Condensation? Inside heater

[firstlight10]

I removed my old glass heater (submersible Aquaclear) from my tank to replace it with a titanium one and I am working on trying to get it cleaned to use for a spare. I did a 12 hour soak in 10:1 water and white vinegar, today I noticed what appears to be condensation inside of it. Should I be concerned about this?

[LargeAngels]

It is not worth trying to reuse a heater. One of the most common aquarium product to fail. I'd throw it out.

[gweston]

Water in a heater turns to steam, and BOOM! Or at least it is a risk. I'd toss the old one.

I keep a questionable heater on hand and only use it to heat a water change bucket. It isn't on all the time, only when needed. Less risk. I'd rather make a bucket of fresh salt water toxic with a failed heater than risk livestock.

[firstlight10]

Thanks for the advice guys, I decided to throw the questionable heater away. It served me well for 2 years in my reef tank and a couple more years in various freshwater and brackish water setups I had. I don't want to risk any damage by using it again. I keep a couple order, smaller heaters on hand for mixing saltwater and for use as a spare in case my primary heater goes down.

[moondoggy4]

I spoke with the Eheim rep and they had a issue with condensation on there heaters she stated for their model it was not or is a issue, the problem was when they changed the color inside the tube it made it possible to see the condensation. So I guess this is relevant to Eheim's, so I guess this would be a good time to buy one 0f theirs they are good heaters.

[firstlight10]

I replaced this heater with a Finnex 200 watt titanium heater with digital controller, it may have had condensation in it before that I didn't notice as the heater was buried behind live rock. The reason for the replacement was I wanted a more powerful heater that is also more stable.