Dosing Pump Units - Which One?

[BrklynArch]

Any doser you buy will need servicing this is correct, 3 months is a max based on high useage but 6 months cleaning and annual replacement for any doser peri tube is recommended. The APEX is absolutely no different and if "any" manufacturer told anyone they did not need replacing I will be very concerned with that advise

No manufacturer made that claim, I beleive the DOS has a quick snap release for the one piece replacement tube....no fuss just pop out and replace. The others require motor head disassembly and alignment of rollers etc. the apex just seems easier to maintain.

Rollers NEVER need replacing there is no service part for them or price as you literally cant buy them

No you can't buy the rollers seperatly, had to buy the $60 replacement head because I was made to think that there was not enough grip on the motor shaft caused by degrading rollers.

If a doser loses prime its near impossible due to the design for it to be the pump itself, (im talking German and or other quality units, GHL etc, not cheap chinese units like BM etc where tolerances are very poor) all dosers use rollers which squeeze the pipe in either two or 3 locations, prime loss is always an issue with air seal of the pipe from the dosing container to the dosing unit itself.

I have replaced the lines, the connections the vessels every possible thing I could think of and still the motor runs but pulls nothing. If I switch the intake to my one functioning pump head it will draw liquid, so I'm not sure about air seal problems.

These are important things to remember for anyone investing in a doser, service is key dosers are mechanical and will need intervention, this is 100% normal.

Agreed, the DOS just seems like an easier to maintain


The screen with the old doser went through a limited batch run where the pins would lift from the doser board, this was rectified in 2013. The new doser has no screen - no problem

Still leaves me with a twice busted screen that will cost me additional money to now replace.

The new GHL doser 2 uses German built high grade stepper motors not small brush driven DC motors you find in older style units and in other manufacturer units also. Having said that the older GHL doser used German motors and were pretty bullet proof.

They sure look like the same small brush motors with the same small diameter tubing.

Hope that helps more so when looking for new dosers and the requirement for servicing, this is important for any doser someone buys.

 

[AQD_ottawa]

Just to clarify the GHL has German built stepper motors it would not be able to dose below 1ml otherwise.

The DOS seems a very expensive option with only two pumps and requiring the Apex to run it, so its a difficult comparison to the GHL doser 2 or the PS unit. I hope for apex users they bring out an expanded unit for those that want to dose 3 part.

 

[GSMclowns]

If you want more feature like water changes and other stuffs, then I don't know what to recommend. But if you only want to dose Alk and Cal, then BRS dosers might be just what you are looking for. I have them for about 3 years now. and both of them have been working great so far. 2 Timers = 40 bucks. 2 BRS doser on sale = 120 dollars. So for about 160 bucks, you can dose Alk and Cal. It doesn't look nice and clean with all the Timer and that black doser, but it is reliable and reasonable price.

 

[Raul-7]

Just to clarify the GHL has German built stepper motors it would not be able to dose below 1ml otherwise.

The DOS seems a very expensive option with only two pumps and requiring the Apex to run it, so its a difficult comparison to the GHL doser 2 or the PS unit. I hope for apex users they bring out an expanded unit for those that want to dose 3 part.

Agreed. 2 part seems very limited; but their unit is very robust and industrial-like - not sure it's cost effective to have more than 2 heads.

 

[smatter]

Litermeter 3 is a great solution too. You can add up to 3 slave pumps for a total of 4 pumps. It's easily calibrate-able to insure accuracy and can be programmed to dose as much as you want. What ever you set it to will be divided up over the course of a 24 hour period to insure slow dosing.[/QUOTE

Multiple trouble-free units in operation since 1998. :beer:

 

[Reefvet]

My GHL has run dependably for years.

 

[Reefvet]

What ever you set it to will be divided up over the course of a 24 hour period to insure slow dosing.

Which is their biggest limitation. I have 3 of them sitting in the garage because I need pumps that I can dose smaller amounts with.

With the GHLs I've been using for the last few years I can set 1ml or more for dose 1-24 times a day.

I'll buy the Neptune systems pumps for water changes, not dosing. I currently use Masterflex dual channel pumps for that now on my larger tanks.

 

[iceet]

My GHL Doser 2 came in and I just finished installing it. I used rigid 1/4 inch RO tubing because it was neater than airline tubing which has a tendency to curl. So far I love this thing. I have it hooked up to my router via an Ethernet cable. I can access it from my laptop as long I'm on the network. If I open the port on my router I should be able to access the doser and monitor it from anywhere in the world, but I don't need that just yet. You could remotely dose stuff if you had to. That's pretty nifty if you're someone that likes to travel. I have an iPhone and GHL has not completed their app for the iOS platform yet (but the Android version is complete).

The only thing I need to mention is when setting up this thing to use LAN or wireless LAN, you have to power this unit off then on again before it accesses your router. At least I had to (took the unit 2 resets to access my router). But now it is working flawlessly. Another thing is to reset your computer after installing the GHL software or it acts funny.

Network/software setup issues aside the unit is great. After dosing by hand for so long I'm glad I finally got one. I just did not want to trust my tank to a cheap Bubble Magus or Jebao when I was patient enough to buy quality equipment in other areas of my tank (lighting, skimmer). No offense to anyone who has one of those units, I just waited until I had enough money for a GHL.

Here's to not having to dose by hand ever again (hopefully)
:celeb3::bdaysmile:

 

[garyinco]

My Litermeter is 10 years old and is running like the day I bought it.

 

[AQD_ottawa]

The only thing I need to mention is when setting up this thing to use LAN or wireless LAN, you have to power this unit off then on again before it accesses your router. At least I had to (took the unit 2 resets to access my router). But now it is working flawlessly. Another thing is to reset your computer after installing the GHL software or it acts funny.

Thanks for the great feedback. Although the manual does mention the time delay in loading the set up wifi settings, a few people have missed this so I am going to make it more apparent in the manual. I am away right now but will be doing a full tutorial on my return for plug and play set up :dance:

 

[iceet]

Thanks for the great feedback. Although the manual does mention the time delay in loading the set up wifi settings, a few people have missed this so I am going to make it more apparent in the manual. I am away right now but will be doing a full tutorial on my return for plug and play set up :dance:

That is a great idea and would be much appreciated by future users. All in all the GHL Control Center is very intuitive. One more thing I need to mention is you want your doser 2 to pull a static ip. The static ip you use will then be entered into the "host name" field. If you use a dynamic ip it may change in the future depending on your router, which would be a pain.