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Thread: Heater help

  1. #1
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    Heater help

    Ok. I have 2 150w jeagar heaters in my sump. One is plugged into outlet 8 on my eb8, and the other heater 2 is plugged into outlet 4 on my eb4. The reason i put one on each power bar is because they are older models and wanted them plugged into proper outlets. So i did the programming with turning on at 77. 5 and off at 78.5. Heater one is off temp probe 1 and heater 2 is off a second temp probe for safety reasons. Everything worked fine last night and this morning according to the log but i just looked at my log and now my heater 1 is not working. Heater 2 has been on since 230 this afternoon trying to heat the tank. Why is the other heater not turning on? The bar is set to auto. I originally moved them to those respective outlets because was having same problem when plugged into outlet 4 and 8 on same bar. I am very frustrated as this should be simple and complicated as not doing any fancy programming. Used the apex task setup for them.

  2. #2
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Those 150w heaters only draw a little over 1 amp. They can be used on ANY EnergyBar outlet, including the TRIAC outlets on an EB8 (1-3 & 5-7). Personally, I would use them on the TRIAC outlets, not the relay-switched outlets.

    What are each of the temp probes reading?

    Is the #1 heater even coming on? Test it by putting the slider for that outlet in the ON position and look for the orange indicator lamp in the heater to light. What is the heater #1's built in thermostat set to? It should be a degree or 2 higher than your programming high temp point of 78.5. While EJ heaters are among the most reliable heaters IMO, I have seen a couple where the thermostat is just dead wrong - I have to set the dial to about 85F to get it to turn on/off in the high 70s.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

  3. #3
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    I appreciate the help. I moved both heaters to different outlets, played with the heaters temp set on the heater itself, and it definitely seemed to be odd because when I switched the heater plugs around, had the same problem with the other heater. Both heaters work so the heaters are not the issue. I redid the program to put them both on the same temp probe this time and run from 77.5 to 78.5 degrees. My tank usually runs between 78 to 79 or so so I figured that was a good set point. Both are on right now so I will monitor throughout the day. Just have no idea why that happened.

  4. #4
    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Surfside74 View Post
    I appreciate the help. I moved both heaters to different outlets, played with the heaters temp set on the heater itself, and it definitely seemed to be odd because when I switched the heater plugs around, had the same problem with the other heater. Both heaters work so the heaters are not the issue. I redid the program to put them both on the same temp probe this time and run from 77.5 to 78.5 degrees. My tank usually runs between 78 to 79 or so so I figured that was a good set point. Both are on right now so I will monitor throughout the day. Just have no idea why that happened.
    If the two different temp probes don't match exactly, you can have the situation where the temp dropped enough on one of the temp probes to turn on one of the heaters, but the heat generated from that heater was enough to prevent the other probe from dropping enough to ever turn the other heater on. This can actually be beneficial as it slows the heat rise and makes temps more stable.

    Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

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    They are usually the same with maybe a .1 degree difference. The problem was that both probes would say to turn on but the second one never did. Seems to be working now after moving them off of the relay outlets and onto #3 an #7 outlets. We will see.
    Quote Originally Posted by zombie View Post
    If the two different temp probes don't match exactly, you can have the situation where the temp dropped enough on one of the temp probes to turn on one of the heaters, but the heat generated from that heater was enough to prevent the other probe from dropping enough to ever turn the other heater on. This can actually be beneficial as it slows the heat rise and makes temps more stable.

    Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

  6. #6
    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Surfside74 View Post
    They are usually the same with maybe a .1 degree difference. The problem was that both probes would say to turn on but the second one never did. Seems to be working now after moving them off of the relay outlets and onto #3 an #7 outlets. We will see.
    Did the temp actually drop below the lower setpoint for the second one?

    Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by zombie View Post
    Did the temp actually drop below the lower setpoint for the second one?

    Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
    I believe it did but by that time the first one was starting heating the water up. It was definitely something with the apex and not the heaters so after redoing it it seems to work. Not sure what happened but at least its fixed. for now. LOL

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