temperature swings and coral stress

[dawnflux]

My tank's been having wild temp swings lately, like 74 to 82 in a day. My Zoanthids are looking rough, kinda closed up. Anyone else deal with this? Running a 40-gallon with a cheap heater, maybe that's the issue.

[goldfinch]

Yo, that heater's sketchy for sure. Gonna need something more reliable, like an Eheim. My SPS tank stays within 0.5 degrees using one. What's your room temp like? Big swings there can mess with things.

[vortex9]

I've seen similar issues when my AC was acting up. Stable room temp helps a lot. Also, check if your heater's near a powerhead, might be causing uneven heating.

[drifter]

Yo, that heater's sketchy for sure. Gonna need something more reliable, like an Eheim. My SPS tank stays within 0.5 degrees using one. What's your room temp like? Big swings there can mess with things.

Second the Eheim recommendation. I run two in my 75-gallon for redundancy. Also, consider a controller like the Inkbird to cut power if things go haywire.

[Stellaluna]

Temp swings are brutal on LPS too. My Duncanopsammia retracted for days after a spike. A controller saved my tank last summer when the AC died.

[dawnflux]

Thanks, all. Room temp's pretty stable, so it's gotta be the heater. Gonna grab an Eheim and a controller this weekend.

[goldfinch]

Smart move. Let us know how it goes. Oh, and don't forget to acclimate the new heater slowly, or you'll shock the system.

[vortex9]

Temp swings are brutal on LPS too. My Duncanopsammia retracted for days after a spike. A controller saved my tank last summer when the AC died.

Yeah, LPS are drama queens with temp. My Acans took weeks to bounce back after a similar incident.

[drifter]

For real, redundancy is key. I lost a whole colony of Montipora once because a heater stuck on. Never again. Now I run dual heaters and a controller.

[Stellaluna]

For real, redundancy is key. I lost a whole colony of Montipora once because a heater stuck on. Never again. Now I run dual heaters and a controller.

Exactly. It's not just about swings, but failures too. A backup heater's cheaper than replacing corals.