New Tank setup...not sure what to do about TOPOFF

[kbreese]

The setup i bought came with a kent Aquadoser, but I can't get this thing to drip into my sump. I think I need it elevated too high.

tank is AGA 75g with AGA stand and canopy (classic oak series) and I need something that doesn't take up too much room or doesn't need to be elevated way up in the air. I live in an apartment and don't see how I could keep the rodi tapped into a water line as far as that goes. Unless it could be plumbed underneath the kitchen sink and run into the living room somehow. I don't know, I 'm confused.. lol

right now I just keep having to add water to the sump every couple hours so the salinity doens't increase too much. I just put a piece of scoth tape in sump ant level where I starteed and keep lookin in and when its like a half inch below I keep dumping more water in from a tub I have of extra rodi water.

[cyclgrl]

If money is no object, then the Litermeter is the way to go as long as you don't have a problem with making adjustments for seasonal changes in climate.

[nysbadmk8]

I use 3-5 gallon kent aquadose's elevated above the tank, I need to refill every week.

[rbaker]

Along the same lines as cyclgrl's recommendation. I've used a "Reef Filler" for almost 15 years. It's still in my basement pumping away...

http://www.championlighting.com/pics/doserpics/reeffiller.jpg

JMO,

Ryan

[kbreese]

a local guy here on RC is selling his reef stuff and has a Lifereef float switch and solenoid and is asking $120. What do you guys think about this?

nysbadmk8, I have no way of elevating that 5 gallon jug that high. I don't really want to have to build a custom shelf just for that.

Money of course is an object, but how much is this litermeter thing?

[cyclgrl]

litermeter 3 is $300 retail. Sometimes you can find an older version used, or one on ebay for cheaper.

http://www.spectrapure.com/St_prec_p0.htm

I think something like it is well-worth the investment if you are planning to dose kalk as well. Too many crashes recently due to saltwater being pumped out for some reason and then the floatswitch replacing all the lost water with kalk/topoff.

[Puffer Daddy]

Well..another vote for the litermeter...I got one and it's the best thing so far. Practicaly fool proof...too many threads talking about problems with float switches, etc....Although, i will admit there are some systems pretty fool proof, but this is plug and play. It keeps my water perfect..no risk of flood. Not that cheap..but not too out of reach. Plus, you can run 3 pumps off of one unit, even do water in/out (ongoing water changes)...heres a link for ya..you may find it cheaper somehwere else, but not much i imagine...http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=PA&Product_Code=SP-LITERMETER3&Category_Code=Dosers

[kbreese]

Thanks guys but for the record, I don't plan on dosing kalk, at least I don't think so b/c I am getting a Ca reactor which should take care of that. The Ca reactor wouldn't have any effect on litermeter or vice versa would it?

[cyclgrl]

One shouldn't affect the other, tho you could still use it for just top off (or dosing anything else you want to dose). I originally used my litermeter for just topoff.

[kbreese]

I'm going tocheck out a tunze osmolator and see if it is cheaper since I don't won't likely need to dose anything b/c of the ca reactor.

Also, how does that litermeter work. I see two inlet tubes sticking up from the end of it. Do you just connect a hose to one and drop it in your topoff supply bucket and than connect a hose to the other and drop it in your sump?

[Scuba Dog]

A tunze osmulator is a great top off system, and kalk can be dumped in the resavore and dosed that way or though a kalk reactor, and several people use both a calcium Rx and a Kalk Rx together in there systems......The tunze set up is 160 bucks through marine depot

[PRC]

If you're interested in doing a little wiring you can build your own topoff system with about $30 worth of parts from McMaster Carr. There are plans in the DIY forum. I built one a few months ago and it's been working flawlessly since then.

[kbreese]

Hmm, that price (half the price of the litermeter) on the tunze sounds a lot more reasonable!

Than I also found this system too (half the price of the tunze):
http://www.reeffanatic.com/cgi-bin/mas/category.cgi?item=CT_RFLC

[kbreese]

Ahh, I think I realize why the reefanatic system cost's half as much...I don't think it includes a pump. The tunze does right?

[MiddletonMark]

You need to refill with top-up every couple of hours?

How much evaporation are you having? How big of a SG swing?

IMO that seems an awful lot of top-off or very little `swing'. Just my opinion ... but my 58 w/ 2 MH's evaporates about 1 gallon a day ... which I normally do about half in the morning before work, about half in the evening. Maybe not ideal, but nothing in the tank seems to mind that heavily with this practice.

For going out of town a few days - that's when it gets tricky - as I need to `super-top-up' and then it does range in SG over a couple of days ... but on 75g + sump ... I'd think that a gallon should not that radically swing the SG.
[gotta go home and measure like mad for a few days, see what effect this is on my tank]

Just a thought.

On my 40 I have a DIY one [with a float + additional higher-placed float for `emergency off' switch] ... just hooked into a bucket of RO with hose and a Maxijet. Works like a charm and fairly cheap.

Been tempted by a litermiter ... but still skeptical - as seasonal variation for me is a lot.

[kbreese]

Originally posted by MiddletonMark
You need to refill with top-up every couple of hours?

How much evaporation are you having? How big of a SG swing?

IMO that seems an awful lot of top-off or very little `swing'. Just my opinion ... but my 58 w/ 2 MH's evaporates about 1 gallon a day ... which I normally do about half in the morning before work, about half in the evening. Maybe not ideal, but nothing in the tank seems to mind that heavily with this practice.

For going out of town a few days - that's when it gets tricky - as I need to `super-top-up' and then it does range in SG over a couple of days ... but on 75g + sump ... I'd think that a gallon should not that radically swing the SG.
[gotta go home and measure like mad for a few days, see what effect this is on my tank]

Just a thought.

On my 40 I have a DIY one [with a float + additional higher-placed float for `emergency off' switch] ... just hooked into a bucket of RO with hose and a Maxijet. Works like a charm and fairly cheap.

Been tempted by a litermiter ... but still skeptical - as seasonal variation for me is a lot.

When i say every few hours, it's only about I don't know maybe 10-15 ounces of water I am adding say every four hours or so when the lights are on and than in the morning I add maybe 20-25 ounces I think. This is just a rough estimate. I just didn't know how much it affected the salinity level. I am new and was just being cautious. I would think a gallon would be too much of a swing and anything more than that not good, I don't really know for sure...

[MiddletonMark]

Hmm ... sounds like an experiment I need to conduct at home with the water-change water and my refractometer :D

[Alaskan Reefer]

You can go way cheaper than a Litermeter at reefdosing.com -- they sell refurbished hospital peristaltic pumps and warranty them for a year. I have a Kangaroo 324, for which I paid $99 including shipping -- and it's awesome. The exact same principal as the Litermeter, and it's fully adjustable with a digital keypad. You can buy three of these for the cost of one Litermeter and get the same results...

[kbreese]

Originally posted by MiddletonMark
Hmm ... sounds like an experiment I need to conduct at home with the water-change water and my refractometer :D

Well I just figured out almost exactly how much Water I lost. I just had to add 10 cups or 2.3L to get it back to the line it was at when I left this morning at 7:30am and it's not 6:30pm. So thats the amount od water it lost in 11 hours. So that would come out to about 21 cups per day. Not sure exactly what that equals in gallons. Does that sound abnormal?

[Alaskan Reefer]

That sounds pretty normal to me -- 1.3 g/day. I dose 190 mL/hr out of my Kangaroo to keep the water level in a 75 -- which is 1.2 g/day....

[NeuroLarry]

I'm using the reefantics top off system with a vario pump and it works great. You should use a timer on the pump in case the switch fails in the open position. I should add this is all included with the Tunze Osmolator

[kbreese]

Originally posted by NeuroLarry
I'm using the reefantics top off system with a vario pump and it works great. You should use a timer on the pump in case the switch fails in the open position. I should add this is all included with the Tunze Osmolator

Why would you need to use a timer on the pump when the system has two switches (one is a backup). And if you did get a timer for the pump, I don't understand how it would do anything? if you set it to shut off at some point than you obviously don't get any top-off during that time period.... I don't know, I'm sure it all makes sense, I am just confused...

How much was the vario pump by the way? It runs dry right (I am assuming thats the only type of pump you can get for this purpose)

[NeuroLarry]

I have the system set up so one switch starts the pump and the other shuts it off. The pump will only run so long in case the shutoff switch sticks open I won't flood my tank with freshwater. The vario will run dry. It is so much easier than just trying to set the pump b/c the topoff needs change with the seasons. That would be the issue with the litermeter too. Since I already had teh vario pump it didn't make sense to go to the tunze, but if I were starting from scratch that is probably how I would go.

[Eryl Flynn]

That controller from Reefanatic just went on my must get list for the tank I am gonna start building soon. Just need to get a pump that can handle kalk and I am set.

[kbreese]

Originally posted by Alaskan Reefer
You can go way cheaper than a Litermeter at reefdosing.com -- they sell refurbished hospital peristaltic pumps and warranty them for a year. I have a Kangaroo 324, for which I paid $99 including shipping -- and it's awesome. The exact same principal as the Litermeter, and it's fully adjustable with a digital keypad. You can buy three of these for the cost of one Litermeter and get the same results...

That's interesting, but I am confused as to how it works. Does it also have safeguards against overdosing/flooding like the litermeter and osmolator do?

Right now, I pretty much ruled out the litermeter as I think it's a little ridiculous to pay $300 for it when there are many other much cheaper option's that will probably work just as well or better. I'm leaning towards the Tunze osmolator or the reeffanatic unit, but I am also interested in these peristaltic pumps you are talking about...

[yarsrevenge]

Dude, get the osmolator it's a great design and $160. The laser sensor is unique and is dead accurate -my salinity has not moved once, period. For overflow protection it has a second switch mounted higher than the sensor that will shut off the feed if the laser fails and the water level rises to the second switch. *Then* if both switches fail, the small included low voltage pump will stop running if all else fails in 10 minutes, how do you like that? Too many stories about floats sticking for me. It also has a low resivoir detection when it's dry and will cut the juice so you don't ruin the pump.
*One note, DO NOT dose Kalk through the small included pump. It is not designed for it and Tunze is very verbal about this with voiding your warranty and the pump not lasting (written in manual). With a small additional kit you can hook up any pump to the system you like and run Kalk though.
HTH -(besides Tunze stuff comes with cool control pads, with blinking lights and whistles, mmmm..... blinking lights. hehe
>L