Aquatronica
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TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
I'll give it a try.
RobbyG
Active member
MoneyPit the search works without being a paying member 
LOL before I paid I could not search even at 1am. It is totaly worth the money.
BTW your ELOS review is eagerly being waited on by a bunch of us, you lucky dog
BTW if you want to buy me an ELOS system I dont mind paying the duty 
Who knows you may be Bill Gates Nephew so it dont hurt to ask
LOL before I paid I could not search even at 1am. It is totaly worth the money.
BTW your ELOS review is eagerly being waited on by a bunch of us, you lucky dog
BTW if you want to buy me an ELOS system I dont mind paying the duty Who knows you may be Bill Gates Nephew so it dont hurt to ask
RobbyG
Active member
Update #3
Got some water straight from the Ocean and guess what the good old AQ is reading... Yep 1045.5 This means that my Salinity was never high :wildone:, the AQ seems to now be stuck with a wrong Calibration value.
Now thoughts run through my mind, did I submerge the probe deep enough during calibration, is the memory somehow corrupted on the unit? Tonight I am going to recalibrate again and if that does not work I am going to reset the unit.
The Cheapo swing arm unit is saying 1.028 and I am not going to add any more RO because real seawater is reading 1.029. Nick and the rest of you are Right, those Swing Arm units are Crap but at least they give a consistently bad reading
. BTW I Hinted to the wife about a Refractometer and she in turn asked me how much I had spent on the Tank last month,, Yep like any real beef eating man I lifted up my head Clenched my fist then left the room quickly and silently.:lol2:
Got some water straight from the Ocean and guess what the good old AQ is reading... Yep 1045.5 This means that my Salinity was never high :wildone:, the AQ seems to now be stuck with a wrong Calibration value.
Now thoughts run through my mind, did I submerge the probe deep enough during calibration, is the memory somehow corrupted on the unit? Tonight I am going to recalibrate again and if that does not work I am going to reset the unit.
The Cheapo swing arm unit is saying 1.028 and I am not going to add any more RO because real seawater is reading 1.029. Nick and the rest of you are Right, those Swing Arm units are Crap but at least they give a consistently bad reading
. BTW I Hinted to the wife about a Refractometer and she in turn asked me how much I had spent on the Tank last month,, Yep like any real beef eating man I lifted up my head Clenched my fist then left the room quickly and silently.:lol2:
TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
I wish, I would call him right now for a loan to help pay for some frags I ordered from frag farmer; Purple Bonzai, Oregon Tort, Tyree Purple Monster, Tyree Pink polyed Cap and a nice green cap with purple rim and white polyps. I've spent way too much money lately.
I'm eager to get my hands on the thing. I think the SMS module will really be helpful not to mention some of the really cool addons being released next month at Interzoo.
Anyone know how Aquatronica will do their SMS? Will it be celluar? CDMA or GSM?
RobbyG
Active member
Update #4
Well I learned a valuable lesson last night. Last post I said that I was worried that maybe I had not submerged the probe deep enough in the calibration fluid. Bingo that was it.
I always dip the probe into the bottle, and for the previous 3 calibrations it was fine but of course each time I use it the fluid level in the bottle drops a little, well this time it dropped just enough that the fluid was about 1/8" below the top band on the probe. With the probes cover on I could not see this so last night I opened the probe and marked a white line at a spot on the cover that was just at the Top of metal band and thats when I saw the problem. Now I get a reading of 1027.3 in the Tank which is very close to what the Seachem unit is reading.
One thing that is still true is that the Salinity probe seems to need calibration often, my probe was giving me a steady reading of approx 1.025 for the last 5 weeks while in truth the salinity had risen to at least 1.029 during that period. It was not until I did this calibration that the probe revealed how high the salinity really was.
Well I learned a valuable lesson last night. Last post I said that I was worried that maybe I had not submerged the probe deep enough in the calibration fluid. Bingo that was it.
I always dip the probe into the bottle, and for the previous 3 calibrations it was fine but of course each time I use it the fluid level in the bottle drops a little, well this time it dropped just enough that the fluid was about 1/8" below the top band on the probe. With the probes cover on I could not see this so last night I opened the probe and marked a white line at a spot on the cover that was just at the Top of metal band and thats when I saw the problem. Now I get a reading of 1027.3 in the Tank which is very close to what the Seachem unit is reading.
One thing that is still true is that the Salinity probe seems to need calibration often, my probe was giving me a steady reading of approx 1.025 for the last 5 weeks while in truth the salinity had risen to at least 1.029 during that period. It was not until I did this calibration that the probe revealed how high the salinity really was.
RobbyG
Active member
Dont know about the SMS except that they are showing it at Interzoo. BTW good news in that the Webserver is being tested and is on track for display at Interzoo so we should at least get a good look at it on May 15th.
BTW Moneypit when are you going to start an ELOS thread? For now you could post some pics from there catalog and give us a low down on what you ordered.
BTW Moneypit when are you going to start an ELOS thread? For now you could post some pics from there catalog and give us a low down on what you ordered.
TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
Bebo,
It's a little pricey ($2400), but that comes with the SMS module as well. Give Jesse a call and maybe you guys can work something out. When I get it you should stop by and take a look at it. Where in L.A. are you?
As soon as I get the thing I will be posting tons of photos in an Elos thread. Having owned a couple other controllers, including the Aquatronica, I will be posting some comparisons as well as a general review of the options. Elos has a couple new accessories coming in May that I'm really excited about. I'm really hoping it's worth the cost. But if that thing starts rusting I will blow a gasket.
I'm getting the controller, SMS module, power bar, temp probe, salinity module and probe, and 2 pH probes. It comes with calibration and cleaning fluid for the probes. The probes are refillable, I guess that means the probes never need to be replaced, just refilled.
TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
BTW how long did it take you to get you "I support RC" logo?
Money Pit,
If you don't mind sharing the info, how much are the other ELOS items that you mentioned or does the $2,400 include:
power bar,
temp probe,
salinity module with probe,
2 - pH probes
Thanks.
I haven't used any of my aquatronic stuff yet (new in December) because after reading this thread, I am wary of all of the problems that many seem to report.
Thanks,
GLD
Tulsa, OK
If you don't mind sharing the info, how much are the other ELOS items that you mentioned or does the $2,400 include:
power bar,
temp probe,
salinity module with probe,
2 - pH probes
Thanks.
I haven't used any of my aquatronic stuff yet (new in December) because after reading this thread, I am wary of all of the problems that many seem to report.
Thanks,
GLD
Tulsa, OK
PHEW! Just finished reading all 30 pages of this thread since the split! Took all day off and on but I am very more informed now. I will be calibrating my PH probe tomorrow for the first time so I hope all goes well. Also, question on the power cut feature...
How would I set plugs A and B to not turn on for 20 minutes after a power outage? I read the manual but it looks like these actions only happen if the power is out for more the 1 hour. How can I make it so if the power goes out, then do not turn plugs A or B on for 20 minutes so my MH can cool down?
I will be calibrating my PH probe tomorrow for the first time so I hope all goes well. Also, question on the power cut feature...How would I set plugs A and B to not turn on for 20 minutes after a power outage? I read the manual but it looks like these actions only happen if the power is out for more the 1 hour. How can I make it so if the power goes out, then do not turn plugs A or B on for 20 minutes so my MH can cool down?
TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
In all fairness Aquatronica is a good controller. The problems I had were directly related to the salinity probe rusting and followed by what I considered a lack of customer service. All I need to hear when I've purchased a $1200 controller that starts giving sporadic readings a few months after purchase is, "we'll take care of it". Not a ****ing match with Ron. In contrast, Jesse (from Elos) has spent, literally, hours on the phone with me telling me about his products. You can tell that he really believes in the Elos line and I know if I ever have any problems he will correct them quickly. The bottom line is most people buy controllers to simplify their lives, not add countless hours of frustration and maintenance.
TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
Sorry, the price only includes the controller, sms module, power strip, temp probe, ph probe and calibration/cleaning fluids. But if enough people contact Jesse he may be able to work with you on price.
Newbury Park is north of Calabasas, near Westlake and Thousand Oaks. It takes me about 40 minutes (3 hours with traffic LOL) to get downtown.
Newbury Park is north of Calabasas, near Westlake and Thousand Oaks. It takes me about 40 minutes (3 hours with traffic LOL) to get downtown.
Untamed12
New member
I liked what I saw about the ELOS controller, but that price scares me off. I'm also interested in hearing how it goes.
I got a quote on the AMACS system, but their system priced me out also. The trouble with their system is that there really is no way to enter into it at a low cost. You really have to spend over $1500 before you start adding probes. Once there, however, it seems like you could do absolutely anything.
Also...I could not find a single person with any experience with the AMACS system...and that worried me.
I got a quote on the AMACS system, but their system priced me out also. The trouble with their system is that there really is no way to enter into it at a low cost. You really have to spend over $1500 before you start adding probes. Once there, however, it seems like you could do absolutely anything.
Also...I could not find a single person with any experience with the AMACS system...and that worried me.
RobbyG
Active member
Any controller you buy is going to have problems, the good part about th AQ is that no one has had problems that could kill your tank out right. Some other controllers have problems like power bars getting stuck on or off and that is a real disaster. In contrast we have had rust accumilating on the Salinity probe and a pH probe that could not calibrate for some people. Not bad and considering that AQ does regular software updates at least you know the problems will get fixed.
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TheMoneyPit
Premium Member
The AMACS systems and Elos are totally different as far as esthetic's are concerned. I really like the look of the ELOS.
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