It Could Have Been Bad

[Reeefer]

Sooo, it's about 1:00 AM last night and I'm dead asleep. My wife wakes me up in a panic. She smelled smoke and when she went to the edge of the stairs, she could here the battery backup alarms on the tanks going off signifying a power failure downstairs. A Coralife digital timed outllet had begun to arc. It shorted out the entire circuit in the room which the majority of the tanks are on. It was about to catch fire and was smoldering. :eek1: It turns out that this is not the first time this has happened to somebody with this product. I also found negative information on the dual analog timed units. It doesn't matter whether it is Zilla or Coralife. Why are these products still on the shelves?

This is the third time my wife's bionic nose has saved our a$$es (All 3 times due to something with a saltwater tank). Thanks babe, I love you! :bounce2:

Sooo, I need to replace the other two timebombs waiting to happen. What timers are you guys using? I use some of the analog ones for some of my other equipment, but I'd rather go the digital route for all the lighting. What digital timers are you guys using? It looks like the standard heavy duty is 1875W,125V, and 15A with a battery backup. Is one brand better than another as I see they range from $13 to $25? How about a timer that lets you plug two items into it? i.e. I could plug both 250s into one timer and both 400s into another. It could save a few bucks, but is that more risky? Should I go with 4? Any wisdom is appreciated.

 

[frontosa_man80]

why not buy a controller?

http://www.digitalaquatics.com/

-jesse

 

[JMCAquarium]

"emerges from the shadows"

Homedepot digi Timer, $19.99, sold in light switch/plug section, made for outdoor use , water resistant, duel plug in,

"Back into the Shadows"

 

[lockekeyy]

Good to hear that nothing worse happened. Is it all Coralife timers that are prone to this or just the digital?

 

[Reeefer]

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1789312&highlight=Coralife+timer

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1667960&highlight=Coralife+timer

Maybe it is only the digital model?

 

[Reeefer]

why not buy a controller?

http://www.digitalaquatics.com/

-jesse

Why this company over the others? Anyone with controllers?

 

[ADA33]

Why this company over the others? Anyone with controllers?

I would of suggested the same ones. There are lots of different types of controllers. These are easy to set up and are a good price.

 

[Marsha]

I have both the coralife controllers and they seem to work but now that you have pointed out that they may be a problem i am a little worried.

 

[Turbovr3six]

Neptune and DA have nice controllers. from what ive read its a prefrence thing... i think its a win-win either way... and hey, its an excuse to tell the Wifey that you need it w/o her thinking your just "wasting money"...Maybe she'll let u grab one of the loaded ones with probes and ethernet adapters for like $400-$600 since she keeps catching the problem....:idea:

If i were you id get the internet add-on that either company maked... they both have iphone apps that will alert you if somthing is wrong, allos you to turn on/off lights pumps skimmers etc., and you and just plain check your phone for the stat on your tank at any given time anywhere... i think thats a dope feature...

 

[nrannalli]

I would go with the Neptune Apex if you have the cash. The DA controllers are nice (I have the Lite) but they are way behind the Apex as far as software and remote configuration goes(a biggie IMO). Also as I found out to late the upgrade option from lite to the elite is a rip off you are better off just buying the elite. One thing the DA controllers have going for them is they are really easy to use. But IMO I don't think they will ever catch up to Neptune.

 

[scorpiocasper]

Thanks for the heads up. We have had our coralife for awhile now (years?) with no issues, but I will be keeping my ears and nose tuned now.

Ps, glad to see you are still lurking in the shadows JMC.

 

[reefrandy]

after dealing with timers for every thing i bought a DA for $99 and it does everything this one is worth the money i bought a second one for the additional outlets

 

[FiReC]

I would go with the Neptune Apex if you have the cash. The DA controllers are nice (I have the Lite) but they are way behind the Apex as far as software and remote configuration goes(a biggie IMO). Also as I found out to late the upgrade option from lite to the elite is a rip off you are better off just buying the elite. One thing the DA controllers have going for them is they are really easy to use. But IMO I don't think they will ever catch up to Neptune.

agreed, have the digital aquatics elite myself and wishing I would have went apex for the remote/pc config.

 

[jjk_reef00]

I had a DA for a while and had nothing but problems with it. Don't waste your money. I got a profilux and just love it. When it comes to controllers you get what you pay for. It is much better built than RKE.

 

[KRASHPD]

The Apex is very nice but expensive. An Aquacontroller Jr is a great deal and more then adequate for most tanks. You get everything you need except for the ph probe for about $200. I would stay away from the coralife timers.

 

[fishesgonewild]

Mine Coralife went away yesterday, no sense in tempting fate, I have already done that too many times in my life...

An aside, GOOD to see you emerge from the shadows Jonathan, please do it more often

 

[K' Family Reef]

common 'sense' says that water/electricity are a dangerous combination!

highly recom
having a SMOKE ALARM close to/very near any sized AQUARIUM...
in this case although your Wife might have a great olfactory sense (and perhaps saved the day)... on this (and another) occasion


there might be a time one is NOT so lucky!



i keep 1 smoke alarm attached to the back of the canopy
and one in the bottom of the stand (in all our aquariums)... one never really knows what MIGHT happen... old faulty equipment, water spills or leaks etc etc... there are so many possibilities some obvious many not so obvious that its not worth taking chances where electricity/water are involved... besides it might not be a bad idea for someone to check their homeowners insurance policy to make certain they are covered in the event of a fire caused by an aquarium (heard that some companies were putting limitations on this)...


smoke alarms are an especially inexpensive security measure
that everyone might consider in their reef/fishkeeping plans... i purchased a pack of smoke alarms at sams club for maybe 10bucks for a package of 5 or 6 alarms...

regards