaporate then you will melt the bottle to the heater a tad worser that salt build up i dont have any experiance with water heaters so i dont realy know its just a thought Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UFO Posted March 16, 2003 Author Share Posted March 16, 2003 Hi, No the water will not evapourate, the heaters have an thermostat on them regulating the heat, the water in the bottle will heat up and the surrounding water will act as a heat sink, slowly warming up as a result, i have used this bottle for a year now, and the heater is fine, the heater heats around 160ltrs of water, contained in a water butt, (buried outside) and keeps the temp at around 68f on frosty nights, if i didn't heat the water tha plants roots would die at the low temps also the nute's were being deposited on the heater without the bottle, it acts as a reasonable 'buffer' with no deposits being seen on the outer side of the bottle (as yet!) the heater does not come into contact with the plastic bottle, even when on it's side etc ufo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sal Posted March 17, 2003 Share Posted March 17, 2003 Looks like you come up with a good idea there ufo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UFO Posted March 17, 2003 Author Share Posted March 17, 2003 Thanks saldo1, This is the price we 'outside inside' grower's have to pay, i could carry water everyday, but this is just uncool and inpractical, i used to grow with soil, but looks kinda strange, bags and bags of soil etc dissapearing into a outside building so i switched to hydro i have access from the front of the building, but live behind it, typical ufo 'arse about face' stay happy ufo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
streaker Posted March 18, 2003 Share Posted March 18, 2003 Nice one UFO. I went through losing 3 heaters to evaporation in my cold grow room during the winter months. Now put pump intake above heater level so the tank stays wet and covered the tank! B) Plants stunted when cold and heaters are a must. Streaker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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