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njtiger24 aquariums

njtiger24 aquariums

Officer Emeritus
Article Contributor
Ok guys let try and get a good discussion going. There many different types of controllers out on the market. They rang in price and options. Lets discuss these controllers and their options. Add pictures of your wiring and your reviews.

I will start it off. As many of guys know I am working on building my own controller. You can find the full details about it here - Joys of DIY project

Model:
Custom Raspberry Pi

Options:
  • Temp sensor
  • 7in touch screen
  • 4 controllable outlet
  • email for maintenance
  • fields to log data just as equipment, live stock, maintenance schedule water parms, etc...
  • email and text alert for high/low temps
  • Still working on more
Pros:
  • Custom so I can make it how every I want
  • Cheap, so far the whole project cost around $150 for everything
Cons:
  • Custom so it takes time to get options I want (money and time for coding)
  • No support so if anything goes wrong its on me to fix
  • Not pretty looking as I develop everything

20160910_122943.jpg
 
J

justingraham

I have an apex classic with fmk wavs breakout box two eb8s

Pros
well I believe the wavs are the best price for a powerhead out there.
Control anywhere along with text if things go bad
Everything is pretty much apex ready
Fmk is ok

Cons
Some stuff is just overpriced like the Dos
If you have a problem and need to talk to someone well ur better off flying to cali and talking to them in person
U need a computer to do anything it's 2017 come on man


I wish I waited for ghl to be honest and this is just what I have seen. Terrance has been very cocky lately i.e. it's not the product that's bad it's the user and I just don't like how they are heading. And this is just my opinion on what has happened with me and what I have read.
image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg
If u wanna see a video Scott did one two or three weeks ago and is on the interweb/YouTube.
 
Trio91

Trio91

Administrator
Staff member
Moderator
Apex Jr with an EB8 and VDM for ramping my Kessil light 20170627_070916.jpg 20170627_070925.jpg 20170627_070933.jpg 20170627_070942.jpg

Pros:
  • I won the apex Jr unit in a raffle a long with the MPR unit.
  • Email's me/sends texts in case of an emergency
  • Online platform
  • Can cotrol from phone or tablet
Cons:
  • Way over priced compared to other units. I would have never purchased this if I hadnt won it
  • For the classic units, any additional wants require extra modules. So for a PH probe, you need to buy the probe and the module separately (unless you find a pkg)
  • They have an app only for iPhone users....and just the website for android.
  • Software upgrades are a nightmare to do and very frustrating.
  • If it wasn't for youtube videos, I would've never have figured out the coding...in my opinion the apex forum is useless
  • Phone/tablet frequently looses sync with base unit...causing remote access to become useless as well
If I had to purchase a controller, I would've gotten me a reef keeper unit
 
J

justingraham

trio91 said:
Apex Jr with an EB8 and VDM for ramping my Kessil light View attachment 16191 View attachment 16192 View attachment 16193 View attachment 16194

Pros:
  • I won the apex Jr unit in a raffle a long with the MPR unit.
  • Email's me/sends texts in case of an emergency
  • Online platform
  • Can cotrol from phone or tablet
Cons:
  • Way over priced compared to other units. I would have never purchased this if I hadnt won it
  • For the classic units, any additional wants require extra modules. So for a PH probe, you need to buy the probe and the module separately (unless you find a pkg)
  • They have an app only for iPhone users....and just the website for android.
  • Software upgrades are a nightmare to do and very frustrating.
  • If it wasn't for youtube videos, I would've never have figured out the coding...in my opinion the apex forum is useless
  • Phone/tablet frequently looses sync with base unit...causing remote access to become useless as well
If I had to purchase a controller, I would've gotten me a reef keeper unit
Click to expand...
U really would go with the reef keeper over the apex? I could understand a ghl but a reef keeper?
 
NyteGTI

NyteGTI

justingraham said:
U really would go with the reef keeper over the apex? I could understand a ghl but a reef keeper?
Click to expand...

I had a RKL & loved it. was simple to program, did everything the apex could do at the time. APEX has grown leaps & bounds in terms of modules over RK.
But if all you're looking for is light control, timers, top off, temp control, & pump control the RK will do it for roughly half the price.
now if you need the web interface, graphing, etc that APEX does.. then you're out of luck. It all comes down to needs vs wants.
 
freshoffthegrill

freshoffthegrill

I run an Apex 2016 version. I had a Reefkeeper on my old tank went for the upgrade on the 120G.

I travel a lot and tank automation was a must to protect the livestock in the tank and to preserve my marriage. I have my Radions and Vortechs on the WXM module, I recently got the ATK an upgrade from the JBJ/Aqualifter set-up. I run the Dos for dosing now as well.

Pros:

One stop shop for programming my equipment. Remote monitoring and customization of programming. Logging water parameters and being able to collect and compare data.

Cons. No Vectra integration. Price.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk
 
Trio91

Trio91

Administrator
Staff member
Moderator
freshoffthegrill said:
I run an Apex 2016 version. I had a Reefkeeper on my old tank went for the upgrade on the 120G.

I travel a lot and tank automation was a must to protect the livestock in the tank and to preserve my marriage. I have my Radions and Vortechs on the WXM module, I recently got the ATK an upgrade from the JBJ/Aqualifter set-up. I run the Dos for dosing now as well.

Pros:

One stop shop for programming my equipment. Remote monitoring and customization of programming. Logging water parameters and being able to collect and compare data.

Cons. No Vectra integration. Price.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
how do you like the ATK so far? I thought about getting one myself. It sux for folks that already purchased the pmup before its release.....it's things like that, that turn me away from Apex
 
freshoffthegrill

freshoffthegrill

trio91 said:
how do you like the ATK so far? I thought about getting one myself. It sux for folks that already purchased the pmup before its release.....it's things like that, that turn me away from Apex
Click to expand...
I waited for the ATK as a package for that reason. I like it so far. The redundancy features are good. The logic for fill rates and error messaging is what won me over in comparison to the Tunze. With all Apex products there is a premium price attached, but I think the customization and programmability make it better than other controller options on the market.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk
 
J

justingraham

Maby it's because I grew up in the tech age but I don't think Alex programming is that hard. Now for some of the harder codes I will agree it can be tricky.

Now I looked into a rkl I think don't u need an extra module to go online and check ur params?

Programming aside once set up u can see what ur tank is doing by going in fusion plus the added ability to graph ur params and match it out is awesome. Like every time I clean my tank I noticed a little less uptake of alk that day.

Like I said if I could I would go ghl but this is what I have so I will make the best of it.
 
njtiger24 aquariums

njtiger24 aquariums

Officer Emeritus
Article Contributor
I would first like to say I have not used an APEX or really looked into their whole system yet but with that said their fusion system concerns me. Being an IT person I know how scary a cloud system can be. Good rule of thumb is if you can access it so can other people (like hackers). You might think well they can only control my fish tank so whats the big deal? Hackers can use devices like that to gain access to other secure devices, like computers, POS systems, home automation, etc..... I try not to use services (but I do have some that I trust) like those. The system I'm coding I can access remotely using something called a VPN.

Also another concern of mine with the fusion is what happens when you lose connection to their server? Does the head end unit stop working or does it runs as normal?
 
freshoffthegrill

freshoffthegrill

njtiger24 aquariums said:
I would first like to say I have not used an APEX or really looked into their whole system yet but with that said their fusion system concerns me. Being an IT person I know how scary a cloud system can be. Good rule of thumb is if you can access it so can other people (like hackers). You might think well they can only control my fish tank so whats the big deal? Hackers can use devices like that to gain access to other secure devices, like computers, POS systems, home automation, etc..... I try not to use services (but I do have some that I trust) like those. The system I'm coding I can access remotely using something called a VPN.

Also another concern of mine with the fusion is what happens when you lose connection to their server? Does the head end unit stop working or does it runs as normal?
Click to expand...
The controller and additional modules have lines of code for that reason. For example my Vortechs have a line of code "Fallback On" which means the pump will run if communication is lost with the head unit.

Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk
 
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