Well.. I guess my marine land 200 watt will not cut it this winter, I walked in to find all of my LPS shrunken and just plain looking unhappy, so I checked the water parameters and all tested out perfectly. But I did notice that the water felt cold. So I checked the temp and I was sitting at 71. Cranked up the heater and all of the LPS have puffed back up and are looking awesome again. Tank temp is currently 79ish. It was originally set at 78 now is at 82 with the ambient being increased from 65 to 70.
So after my investigation I would say that this heater just wont cut it like my old one did (died).
what shall I replace it with (unsure on wattage) and want a good reliable brand.
I like the Finnex heaters as well, but I also swear by the eheim Jager heaters. Solidly built, decent price and rugged. I run a 300w on my 70 gallon system and have had the same heater for three years. They are long, however, so make sure you have plenty of room.
If you can swing it, a full controller (APEX, reef angel, ReefKeeper, ect) will give you so much more functionality. Then your current heater can still be used.
That'll do. But you'll likely end up wanting features that come standard on the full or lite. If/when that happens then, you'll need to buy modules and an EB-8 (outlets). Going that route will end up costing more. Keep an eye out for a used system in the sale forums. Or post a WTB ad and see what happens.
Please don't get me wrong, the Finnex setup may be an excellent piece of equipment. I have no experience using one. But you'll get way more BANG (for a lotta buck) if you go APEX.