This is why I removed my switch and now only run it few seconds every 6 or so hours with my apex. I was having way to many issues with half a role being used for bubbles on the optical sensorJust spent the last hour re-rolling my fleece roller, because I decided to play in my sump and messed with the float switch position.....
Why do these roller mats not time-out? In what scenario would I want my roller mat to continuously unroll beyond maybe 5 seconds?....
Mine uses a float switch and this is the first time I've had it do the whole roll at once but I would love to integrate it into my apex. Might have to think about how to do that, I like the idea of having the apex control/monitor the usage especially for making more precise adjustments to nutrient exporting. I've played around with the slider on mine and moving it a few centimeters up or down has a dramatic effect on nitrate/phosphate levels, using a set time like you mentioned might work better for this.
I modified my roller setup to be apex controlled. I started out with a Bubble Magus and had to replace the motor, so...... Float switch now goes to a breakout box and it just switches on an outlet on the EB8 as needed. I also programmed so that it wont move more than 3 seconds at a time or else it just turns off.
I definitely need to do something like this.
I've heard great things about it. It's on my Christmas list.
I know the newer bubble magus models have a 10 second time out. I previously had a early klir di4 and it would just send the entire roll through!
It's so weird. I don't see why you wouldn't just want a timer to have the motor come once or twice each day and depending on how clogged that section of mat gets on a daily basis, for how many seconds as needed.
Im good with the float switch as I want it to advance when its packed up. Its all about maintenance and sump setup. One setup of mine is in a trigger sump (kind of a pita to set up) and the other is in a temp 10g sump on a 50g cube. That sump is single chamber (no baffles). I have to remember if the return pump cuts off, then I need to shut off the roller as the high level of the sump will trigger the float and advance the roller.
I'm not sure how everyone else is using these in their sumps but it would be even more of a nightmare if I did not use a float switch mechanism. I just wish they would have thought about a simple fail-safe with an auto-kill timeout feature.
Yeah this is the same reason I like this mechanism, my rollermat came with my Trigger sump and the float switch adjustment design could definitely be better. I think there are some interesting possibilities with this and using the new neptune "measuring sticks".
I can see an easy way to eliminate the need for a float switch. It could be like how my sump operates in the sock chamber. I have an additional "drain" drilled over sock level so when the sock clogs, the chamber fills to the drain level and dumps into the skimmer chamber.
