LarryD Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Does anyone have any experience with the cobalt neo therm heaters? My heater died and with the approaching winter I figured I should replace it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BornToHula Posted September 7, 2015 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Bulk reef supply had a recent video on heaters that was really good. They had good praise for the Cobalts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryD Posted September 7, 2015 Author Share Posted September 7, 2015 Ya I saw that video I have a buddy that owns a tank maintenance company that speaks highly of them also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
12_egg_omelette Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 I love my heater, rock solid! super slim. A couple of them had issues with them exploding but I believe that was tied to a single lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryD Posted September 8, 2015 Author Share Posted September 8, 2015 Ya I had read some reviews about that but decided that the people I had heard good things about the neo therm could be trusted so I went ahead and ordered a 100 watt unit last night, I also ordered the Red Sea reef energy combo pack since it was fairly cheap yesterday and I am trying to get some more growth so I figured I would give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jestep Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 They're really good heaters but stupidly expensive. I am currently using a via aqua titanium heater and it's so far been the best heater I've used. The external thermostat is really nice and I can buy 2 of them for the price of a single cobalt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryD Posted September 8, 2015 Author Share Posted September 8, 2015 I would agree with the neo therms being pretty steep in the price department but the added safety margin from the digital thermostats failing in the off state more often than not instead of the mechanical failure in the on position is worth a bit of a premium to me since I don't yet have a controller. My old heater failed on when the contacts got stuck, luckily I caught it before it could get more than a couple degrees above normal but I would much rather the heater fail off if I had to have it happen again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neon Reefer Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 I would be careful with the Reef Energy products. They are a combination of carbohydrates, amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins and protein with an emphasis on amino acids. The amino acids are usually all good as they seem to help form calcium skeletal tissue, but the addition of the carbs is sort of like carbon dosing so be sure you are skimming because it will increase bacterial growth which is good for bacteria living on the coral skeleton but also for the bacteria growing in the water column. If skimming hard it should lower your NO3 very slightly if there is sufficient PO4 in the water column to support the bacteria. This product does not add any PO4 to the water so if the addition of carbs does not result in additional bacteria then the result can be algae growth, just like carbon dosing. Go slow. Additionally the fatty acids can cause the skimmer to perform poorly due to what is called bubble popping due to the oil in the supplement. This bubble popping causes the foam in the skimmer to collapse and reduces or stops the skimmer from working properly. I guess it is always best to go slow. Oh and as far as the heaters go, any heater that won't explode on a Ranco controller about ~ $50 for the controller or any heater with a controller on a Reef controller. It all works out in the wash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryD Posted September 8, 2015 Author Share Posted September 8, 2015 I would be careful with the Reef Energy products. They are a combination of carbohydrates, amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins and protein with an emphasis on amino acids. The amino acids are usually all good as they seem to help form calcium skeletal tissue, but the addition of the carbs is sort of like carbon dosing so be sure you are skimming because it will increase bacterial growth which is good for bacteria living on the coral skeleton but also for the bacteria growing in the water column. If skimming hard it should lower your NO3 very slightly if there is sufficient PO4 in the water column to support the bacteria. This product does not add any PO4 to the water so if the addition of carbs does not result in additional bacteria then the result can be algae growth, just like carbon dosing. Go slow. Additionally the fatty acids can cause the skimmer to perform poorly due to what is called bubble popping due to the oil in the supplement. This bubble popping causes the foam in the skimmer to collapse and reduces or stops the skimmer from working properly. I guess it is always best to go slow. Oh and as far as the heaters go, any heater that won't explode on a Ranco controller about ~ $50 for the controller or any heater with a controller on a Reef controller. It all works out in the wash. Ya I had a buddy tell me that a client of his has a tank he is running reef energy on and that he has to skim pretty hard, my plan was to try it well below the recomended dose and see what happens. Though this could be what finally forces me to finally bite the bullet and buy a skimmer. Does anyone know of a reasonable nano skimmer that won't cost me an arm and a leg? I was looking at the reef octopus ns-80 as a possible option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted September 8, 2015 Share Posted September 8, 2015 They're really good heaters but stupidly expensive. I am currently using a via aqua titanium heater and it's so far been the best heater I've used. The external thermostat is really nice and I can buy 2 of them for the price of a single cobalt. I'm a big fan of these heaters too. I bought a 800-watt version without the controller and use my Apex to run it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryD Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 They're really good heaters but stupidly expensive. I am currently using a via aqua titanium heater and it's so far been the best heater I've used. The external thermostat is really nice and I can buy 2 of them for the price of a single cobalt. I'm a big fan of these heaters too. I bought a 800-watt version without the controller and use my Apex to run it.I wish you people would have told me this before I already ordered the neo therm.Tye what are your thoughts on whether or not skimming would be needed if I started using the reef energy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 I'd be very careful on the usage of the reef energy on such a small tank. Jolt does on his tank. You may want to ask him his dosage amounts as he initially dosed a higher amount than he does now. While skimmers are helpful on any size tank, for smaller tanks,I don't think they are worth it as a simple routine water change will take care of most of your nutrient export and even most of your foundation element supplementation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryD Posted September 9, 2015 Author Share Posted September 9, 2015 I'd be very careful on the usage of the reef energy on such a small tank. Jolt does on his tank. You may want to ask him his dosage amounts as he initially dosed a higher amount than he does now. While skimmers are helpful on any size tank, for smaller tanks,I don't think they are worth it as a simple routine water change will take care of most of your nutrient export and even most of your foundation element supplementation. That was my initial thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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