temp probe problem

[jwalker314]

not really sure where to start....

this morning i noticed a piece of my sps was bleached, so i put my hand in the tank to move it to a spot with less light and realized the tank water was freezing. I checked my apex and it started 78.4 degrees. That didn't make sense to me. So i grabbed a small water thermostat i have in another tank and threw it in there. Temp was 71 degrees.

after reviewing the graph it appears my tank has been like that since the 19th. I haven't paid much attention to my tank as i've been working a real lot lately (9am to 12am on average)

I unplugged my apex and it went back to normal, so a few questions:

1. Why did this happen?

2. My unit is less than a year old, is something like this covered under warranty?

3. How could I have prevented it going this long without an alarm? maybe possibly writing somethign into the code:

if the temp stays consistant for lets say 4hrs then email + alarm or whatever
since typically my tank temp goes up and down from 77.9 to 78

thanks in advance

-John

 

[Deleted member 143833]

I've never seen this happen but yes, it sounds like it would be covered if there is a problem with the unit. Have the lights and things been working correctly? Is your firmware up to date?

I can't think of any way to program what you ask; I use a PM module to have 2 probes in the tank for temp (figuring chances of both going bad would be rare).

Maybe email support@neptunesys.com and see what they say.

How did you verfy the issue; what about the graphs led you to feel the issue happened the 19th?

 

[aquamanic]

Because it's so easy to monitor your tank, with the various mobile apps, remote access, etc. I look at my graphs every single day, even when I'm doing international travel. I think had this happened in my tank, seeing the temp flatline would have been the red flag. My temp rises and falls like clockwork throughout the day and this would have been a clear sign something was wrong.

However you could put together some logic with a virtual outlet and the 'if time' statement that might give you a warning that something is wrong. If you know your temp should rise during the day when your MH lights are on for example, you could put something together like this:

Set OFF
IF Temp < 78 Then ON
IF Time 18:00 - 10:00 Then OFF

Then set your email alarm if this outlet is ON. It would alarm you if the temp was less than 78 degrees during the day. You'd have to play with the time and temp to tune it to your tank but you get the idea.

 

[jwalker314]

the reason i know it started on the 19th is that the graph started to flatline on that date.

Also that statement about the temp not rising during the day is a good idea as my temp always gets higher than the set level for the heaters (78 degrees) at least while the halides are on.

I will try and call tech support as soon as I have time available.

Also I was having issues with my temp probe and ph probe before that i posted about and after unplugging my variable speed ports and changing the firmware to a lower version I haven't seen a related problem, except that my second ph probe is stuck reading 6.73 even if its next to the first ph probe thats reading 8 or so. It will probably be best for me to call them for some help. My fish/corals must hate me...first i have a problem with heaters stuck on and tank getting up to 85 degrees and now i have problems with tank getting too cold. I am surprised that other than my small sps frag beaching that I haven't had any other issues.

as always thanks for the advice guys!

-John

 

[kurt_n]

I'm a belt and suspenders type of guy, so I've got one of these on my tank also...

http://www.petsolutions.com/storefr...gital-temp-alert/prodBigDigitalTempAlert.html

Granted, it doesn't email you but at least it's a secondary measurement you can see and it can beep at you if it goes below/above your setpoints.

 

[daboxbandit]

I'm in the same boat. Last night, I went to feed the fish and felt the water was way to cold. I looked on Apex display and read 78.8 degrees. No way was it that warm. So I grabbed my digital thermometer and Mercury thermometer, verified both were reading the same using a cup of water then used both to measure the tank water. Both devices read 71 degrees while the Neptune Temp Probe still read 78. WTH?? I wanted to call Neptune today, but didn't get a chance to. I'm going to try and "init memory" my Apex unit just to see what happens since Neptune might be closed for New Years weekend. Worth a shot I guess..

I'm running 4.04_BC10.. Everything was working fine for 4 weeks till last night. :thumbdown

 

[Deleted member 143833]

I'd suggest sending email to support@neptunesys.com; just on case and to let them know; maybe there is a bug and if you get just the right steps something causes the temp to stop reporting. Personally I've not seen (or heard) of this before but that is me.

 

[jwalker314]

thats crazy, those were the exact parameters of my tank, actual temp was 71, and apex read 78.8 degrees. I will try and shoot them an email over the weekend or a phone call on monday. ill post my results to what i find.

 

[preef]

I haven't had this issue but I was nervous about this happening. I use two heaters. One controlled by the Apex and another as a backup not controlled by the Apex. The set point of the backup is below my Apex set point.

 

[daboxbandit]

I performed my first "init memory" on the unit on Friday morning and, so far, the temp probe is within .5 to 1.0 degree off from the digital thermometer which is within tolerance. I'd still be curious to know Neptune would have to say though. The other plus is the Java App seems to respond a hella lot faster than before and doesn't hang as much.. :thumbsup: