Auto Filling Your ATO Water Top Off Fresh Water Containers

[revhtree]

This is not a discussion on an ATO. This is a discussion about automatically refilling your ATO fresh water containers.

I saw a thread on automatically keeping your auto top off fresh water container filled and I thought it would make a good discussion. Normally people use a 5 gallon bucket or some other container to hold the extra fresh water but they can run out pretty quickly or you can forget to refill them. Also if you take a long trip you will either need to get a bigger container, have someone else manually top it off, or have a way to auto top off your container! Let's discuss it!

1. Do you have an automated way that you replace the water from your freshwater ATO containers? (NOT to your aquarium)

2. What have you found to work the best for keeping your ATO fresh water containers filled?


Tunze RO Water Controller

 

[Tundra Cuttle]

I don't have an ATO but if I did I would fill it manually, it will be less work than the manual top off I am having to do 2-3 times a day. Getting an ATO looks better every day but I can't do it yet, that money needs to go toward a chiller since my tanks are in the garage and I'm in Mississippi, they hit 87° the other day.

 

[Goaway]

Woah, That's some serious plumbing.

1. Do you have an automated way that you replace the water from your freshwater ATO containers? (NOT to your aquarium)

I don't have any form of an ATO. But to think, some of these guys will plumb up an ATO to top that off. ;Wideyed

 

[NoahLikesFish]

putting an ato on an ato? digiten ato is 45 dollars 50 with a 5 gallon top up bucket

 

[puffdragon]

Manual refill. If something fails, you can make a mess or kill a tank.

 

[Brett S]

I’m doing this with my apex. I have several solenoids on my RODI filter that are controlled by the apex and float switches on my ATO reservoir. When the reservoir runs low the apex turns on the RODI and fills it, then it turns the RODI back off when it’s full. I have a number of safeguards in place to prevent a flood and the whole thing is in the garage, so even if there was a flood it wouldn’t be catastrophic. I have a lot more details about how my safeguards work and how I accomplished this on my build thread.

 

[Cool tangs]

One day full auto, for now manual!

 

[Twoddler]

Manually fill a 5g container, twice a week, usually forget I set in running and flood the kitchen also let the ato run out out of rodi ( The ato pump is quick at letting me know, buzzing away ). Just being Honest

 

[Viva'sReef]

My Hydros is taking care of filling my Brute RODI reservoir.

I have a Hydros DC Solenoid Water valve that opens up when the Hydros Water level sensor which is near the bottom of the brute senses it's dry. It shuts off after 10 hours. I do plan to run another Water level sensor at the top of the brute so it senses when it's full but for now the 10 hour run time has not caused any issues.

Worth noting when I originally set this up, I had the water sensor at the top of the brute and after a couple days of topping off my tank, the RODI would refil the small amount missing in the container. Since the RODI was only topping off a small amount of water, the TDS creep was burning out my DI cartridges very fast (and the RO membrane). Now that the sensor is at the bottom of the Brute it runs for a full 10 hours minimizing the high TDS through the DI at the startup

​

 

[n2585722]

I use my Hydros controller to do this. It is a 20 gallon brute can. It normally takes a little over three hours to refill. If it takes 3 hr and 15 minute to refill It will shut off and I will get a alert. I also have a float valve and leak detectors as a backup for the full sensor.

 

[Doofus]

versa from the brute in my basement to the first floor.

 

[Treefer32]

I have a Genesis Renew system that has a total of 6 float switches tied into it. Two float switches in the sump (a primary and backup) that monitor the sump levels, and 4 float switches attached to a pvc pipe on my 75 gallon reservoir. I put both float switches (one lower than the other) as an emergency low volume, e.g. the RODI switch isn't turning on and tank is empty... don't burn out the pump. Then two, one as primary high float switch and a second emergency high float switch. The Genesis Renew system monitors, when the first float switch is triggered it opens the RODI solenoid and fills the reservoir from the bottom to the top. It also monitors the top off, if the top off pump runs more than 60 seconds (I can set it anywhere from 1- 90 seconds) then shut off the top off pump and trigger an error to no longer top off the sump until it's reset.

The RODI Bin fills, it shuts off the solenoid valve when it triggers the top float. This makes it so that it's not constantly turning off and on. It's a really awesome setup and I got it 7 years ago for around $250-300. Compared to ATO systems now and to configure an apex to do this with multiple water sensors... $250-300 was cheap.

The unfortunate part of all this is that Genesis Reef Systems went out of business 1-2 years ago. When / if my ATO and RODI bin monitoring system dies... I'll need to come up with a new solution fast.

The plus side is other than occasionally cleaning the float switches, the electronics work really well. Have had minimal if any issues and no floods (fingers crossed).

The 75 gallon storage bin is within 6 inches of my basement sump pump. So if it were to overflow, the water would trickle into the sump hole and get pumped out...

 

[Gtinnel]

Yes my system automatically refills my ato container. I keep a bucket in my utility room, where my mixing station is, that I have setup with float switches to keep that bucket full from my rodi. I have tubing in siphon from that bucket through my ceiling into my ato container. So when my bucket fills up the water is siphoned into my ato container. The key is to make sure they're on the same elevation.

 

[rainsong]

Semi-automated. I have a water change station in the garage with a pump that is controlled by a programmable outlet controlled on my phone. I run a python hose to my ATO and turn on/off the pump on my phone.

 

[floatchop]

I just run the rodi to a float switch like this one. Always 5 gallons ready to go

Float Switch - Horizontal Mount

Recommended for water applications like level controllers, auto top systems or other aquarium uses Normally closed or normally open (see more) 14” leads (22 gauge wire) M16 straight threading - includes nut and silicon o-ring 5/8" Mounting hole required Mounts with wires outside of chamber...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Treefer32]

I just run the rodi to a float switch like this one. Always 5 gallons ready to go

Float Switch - Horizontal Mount

Recommended for water applications like level controllers, auto top systems or other aquarium uses Normally closed or normally open (see more) 14” leads (22 gauge wire) M16 straight threading - includes nut and silicon o-ring 5/8" Mounting hole required Mounts with wires outside of chamber...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Does that have a low and high level? One of the issues with turning the RODI on and off if water level drops below the float switch is what's called TDS creap. The RO membranes only get flushed and put out clean water if water runs through them over a period of time. This can cause TDS to build up in the water the RO is putting out and possibly exhaust DI faster and/or make it past the DI. This is why it's so important to let the fresh water container empty completely then turn on the RODI to refill the container until it's full.

The constant on and off every few minutes to keep the top off container always full is really not good for an RO Membrane or the DI resin. If it works though it works. Just unsolicited suggestions from past experience. And why I've spent more money than I'd like on a system that monitors the low and high points of my ATO reservoir. When the low float switch is triggered then the RODI is turned on until the high float switch is triggered, then it's turned off. This way the entire bin is filled from empty to full and not filled again until it's empty.

 

[floatchop]

Thanks for the tip! I never thought of that.

 

[Viva'sReef]

Does that have a low and high level? One of the issues with turning the RODI on and off if water level drops below the float switch is what's called TDS creap. The RO membranes only get flushed and put out clean water if water runs through them over a period of time. This can cause TDS to build up in the water the RO is putting out and possibly exhaust DI faster and/or make it past the DI. This is why it's so important to let the fresh water container empty completely then turn on the RODI to refill the container until it's full.

The constant on and off every few minutes to keep the top off container always full is really not good for an RO Membrane or the DI resin. If it works though it works. Just unsolicited suggestions from past experience. And why I've spent more money than I'd like on a system that monitors the low and high points of my ATO reservoir. When the low float switch is triggered then the RODI is turned on until the high float switch is triggered, then it's turned off. This way the entire bin is filled from empty to full and not filled again until it's empty.

I just updated my post above to say the same thing. Good call

 

[WVNed]

I open a valve. Come back later and close the valve. I have a float valve in the container.

 

[n2585722]

Thanks for the tip! I never thought of that.

If you do not have a controller yet. You can automate this with a Control 2 starter kit and two water level sensors and a solenoid valve. I would keep the float valve as a backup. The Hydros has a output type for RODI control. Below is screenshots of my setup for DI storage refill. To set it up you have tell it where the solenoid is attached and set the low sensor and the high sensor. I don't use a flush valve or a booster pump but it could turn those on and off also if I did have them. The Control 2 only has 2 sense ports so the two water level sensors would fill those up. It also has 2 drive ports so you could install a flush valve if you want. To expand it if you choose to all you would need is another control unit a buss cable to connect the two controllers together. Also a terminator if the power supply supplied does not have one. They are inexpensive so I would get one just in case. The starter kit would also come with one wifi power strip and a temp sensor. The temp sensor would not be of any use unless you added another control unit to gain more inputs.