Ecotech Marine Mobius and Versa Pump vs. Neptune Apex and DOS

[TheHarold]

Give us some time and we'll likely surprise you...

I really wish you guys included a single AUX-like port for a float switch- like you have on the Vectra!! It already has wireless connectivity, that would have been such a great feature- timer based ATO is so 2013 .

Could also be used in supplement reservoirs!

Then again, it does sound like you are releasing a monitoring unit with some probes and inputs. But I personally would prefer that ATO is not determined by wireless connectivity.

 

[lefkonj]

I do like the 'hot swappable' program where ETM will send you a replacement in parallel to returning the faulty gear. Neptune has done this for me a couple of time too, though I don't know if it is their regular policy. Sound like you either got a bad 832 or are overtaxing it.

Definitely not overtaxing it with a Dosing pump and a vectra S1 just horrible quality.

 

[Caravanshaka]

Has anyone running these for auto water changes tested the volume output?

I’ve got one running water about 8 feet horizontally, and I can calibrate it perfectly at 30mL, but tell it to run 10 liters and it will only do about 2. I then calibrated it to 500mL, and it will do 4 liters when I tell it to do 10....had to leave on a trip with it completely messed up, so I set both pumps to only do 1ml per day for now. I haven’t fully tested the other pump running the old water yet since I couldn’t get this one working correctly.

 

[bam123]

I have mine on AWC on a 60 cube at over 30 feet horizontally. I just did 3 gallons (about 12000 ml) in 7 hours without any issues. I haven't measured it, but I can tell from my auto top off container that it is okay.

 

[siggy]

Give us some time and we'll likely surprise you...

Hey Tim Can you at least divulge a hint as to when Möbius for lights and pumps will be released ?

 

[Reef370]

Here’s 70 ml/min so you can decide for yourself LOL. There’s the typical whirring sounds but also some gear ‘grinding’ noises. Perhaps those will decline as the unit breaks in.

Mine makes the same type noise from 50-70 as well

 

[Reef370]

Mine makes the same type noise from 50-70 as well

Don’t know what happened to the video.

 

[bam123]

See how to fix that grinding in my previous post. Also, 70 ml is 4.73 gallons per hour. If I ran my DOS at that it would sound like a child screaming. Bring it down to 20ml per minute and it will be near silent.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Has anyone running these for auto water changes tested the volume output?

I’ve got one running water about 8 feet horizontally, and I can calibrate it perfectly at 30mL, but tell it to run 10 liters and it will only do about 2. I then calibrated it to 500mL, and it will do 4 liters when I tell it to do 10....had to leave on a trip with it completely messed up, so I set both pumps to only do 1ml per day for now. I haven’t fully tested the other pump running the old water yet since I couldn’t get this one working correctly.

Can you share more information? What mode are you using? How do you have it programmed?

 

[Bpb]

See how to fix that grinding in my previous post. Also, 70 ml is 4.73 gallons per hour. If I ran my DOS at that it would sound like a child screaming. Bring it down to 20ml per minute and it will be near silent.

I had just asked for 70 specifically because that’s what I run my masterflex at so I wanted to hear what the versa sounded like by comparison.

 

[bam123]

Can you share more information? What mode are you using? How do you have it programmed?

I run mine for 6 hours for a 7200 ml change (2gallons). Sometimes I go 4 gallons if a heavy feed for 8 hours. I like running at 20ml a minute because it is so quiet at theat speed..

 

[Brasileiro561]

Mine makes the same type noise from 50-70 as well

I wouldn’t try to fix it. Mine came in leaking and making that noise. I emailed them with a video and they are sending me a new one. I wouldn’t waste time trying to fix something when you can get a new unit issue free . Like everyone has said. ETM costumer service isn’t one of the best out there

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Can you explain how you're telling it to dose 10L? Trying to understand what settings you have in mobius... are you waiting a full day to allow the dosing even? Are you allowing it to dose the xx ml/min for the total 6 hours? If you have it programmed to start at 8am and finish at 2pm, are you starting the test in between that time say at 10am? And that's the reason for it not dosing the 10L?

 

[BGrand]

I just received two EcoTech Versa yesterday from BRS. I mounted them both in the cabinet and I am currently dosing Red Sea NOPOX through one. Tonight, or in the not too distant future, I will setup calcium in the other. After I dial in my feeding issue and get my nitrates and phosphates in line I will switch the other one over to Alk.

So anyway, I do not have a Neptune system so I can't really do a comparison for you but I can tell you about the Versa.

The install was super easy. The Mobious app is super easy to navigate (wish my 2 MP10WQD's hooked up to it ). This is my first dosing pump so I don't have any experience to compare it to but I can tell you from a FNG's viewpoint, I calibrated it in less than 2 minutes. I programmed the daily dosing of NOPOX very easily (less than 5 minutes). The only thing I wish is that it came with some kind of instructions for the pump and/or the app. The only literature it came with were the mounting instructions. Since this was my first experience with dosing pumps I had simple questions like: should it be higher than the solution bottle and sump(kinda obvious but still), what compartment in my sump should I dose to, etc.. The only other negative I have is that the mounting screws were too long and would have come out the back side of my cabinet. I had other screws at home that I used so that wasn't really an issue.

The two main reason I wanted this was:

• Obviously dosing
• We are taking a 10 day cruise at the end of February and I did not want my tank sitter to have to dose for me daily. Too many ways for that to go wrong.

If anyone has any questions about the Versa then by all means ask away. I can either answer them or play with the one I have not gotten wet yet to answer them.

 

[TheHarold]

I just received two EcoTech Versa yesterday from BRS. I mounted them both in the cabinet and I am currently dosing Red Sea NOPOX through one. Tonight, or in the not too distant future, I will setup calcium in the other. After I dial in my feeding issue and get my nitrates and phosphates in line I will switch the other one over to Alk.

So anyway, I do not have a Neptune system so I can't really do a comparison for you but I can tell you about the Versa.

The install was super easy. The Mobious app is super easy to navigate (wish my 2 MP10WQD's hooked up to it ). This is my first dosing pump so I don't have any experience to compare it to but I can tell you from a FNG's viewpoint, I calibrated it in less than 2 minutes. I programmed the daily dosing of NOPOX very easily (less than 5 minutes). The only thing I wish is that it came with some kind of instructions for the pump and/or the app. The only literature it came with were the mounting instructions. Since this was my first experience with dosing pumps I had simple questions like: should it be higher than the solution bottle and sump(kinda obvious but still), what compartment in my sump should I dose to, etc.. The only other negative I have is that the mounting screws were too long and would have come out the back side of my cabinet. I had other screws at home that I used so that wasn't really an issue.

The two main reason I wanted this was:

• Obviously dosing
• We are taking a 10 day cruise at the end of February and I did not want my tank sitter to have to dose for me daily. Too many ways for that to go wrong.

If anyone has any questions about the Versa then by all means ask away. I can either answer them or play with the one I have not gotten wet yet to answer them.

How long were the provided screws? Surely not more than 1/2” for something as light as this.

There isn't a QR code in the box that would take you to the pump FAQs/Information? I thought companies were leaning to that direction in order to save paper

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

I just received two EcoTech Versa yesterday from BRS. Since this was my first experience with dosing pumps I had simple questions like: should it be higher than the solution bottle and sump(kinda obvious but still), what compartment in my sump should I dose to, etc..

Peristaltic pumps are considered positive displacement pumps, meaning siphoning is not an issue. With that being said, in the event that something goes wrong, a tube comes disconnected, or some sort of puncture, you should mount the versa in a place that will address those sorts of issues.

When dosing anything into the sump, I usually try to give it as much time in the sump so that it can mix before being introduced into the main display, but don't want it to pass by the skimmer to do so... I usually dose after the skimmer and before the turbulent bubble trap. That usually gives the elements enough time to dilute in the saltwater before heading up.

 

[Tim at EcoTech]

Can you explain how you're telling it to dose 10L? Trying to understand what settings you have in mobius... are you waiting a full day to allow the dosing even? Are you allowing it to dose the xx ml/min for the total 6 hours? If you have it programmed to start at 8am and finish at 2pm, are you starting the test in between that time say at 10am? And that's the reason for it not dosing the 10L?

This is a very important question. If you are making a dose of say 100ml from 12pm until 4pm and have "catch-up" enabled, then start your test at 2pm, it will dose at a rate of 50ml/min instead of 25ml/min to make sure it finishes your dose within the allotted time frame.

 

[Reef370]

I wouldn’t try to fix it. Mine came in leaking and making that noise. I emailed them with a video and they are sending me a new one. I wouldn’t waste time trying to fix something when you can get a new unit issue free . Like everyone has said. ETM costumer service isn’t one of the best out there

I sent them an email with a video, just waiting to hear back . Thanks!

 

[BGrand]

Peristaltic pumps are considered positive displacement pumps, meaning siphoning is not an issue. With that being said, in the event that something goes wrong, a tube comes disconnected, or some sort of puncture, you should mount the versa in a place that will address those sorts of issues.

When dosing anything into the sump, I usually try to give it as much time in the sump so that it can mix before being introduced into the main display, but don't want it to pass by the skimmer to do so... I usually dose after the skimmer and before the turbulent bubble trap. That usually gives the elements enough time to dilute in the saltwater before heading up.

I mounted the pump probably 10" above the supply bottle and around 6" above the sump so I should be good. Like I said they were simple questions and common sense should prevail but still little things like that should help a new person.

As far as location I have the ESopps RS-75 there are three compartments:

1. First compartment the the water flows in to from the tank through the sock.
2. Second compartment that houses the skimmer, algae scrubber, heater, and RODI top-off tube. this then over-flows through the black mesh filter that removes any large items and bubbles.
3. Return compartment which houses the return pump, thermometer, and now the dosing from the pumps.

 

[BGrand]

How long were the provided screws? Surely not more than 1/2” for something as light as this.

There isn't a QR code in the box that would take you to the pump FAQs/Information? I thought companies were leaning to that direction in order to save paper

I'm not at home now but I'm guessing around 3/4" which I replaced with 1/2" screws.

No QR code for instructions, in fact I called EcoTech support and verified there were no instructions available in the box or online. He stated it was a simple pump with not a lot to explain.