almost lost my reef! best controller?

[SuperSaltwater]

stupid water pump stop pumping to my chiller and it overheated to 85f+. i noticed stressed coral and did a 10 gallon water change and then i noticed the hot water. saved in time, all the coral is super stressed but i think it should mostly survive. i have a 40 breeder and dont want this to happen again, whats the best controller out there. i do not trust Mr. Saltwater biased opinion or those youtube stars who get free stuff to call it the best. lmk what you think is the best reef controller. :headwally:

 

[mikeatjac]

After using both GHL and apex my vote goes to Apex. Easier to program with fusion and the dashboard shows all the info you want it to.

 

[mikeatjac]

Some Apex Fusion examples.

Example of the dashboard



Example of programming DOS. Volume and time frame.



Dosing Log page one. Note Fusion has done all the math for you. So it is dosing 1.3 ml about every ten minutes for about 66 doses to get to my set 85ml in the programming above.

 

[ca1ore]

Who know what's best. I use apex and know folks that use GHL, both more than meet regular needs, though neither is completely foolproof. I bough apex because it seems to have the more regular stream of new features.

 

[Sonyardo]

I've been using aquatronica that I bought years ago used. Never had an issue. I don't have experience with any others. They are not mainstream in the US, but it Is a quality unit worth considering.

 

[mikeatjac]

Who know what's best. I use apex and know folks that use GHL, both more than meet regular needs, though neither is completely foolproof. I bough apex because it seems to have the more regular stream of new features.

I am NOT saying one is better than anything else. I am saying that Apex/Fusion is easier to program than GHL and the dashboard is better. I have not used any other controllers.

 

[coralfish]

I've had Apex for many years now, way back when they had the AquaController II...upgraded to the AquaController III (which is still running). I now have the Apex 2016. I love the ability to easily program my outlets and to monitor/control everything remotely.

Before I got the Apex 2016 I looked at all the other controllers and decided that Neptune Systems had been in business for a long time, I like their customer support (I get responses, usually via email even on weekends and holidays), they are easy to program and monitor remotely.



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[ca1ore]

I am NOT saying one is better than anything else. I am saying that Apex/Fusion is easier to program than GHL and the dashboard is better. I have not used any other controllers.

That's fine, though my post was a response to the OP, not a response to your response to the OP; otherwise I'd have quoted you. Perfectly Ok to proclaim a 'best'; I just try not to because it always ends up seeming overly parochial.

 

[swnoob]

I have owned an Apex classic since they were first released. I will not buy another Neptunes product and plan on switching to GHL when funds permit.

I've had 3 apex displays and 2 EB8 go bad in those years. Countless times i've had to deal with their support team.

They never answer their phones and when you do get an email it will be a 1-2 sentance response every 24 hours. What can take a few minutes over the phone ends up taking over a week of email exchanges. Most of these times they'll just tell you to ship it to them for repair or sometimes or will say that you'll need to buy a new one.

I have to manually power reset my Apex every day because if i don't one or both of my ph probes will stop giving a reading. Sometimes its the temp sensor that stops.

Never again.

 

[SuperSaltwater]

I have owned an Apex classic since they were first released. I will not buy another Neptunes product and plan on switching to GHL when funds permit.

I've had 3 apex displays and 2 EB8 go bad in those years. Countless times i've had to deal with their support team.

They never answer their phones and when you do get an email it will be a 1-2 sentance response every 24 hours. What can take a few minutes over the phone ends up taking over a week of email exchanges. Most of these times they'll just tell you to ship it to them for repair or sometimes or will say that you'll need to buy a new one.

I have to manually power reset my Apex every day because if i don't one or both of my ph probes will stop giving a reading. Sometimes its the temp sensor that stops.

Never again.

Thanks for that info, when you say GHL what controller is that.

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[scuzy]

Ghl profilux

 

[ca1ore]

I would take people with an axe to grind with a big grain of salt. Not suggesting their experiences are untrue, just that some folks either do not look after their gear and/or have unrealistic expectations about what constitutes acceptable customer service (particularly from a small company). My own, now rather extensive, Apex installation has proven to be highly reliable after using it for 4 years. Interactions with Neptune, when necessary, have been handled perfectly acceptably. I also own some GHL equipment, most notably the Doser 2 plus slave. It's performed well, though when I did have an issue it was harder to get an answer.

 

[ReefCowboy]

IMHO GHL and Apex are excellent controllers. If GHL had a bigger presence here in the US, they would be a top choice for many more. Neptune has excellent support, when I had some issues with the 2016 apex(when it came out) they contacted me 4 times on a sunday trying to help. That is a big statement to me.

I also like that Neptune has come out with many gadgets lately basically supporting most needs of the hobbyists. The alk monitor is next, hope to get my hands on it soon

 

[SuperSaltwater]

Just went through brs reviews and Amazon reviews for apex. Seems like a lot of really bad experiences and I will have to pass on risking that. That's to bad, looks like a good product. Many reviews mention how they got screwed or slow back and forth emails...

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[Blabomb]

I have been using the reef keeper lite. For the price it's a really good value buy. For someone like me that isn't ready for all of the bells and whistles that come with the apex and similar controllers it's exactly what I need.

 

[swnoob]

I would take people with an axe to grind with a big grain of salt. Not suggesting their experiences are untrue, just that some folks either do not look after their gear and/or have unrealistic expectations about what constitutes acceptable customer service (particularly from a small company). My own, now rather extensive, Apex installation has proven to be highly reliable after using it for 4 years. Interactions with Neptune, when necessary, have been handled perfectly acceptably. I also own some GHL equipment, most notably the Doser 2 plus slave. It's performed well, though when I did have an issue it was harder to get an answer.

Don't assume everyone with a bad experience or bad review has an axe to grind or doesn't know how take care of their equipment.

Apex is a good tool when it works. Unfortunately to buggy for me.

Good thing the OP did some research on his own and found quite a few of these apex owners had the same concerns or issues.

 

[SuperSaltwater]

I have been using the reef keeper lite. For the price it's a really good value buy. For someone like me that isn't ready for all of the bells and whistles that come with the apex and similar controllers it's exactly what I need.

Someone just sold me a reef keeper setup for $75 shipped. I paid on PayPal and met on a reef page on facebook. Hope I didn't get highway robbed. I attached a photo of what they sending me.

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[Blabomb]

Someone just sold me a reef keeper setup for $75 shipped. I paid on PayPal and met on a reef page on facebook. Hope I didn't get highway robbed. I attached a photo of what they sending me.

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I think you'll be very happy with the reefkeeper controller because of the simplicity of it. It took me 10 minutes of playing around with the settings to do what I needed. I think other controllers require programming? From what I understand you can buy upgrade packages to give you mobil alerts and all the other extras if you decide to do that down the road. Plus at $75 thats a steal!

 

[SuperSaltwater]

I think you'll be very happy with the reefkeeper controller because of the simplicity of it. It took me 10 minutes of playing around with the settings to do what I needed. I think other controllers require programming? From what I understand you can buy upgrade packages to give you mobil alerts and all the other extras if you decide to do that down the road. Plus at $75 thats a steal!

What probes would you recommend or upgrades. Thanks

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[Blabomb]

What probes would you recommend or upgrades. Thanks

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Unfortunately I only own the light version so I don't know all the details about the more advanced options. Hopefully someone with a little more knowledge can be of more help.