Auto water changer for 400gal system

[ilawis]

Hi all

My system is 1500ltrs (400gal) and as such I'm looking at setting up a automatic water change system.
i have a 1000 ltr IBC's i fill with fresh salt water form the sea (actually 2 but i use one on the trailer and the other as the tank for the water changes) the IBC is outside about 30ft away from the system tho i expect it will be about 50ft of plumbing and would run it through the roof of the house to get to the system as such i cant see any off the shelf water change system that will do both this distance and this volume of water at minimum i would want to change out 150ltrs each change.
i don't really like the idea of pumping out at the same time as pumping in as i see that as a waste of water and at my volume i really dont want to waste more then i need to.

has anyone seen or know of a system that would be able to do this automatically or at least semi automatically? (I'm not afraid to build my own but need a plan to make it reliable as I'm often not home for weeks at a time so its up to my wife.
i know part of my issue is i want to lower the water level below the weer for a water change and not have the ATO fill it with fresh water, I don't have a ATO yet but i will look into getting one soon as I'm topping up 15 ltrs (4gal) a day.

Thanks in advance!

 

[SPR1968]

Apex DOS should do it if you want a computer controlled version, thats what I use on both my tanks

 

[WVNed]

Read this
I made my own with a Hydros that does ATO and AWC.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/ato-awc-with-a-hydros-xs-starter-kit.840684/
I change 6 gallons a day in 10 minutes.
Works perfect.

 

[ilawis]

Apex DOS should do it if you want a computer controlled version, thats what I use on both my tanks

i would love to use the apex system but its a bit far out of my budget at the moment and being in Australia we don't have as many options as i would like compared to what is available in the usa for the Apex

 

[shwareefer]

Since you're in Australia you have better access to the Kamoer stuff. You look into the X2SR? Parkersreef does a fairly long distance test in this review:

 

[SPR1968]

i would love to use the apex system but its a bit far out of my budget at the moment and being in Australia we don't have as many options as i would like compared to what is available in the usa for the Apex

You could also try the Kamoer mentioned above or 2 Kamoer FX STP would be ideal. I have one for a nitrate reactor and there very good

 

[miran2782]

Sounds like you want to change 40+ gallons at a time and not a smaller amount continuously so you I don't think you want a peristaltic pump. You want to drain 40 gal then fill 40 gal. You probably want pumps like they use on the mixing stations(one's with enough head and flow for your runs) but you can't really rely on the pumps being and staying in balance so you probably need some float sensors for high/low conditions on drain and fill. If going cheap check out a diy reef-pi with multiple float or optical sensors. You could program it to shut the ATO off, drain until you reach a low sensor mark, fill until you reach a high sensor mark, then turn back on ATO. Add a couple extra float sensors for safety/redundancy.

 

[ilawis]

You could also try the Kamoer mentioned above or 2 Kamoer FX STP would be ideal. I have one for a nitrate reactor and there very good

I've just looked up the kamoer range and I'm just seeing dosing pumps so am I missing something?
I've of the issues I've heard with dosing pumps is they are designed for low flow and are not really designed for continuous running, with running this much water they basically would be so overheating is the biggest issue with them when using them as a volume of water pump.

 

[ilawis]

So I've done a set up that makes things much easier. it's not fully automated but at least right now all I have to do is run a lead to the pump and turn some knobs, I'll eventually swap them out for servos when I get a automation system and install a power point for the pump but here is a photo so you know how this has ended up. (I thought I had more photos but I'll have to take some in a few days and upload them when I'm back home)