Aquarium Controllers? Whats the Hype?

M

Musbtr1pin

New member
So whats all the hype I am hearing about these controllers... I have recently invested my savings into a 180 gallon reef tank... I never knew the costs could be so much. I am pleased to say tho, that I am extremely satisfied with what I see now.

I have heard about aquarium controllers, and just how functional they really can be. I have heard great things and bad things and well, lets face it, when your spending a Cool 500 Dollars, you'd expect to not have the thing take a dump on you 6 months after you purchase it.

So here is where I stand, is it worth the money to purchase one of these bad boys? I have two on my mind, and they are the Neptune Apex Pro and The Reef Keeper Pro

What are you're thoughts???? :wavehand: Chow
 
Either one is worth the money imo. Even my half broken Reef keeper 2 where one of the buttons doesnt work is awesome. Controller = money well spent.
 
They are worth every penny. Some will disagree with me but never plug your return pump into a controller. It is not a good idea. You don't want it setup so a failed controller equals a dead tank.
 
I have been looking at these not just for less upkeep but for safety also. I think ive narrowed it down to the reef keeper lite L3 plus. I have to put about 3 gallons a day into my tank which isn't a big deal to do but it will be less stressfull for the freshwater to enter the tank slowly with a small auto top off pump, plus ill have heater safety, auto top off safety, audible alarms, ph probe and a good amount of timers for fans to come on if too hot, lights, moonlights.
Just a nice tool for the price.
 
it's certainly a novelty but now that I have my AC3, I would never have a large tank without one. It's nice being able to control your power outlets especially with the amount of equipment that is necessary for a large tank. (6 sets of lights, calcium reactor via pH probe, heater, chiller, etc.) The programability is awesome. Once you get the hang of it, you can program your entire tank within 10-20 minutes. The net module for the RK or using the ethernet capabilities on the Neptune are must. Aquanotes even has a Iphone App.... It's cool getting my temperature and pH readings and controlling the outlets with my iPhone. I even have a DNS hosted so I can view and control my tank from anywhere I have internet connection including 3G.
 
I have the RKL lite plus and absolutely love it.

I have connected to it 3 PC4s and the SL1 module.

So far it controls
- all my lights, which is nice when you run T5s and have 2 plugs + separate moon lights.
- heaters for fail safe, I actually had one that got stuck on
- if for whatever reason my sump leaks/plumbing leaks or whichever I have a float valve setup to kill my pump, also if the water level gets too high (say my ATO sticking on since I gravity feed) it will cut the pump and ring the alarm
- ability to turn off the skimmer, return, and vortechs with prsesing standby for when I feed with the press of a button is nice
- large display to see temperature right away and ph
- expandability, they are working on their salinity probe, which at that point I will most likely purchase.

The only reason not to get one is if $ is tight, otherwise go for it!
 
Profilux. Expensive but awesome. I am monitoring my tanks on the same computer while I am doing RC.
 
I see controllers as being like a car with an automatic transmission. I don't want an automatic in my cool sports car. I want a 6 speed and I want the control. It keeps my attention on driving. NOT having a controller keeps my attention on the tank. If I had a controller I'd fall asleep at the wheel, kill some coral and not even notice! LOL!
 
I really like my rkl,even if powers goes out for a few minutes or a couple of hours the programming is retained,no need in haveing to reset timers.Mine runs lights,heaters,fans for cooling,temp and ph.Money well spent.
 
Ron Reefman said:
I see controllers as being like a car with an automatic transmission. I don't want an automatic in my cool sports car. I want a 6 speed and I want the control. It keeps my attention on driving. NOT having a controller keeps my attention on the tank. If I had a controller I'd fall asleep at the wheel, kill some coral and not even notice! LOL!
Click to expand...

I drive a car with a 6 speed manual transmission but drive an aquarium with a controller. :)

I love the convenience of the controller, but more than that I love the safety. I can set it to do things like kill my lights if the temperature gets too high. I have one of my power strips (energy bars as Neptune calls them) plugged into a UPS. The controller is programmed to shut down most of the equipment except for the powerheads during a power outage. For convenience I like that when I shut down my pump it will automatically kill the protein skimmer, heater, chiller, ATO, etc. Then when the pump starts up I can sequence when I want the other items to be enabled.
 
A basic controller is far cheaper than $500 and can save you thousands. The upper end models are great but they're not the only way to control the tank. Don't forget about the upcoming Apex Jr. either that will be quite impressive at only $150.
 
Ron Reefman said:
I see controllers as being like a car with an automatic transmission. I don't want an automatic in my cool sports car. I want a 6 speed and I want the control. It keeps my attention on driving. NOT having a controller keeps my attention on the tank. If I had a controller I'd fall asleep at the wheel, kill some coral and not even notice! LOL!
Click to expand...

i'm prety sure you are using timers for lights and pumps unless you have a wave maker !!!
so unless you sit there switching pumps on and off all day and open and close the lights with the cycle of daylights then actinics :spin2: you are basicaly doing what a controler does but instead of having just 1 unit to control things you have a bunch of timers..
plus having a temp probe hooked up with the heaters gives you a fail safe if something goes wrong...and all of the other cool things you can do with one..

i'm sure your doing a great job:) but imo a controler is worth it all the way..

steff
 
I used to feel they were a luxury, but at this point in my life, I like the idea that it's watching things while I can go about my own and it will tell me when I need to address something. Takes care of ATO, lighting and will shut down a broken heater that would have wiped the tank. That last one alone provides peace of mind. If I had a larger system, I would have it do more to reduce some of the maintenance such as automated water changes. It's not "hype" as you're suggesting, but it's also not necessary. However in my case I feel I wouldn't want to do without it.
 
Ron Reefman said:
I see controllers as being like a car with an automatic transmission. I don't want an automatic in my cool sports car. I want a 6 speed and I want the control. It keeps my attention on driving. NOT having a controller keeps my attention on the tank. If I had a controller I'd fall asleep at the wheel, kill some coral and not even notice! LOL!
Click to expand...

No offense Ron, but this doesn't make a lot of sense. Unless you 'drive' your tank and are watching it 24/7 the tank and it's inhabitants are safer under the oversight of the controller. I don't have time to sit next to my tank 24/7 (what with a job, wife, 2 kids under 5, etc.). My Apex allows me to monitor everything from my office or anywhere in the world with the Aquanotes app. Plus it ensures my heaters don't kill everything, my pumps don't flood anything, the fish stay fed if I'm traveling, lights come on and off when they're supposed to, and I have mine set up to even do a 2% water change daily...automatically.

I realize this is a luxury item, but frankly this HOBBY is a luxury item. I have a 34gal nano reef at my office that has never been on a controller and is nearly 6yrs stable. You can obviously be successful in this hobby without a controller, but the only way I would choose to forgo a controller was if I absolutely couldn't afford it and like somebody else said, you don't have to spend $500. If you can't afford $200 for that kind of control and piece of mind I'm not sure this is the right hobby for you. IMO only!
 
So why do some prefer the ReefKeeper and others prefer the APEX? (what are the positives/negatives with each)

-Chad
 
IMO controllers are great for things that need or benefit from some kind of control, or gain protection from a failed state (heaters, topoff, lighting, controllable power heads etc.), but if it is a situation that needs no controlling (i.e. return pump, non-controlled power head, skimmer etc.), there is no reason to add another possibility of failure into the equation.
 
I would never say they're a novelty, but a neccesity for those who know how to use them properly. For instance, their is no point in getting an Apex or Elite if u can't hook up the web accessed and setup the alarms.

Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
 
gofor100 said:
So why do some prefer the ReefKeeper and others prefer the APEX? (what are the positives/negatives with each)

-Chad
Click to expand...

I don't think either are without fault. I went with the Apex after reading HOURS of threads on the subject of comparing them. The general consensus is that the Apex programming and support is better.
 
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