recommendations regarding products...

[robstopper]

Hi guys,

First off, I'd like to outline my current goals to see what you'd recommend.

I've started noticing that anytime i can do something slowly (temp, salinity, calcium, alk, blah blah). This being said, I picked up a cheap e-bay dosing pump. Its proven to be somewhat reliable, though requires almost weekly calibration, and frankly I don't trust it due to that.

I'm thinking about getting a 4 channel to do the following:

1- part 1 - alkalinity
2- part 2 - calcium
3- water change, old out
4- water change, new in -- water change done at 5 gallons every two weeks with a 60 gallon tank, 20 gallon sump... i think that should be about right.

Now for the fun part -- i've been fortunate enough for my LFS to have a customer buy one who didn't have time to figure it out. The owner didn't have time, and none of their staff are technically inclined. The owner has been out of town for a while, so i've been using a 4 channel with an integrated controller for the last week or two.

Now I'm debating ditching my apex aqua controller in favor of some type of setup for you guys. I don't know that I need the big huge setup, something like the apex lite would work fine. I know this is going to be more than the 150 i paid for the apex, but from the reviews i've seen, the expandability is simply ridiculous for this setup. my budget is somewhere in the 800 range, and i know the doser will take the majority of that.

Open to any suggestions!

 

[robstopper]

Also -- with the doser - i have it set for 24 automatic dosings a day... If I set it for 20ml, does that mean its going to dose 20ml 24 times a day, or 20ml a day, in total? I'm assuming 20ml 24 times a day, but I honestly think that might be the only part of the instructions that were even remotely confusing to me!

 

[BigAl2007]

I think you'll be amazed with the quality, dependability and the FLEXIBILITY if you go with GHL. I know there were some "Specials" in months past with "Doser Deals" but I don't see anything current right now.

Once you go ProfiLux you never go back

 

[BigAl2007]

Here is a great vidoe (by a 3rd party so it's unbiased) discussing the "Stand Alone (SA)" doser by GHL. It gives an idea of how much quality goes into GHL products start to finish.

http://youtu.be/JqvH18511uc

 

[AQD_ottawa]

HI Rob,

Firstly dosers are not designed to handle the volume of water to do water changes not only that they are too slow, imagine doing a water change at a rate of 60ml a minute! But yes GHL build the best doser on the market, proven time and time again, cheap does not buy you anything that will cost you more in the short term.

GHL starts at $599, however that is the plus II, I really would opt for the P3 to gain the long term expandability and the less requirement to update in the future, look at GHL as a one time purchase of a controller than something you have to replace in 3 years. In this case go for the P3 starter pack at $799 this will give you all you need right now and have the ability for you to grow as your needs grow.

I know this blows you budget, but you have a stand alone doser right now from what you have said and although this will not plug into the ProfiLux controller you still have a GHL doser, in the future you can sell off the SA doser and buy a slave.

 

[DonaldLL]

I assume Robstopper is talking about doing 5 gals water change total spread over a 14 day period. This would equate to about 60ml per hour x 24 hrs/day x 14 days. Could he not achieve this end result using the GHL doser?

 

[AQD_ottawa]

Yes he can this is no problem as the dose amount is small enough