Apex Questions

[Peach02]

Im researching a new tank and looking into a controller that can
- have a feed mode, matinance mode and power outage mode at the press of a button or ideally from my phone (iPhone 8)
- moniter pH, salinity and temperature
- turn off various hardware remotely
- automatically top up the tank
- tell me when I need to refill the rodi container and dosing containers (I don't mind if I set a countdown or something for this but id like a notification)
- send me a notification if one of the monitored parameters falls too far out of line and if the power goes out
- if the power goes out can text me and run off a UPS or ecotech battery backup only running the powerheads and return for 6 hours and notify me when power comes back online, ideally able to tell me the level of the power bank / battery

I've been researching the apex for this but being in Australia I can't get the newer power board so have the gen 1 powereboard instead (example of Australian seller)
is this all I will need to run it and can I remove any of these modules?
apex flagship
Neptune ATK
Apex breakout box + 3 buttons or switches
Apex vortech wireless expansion model
2x apex dos (dosing calcium magnesium and alkalinity and something else)

what I want it to be able to turn on and off is
Heaters + chiller + skimmer + roller mat + lights + uv steriliser + most of apex functions during a power outage automatically as well as reducing powerhead intensity and use a power backup in the form of a UPS or ecotech battery backup

Heaters + chiller + skimmer + roller mat + uv steriliser + ato + return + powerheads + probes during matinance

turn off skimmer and roller mat and use mp40 and vectra feed mode

Can this configuration do all of the above?

 

[Flippers4pups]

Bump

 

[Tastee]

Sorry for the quick reply as I’m short of time but yes the Apex can do pretty much everything you want except let you know your UPS battery level. This may be possible but it would take an electrical engineer to figure it out as I’ve never heard of this being an OOTB Apex/UPS feature.

For your levels sensing an additional FMM or two and optical sensors is another option. More expensive than float sensors and a BoB but simpler and may be a physically better fit depending on your layout. For a BoB take a look at the Avast Marine site - good stuff at a good price point and they don’t seem to have any issues shipping to Australia.

Let me know if you want to chat further - I am in Sydney, run an Apex on my 250L tank and are planning a 2nd tank and some Apex upgrades.

 

[Peach02]

Sorry for the quick reply as I’m short of time but yes the Apex can do pretty much everything you want except let you know your UPS battery level. This may be possible but it would take an electrical engineer to figure it out as I’ve never heard of this being an OOTB Apex/UPS feature.

For your levels sensing an additional FMM or two and optical sensors is another option. More expensive than float sensors and a BoB but simpler and may be a physically better fit depending on your layout. For a BoB take a look at the Avast Marine site - good stuff at a good price point and they don’t seem to have any issues shipping to Australia.

Let me know if you want to chat further - I am in Sydney, run an Apex on my 250L tank and are planning a 2nd tank and some Apex upgrades.

Thanks for all the info! What does ffm and Bob mean?

 

[link81]

bob is the breakout box
ffm is the fluid monitoring module. it's the one used in the auto top off kit. (atk)

FMM - Fluid Monitoring Module

THE ULTIMATE MULTIPURPOSE FLUID-MONITORING DEVICE! The FMM (Fluid Monitoring Module) is a multi-purpose device that, with the help of various accessories, enables your Apex to do: With the various flow monitoring sensors you can monitor the flow inside the pipes of your return pump...

www.neptunesystems.com

That apex you have linked can run every module, including the trident.

*note* i believe aus is 230v right? then you're limited to the eb6 for power outlets. the other ones are 120v

 

[Tastee]

Thanks for all the info! What does ffm and Bob mean?

As Link81 said by BOB I referred to the Break Out Box and FMM is the Fluid Monitoring Module. I don’t use a BOB myself but I did look at the Avast one and I definitely prefer it’s spring clips to the screws that Neptune use. You get an FMM as part of the ATK. The FMM has 4 ports for optical sensors and the ATK only uses 2 so you have 2 spare. You can also buy the FMM separately and run multiple. Neptune sell two types of optical sensors for the FMM - one that is mounted via a screw flange and gasket, which requires a hole to be drilled, and another that is magnetic, which doesn’t require any holes.

 

[Peach02]

@Tastee @link81 thanks for the info guys. So the apex can do all of these tasks with the modules I selected with some coding wizardry?

 

[Tastee]

Apart from detecting the UPS battery level I believe you can do everything you want quite well. I personally use my Apex to:

• Dose 3 part from 2x DOS heads 24x7 with code to stop dosing if pH climbs too high
• Control my main heater
• Power my chiller with code to override it in case it fails on
• Power my skimmer, return and wavemaker
• Automatically fill my gravity fed ATO from a remote RODI reservoir once a day
• Provide two feed modes (fish and coral) which turn off return, skimmer, wavemaker etc for a period
• Provide a cleaning mode
• Run an Auto feeder (AFS) with it’s own feed mode
• Send various alerts for high/low temp, salinity, ORP, pH, leaks, low level sump
• Detect power outages and shift to a power saving mode when one occurs and the tank is running on my UPS to extend battery life. In this case Apex Fusion will send me an alert within 1 hour about an outage. If you want alerts from your Apex during an outage then you also need to have your Wifi router on a UPS.

I am planning upgrades to automatically run my RODI to fill the reservoir when it gets low, setup auto water changes and also run a 2nd bigger tank. If you go down the Apex route feel free to reach out for any questions about the programs you need.

 

[Peach02]

Apart from detecting the UPS battery level I believe you can do everything you want quite well. I personally use my Apex to:

• Dose 3 part from 2x DOS heads 24x7 with code to stop dosing if pH climbs too high
• Control my main heater
• Power my chiller with code to override it in case it fails on
• Power my skimmer, return and wavemaker
• Automatically fill my gravity fed ATO from a remote RODI reservoir once a day
• Provide two feed modes (fish and coral) which turn off return, skimmer, wavemaker etc for a period
• Provide a cleaning mode
• Run an Auto feeder (AFS) with it’s own feed mode
• Send various alerts for high/low temp, salinity, ORP, pH, leaks, low level sump

I am planning upgrades to automatically run my RODI to fill the reservoir when it gets low, setup auto water changes and also run a 2nd bigger tank. If you go down the Apex route feel free to reach out for any questions about the programs you need.

ok cool thanks mate

 

[link81]

while it can't measure the level of the UPS, it does have the ability to detect when it is on battery power, and adjust the programming accordingly.
there is another small power adaptor you can get and plug into the NON-battery side of the UPS, the apex will monitor that for power loss, and you can ramp pumps down, shut stuff off ect when that happes

but yes, you can do all of what you want, and it looks like you have the right modules. add the BOB and you're all set. (either the neptune one, or the avast, or some of the others, same thing)