Thanks Everyone!
I think my main problem with heat comes down to faulty heaters. In addition, I think there may be some efficiency to be found by switching to titanium heaters.
Two of the heaters are having issues with their thermostats (they are all brand new). I have replaced one for now and will replace all of them sometime soon.
I did take temperature readings throughout the tank to look for hot spots. I anticipated finding them, but in reality the water temperature is fairly constant throughout the system. When the heaters are on, the temperature in the return chamber of the sump can rise about .4F, but overall that seems inconsequential and it stabilizes within seconds of turning the heaters off.
I'll likely pick up 3x 500W titanium heaters the first chance I get.
I do find it somewhat ironic that I expected to save energy by going with LED lighting. It looks like the cost savings in PAR per watt, will be offset by the cost of heating the tank. It will probably still be a little cheaper, but not by much.
Anyways, it was an interesting topic to research. I'd never really given much thought to it in the past.
- Brad
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