Run away heater?

Question

My heater in my tank malfunctioned and never shut off and was smoking some. Fish died :( . On a lighter note the ghost shrimp survied. How much heat can most fish take? When i checked the temp of mine it was about 93 degress :(

Answer 1

usually not over 72 degrees... those poor things. I'm so sorry for your loss!!!!

Here is what I found out. Cold water carries more oxygen, warmer water carries less. Warmer water means your fish has to work harder to breathe and can get sick easier. Cold water means that they can breathe easy but you have to make sure it's not too cold or they go dormant. The only times you should raise your temperature is if you're trying to get rid of a parasite.

Answer 2

It depends on the fish (each species/individual has a different tolerance), how fast the temperature change occurs (they can tolerate wider changes if they happen gradually), and how much circulation/aeration there is on the tank (warm water holds less oxygen, but creates a higher demand for oxygen - it also increases bacterial reproduction of both good and bad bacteria). Most tropical fish are okay into the mid 80s.

Although fishkeepers don't like to think about it, most heaters have a limited life - usually about 5-7 years.

Sorry to hear about the loss of the fish.

ADDITION: Without knowing the fish species involved that you're asking about, 72o may be too low - if these are tropical fish, the temperature should be 76-82o for most. Below 76o is for coldwater species.

Answer 3

Some breeds are hardier than others and can somewhat withstand extreme variances in temp. I do hope you have a replacement heater that is adjustable. I still have a few of the old style that have no adjustment on them. Talk about a lot of fun trying to figure out what size tank they were designed for. You don't state how long this was maintained before it was noticed but I'm assuming it was more than a day. Goldfish and hardier breeds may survive this but few fish are going to. In winter we tend to run ours a bit higher around 78 just in case there is a power outage that way we have a bit if leeway before things get drastic. Good Luck!!