Controller questions.

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Spotted

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Dec 3, 2011
Messages
274
Location
Sunny South Florida
Looking for a highly customizable controller.
I want to be able to run an ato on the controller. But I will have it fed directly from a ro/di filter. I want sensors to detect levels so the controller will need to switch on and off a water control solenoid. On top of that I want to be able to control another solenoid to flush the membrane before topping off. Will something do that or am I asking too much?
 
I know my controller. the reefkeeper can do that. You might have to get another module for the second set of sensors though. My out of the box one controls my ATO and has another sensor port left since I only used one float sensor.
 
Which reef keeper do you have? What I want is like this:
1 water level gets low controller sayd ok we need water, but first let me open this switch for 5 minutes (open valve to flush ro membrane) then close it, after that open this switch (ro/di output to fill tank/sump/whatever), ok tank/sump if full enough now close all switches.
Also to control lights and ph and also test water parameters, and what parameters can they reliably test for? Calcium, ph, salinity, phosphate, the big 3 (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate)? Can they do all these?
 
you can do as many commands as you can think of, as long as you have a switch to set off you can assign that switch any operation, open on **event** close after 5 minutes. I hope I'm explaining it right. lol I have the reefkeeper elite, it has the ability to have I think 63 modules attached to it, the reefkeeper lite only lets you attach 4. the basic head unit comes with 2 switches available and you can buy extra switch modules as well. take a look at their home page, it's digital aquatics. :)

As far as testing and monitoring, it can do ph, salinity, temperature and orp. It can do things based on that information, like I have my heater on all the time but if the temp gets to a certain point I have it turn my heater off.
 
I just got the reefkeeper lite and I love it. Only thing that sux is I didn't know I need to buy a bus cable with the package I got. So I can't run my ato with the float, or hook up my ph probe. So just a heads up marinedepot.com has a good deal on the lite with the sl1 and ph probe for 180. But u need a bus cable to hook up the sl1 which u need for a float switch.
 
Oh and Carey. I thought u used the tunze top off? Digital aquatics needs to make an eye like the tunze. I bet they would sell the heck out of it. I did a quick search last night to find an industrial one I could rig up but didn't come up with anything. I'm gonna look again now.
 
I was using a JBJ top off which is now being used on the 90g since I got the controller. :) I love this thing, I even have my powerheads making a wave in my tank lol, very cool....
 
Thanks a lot for the input guys.
I still got a lot more to look at just between the RKL and RKE!!
Gotta love the internet. I am totally confused by the Reef Angel. Maybe a lil more research...
 
The only real difference between the rke and the rkl is how many modules you can hook up to it. If you only plan to run one tank the rkl is most likely all you'll need. I would seriously look at that angel though. This is the first time I've seen it and it looks like the most bang for the buck, and possibly most expandable. I'm seriously thinking about packing up the rkl and going that route.
 
i like the reef angel system, if you don't mind doign your own codign and havign the abilitiy to change things to suit your liking its a great system, and its cheaper then the others with all the same bells and whistles.

i woudl avoid hooking a ATO directly to the RO/DI unit, i would fill up a resevoir and fill it, ATOs tend to filter better under constant flow, so filling up a 5 gallon bucket with RO water in one show will make the water slightly purer then if you filled the bucket with a total of 5 times to get the same amount of water
 
I think that's y he wants to do the flush. But yea I agree. Seems much less complicated. And your ato is a great way to dose.
 
well its a great way to dose kalk thats for sure, but some times kalk doesn't dose enough cal/alk so dosing pumps are needed, either way most aquacontrollers are able to do both so there is no need to worry, but an aquacontroller won't allow water to be fed from a RO unit, you would need a float valve
 
I'll probably always dose kalk even if, or when, that isn't enough. Then supplement with two part. That's my plan anyways. You could use the aquacontroller to activate a solenoid. U would still need a float switch though. Or possibly a optical eye which I'm in search of now :)
 
One word: PROFILUX.

I assume you want to back flush your RO system to increase membrane life. If that's so, you should know producing small quantities of RO water (as in ATO) cause premature exhaustion. I'd suggest you top off from a reservoir (even a 5 gal bucket).

Your setup would be similar except you would have a level sensor set low in the bucket. When it gets almost empty, it flushes your membrane then fills the bucket.
 
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