Gilroy 425g Build Thread (All Apex, all the time)

[revhtree]

I think its time for some pics! Nothing fancy - just some snaps from the iPhone X

These inspire me!

 

[Terence]

These inspire me!

Come on over and grab some frags!

 

[Terence]

Listen to your Apex. Don't be complacent. Also, ORP does matter for those that don't think so. Almost had something bad happen.

My "pH" in my Sulphur Denitrator (SD) was hovering at 12.4 (its maximum) for over a week. "Whatever" I thought. Then today I see this long running low ORP beginning overnight after getting an early morning alarm.

I go down to see that the DOS head that was pushing water into the SD had some air in the output and was pulsing that air water. Hmm. Evidently the head is worn out. So I put another on and just for giggles take the effluent tube and put it in the cap of one of my jugs just to check it - WHOA! Serious sulphur smell - bad stuff. I guess what happened is that the pump head pretty much failed altogether a week or so ago but overnight it decided to kinda work and put a small amount into the tank of this sulphur dioxide. So, I put the effluent tube into a bucket and I am running about three gallons at least through the reactor. Already the tank ORP is rising back up. Disaster averted.

LISTEN TO YOUR APEX! That's what its there for.

 

[Chris155hp]

It was simply a cost-cutting measure but I have not done a full analysis on that - might be a wash when you consider CO2, media, and power of two pumps (DOS+Sicce).

I think in the end I may totally simplify and go with a dosing solution like the Triton unless someone can give me two bottles minor and trace elements and the ratios of those both in relation to the CaRx output (ml @ dKh concentration of the effluent). I think a product like that would be excellent for advanced and large reef aquarium owners.

Tempted to go to the Triton core method as well but have a question reguarding dosing core7 with the dos. The core 7 solutions are supposedly super saturated and 7X more concentrated (so they say) then normal two part and my concern is with the easy dose “task” the DOS wont spread out alk and Ca doses enough causing massive precipitation even in a high flow area of the sump. Has this been your experience at all as others have reported said issue and had to set manual dos intervals which is kinda of a pain (every other hour for example)

 

[007_reef]

Man...just read this whole thing over the course of two days, and all I can say is “wow”. Several ideas that I’m going to steal for my impending upgrade. Thanks for taking the time to document this in such great detail.

 

[Terence]

Man...just read this whole thing over the course of two days, and all I can say is “wow”. Several ideas that I’m going to steal for my impending upgrade. Thanks for taking the time to document this in such great detail.

Thank you for the positive feedback.

 

[Terence]

Tempted to go to the Triton core method as well but have a question reguarding dosing core7 with the dos. The core 7 solutions are supposedly super saturated and 7X more concentrated (so they say) then normal two part and my concern is with the easy dose “task” the DOS wont spread out alk and Ca doses enough causing massive precipitation even in a high flow area of the sump. Has this been your experience at all as others have reported said issue and had to set manual dos intervals which is kinda of a pain (every other hour for example)

I have seen some precipitation - especially as I documented earlier when attempting to dose it with tubes underwater or in a slow-flow area. Once I put the tubes above the water line, and dropping into a super-turbulent area, everything has been going well. A bit of encrustation, but nothing impeding the dosing.

 

[Terence]

So I thought I would document the incident from yesterday by using the graphs on the Apex to tell the story. Any older "face" in this hobby who puts out there that they do not trust monitoring and automation is simply ignorant or just a luddite. The power of this tech to keep a great tank despite human deficiencies (read: laziness) even amazes me at times like this.

This issue was caused by me. Not the technology. As is often the case. But tech is easier to blame. I neglected to pay attention to my errant Sulphur Denitrator monitoring value (pH pegged at 12.4) for over a week, maybe two. However, my laziness was caught by my Apex by me using my tank ORP as an early warning signal for something out of the norm. Did it tell me what was wrong. Absolutely not. But I knew something was not right and had to investigate once the tank's ORP dip was not transient, but rather ongoing into the morning.

 

[Chris155hp]

Love this proving to people on the fence about controllers how a few hundred up front can save thousands in the future. Excited to see how the trident can do the same for alk and ca spikes!

 

[CoralDanimal]

It took me multiple days to go through your entire thread, but wow it was great and incredibly informative. I took notes multiple times in case I ever plan a big upgrade. Thank you for creating and curating a thread as large as this.

Quick question (I hope this doesn't stray into the tangent Neptune support category): I have and love my Apex. I also have a number of great Neptune accessories including DOS. A while back you mentioned you needed to replace some of the DOS components. Mine are about 9 months old. Do you have a recommendation for how to monitor or check when the pumps will need to be replaced?

 

[Albertastorm]

Listen to your Apex. Don't be complacent. Also, ORP does matter for those that don't think so. Almost had something bad happen.

My "pH" in my Sulphur Denitrator (SD) was hovering at 12.4 (its maximum) for over a week. "Whatever" I thought. Then today I see this long running low ORP beginning overnight after getting an early morning alarm.

I go down to see that the DOS head that was pushing water into the SD had some air in the output and was pulsing that air water. Hmm. Evidently the head is worn out. So I put another on and just for giggles take the effluent tube and put it in the cap of one of my jugs just to check it - WHOA! Serious sulphur smell - bad stuff. I guess what happened is that the pump head pretty much failed altogether a week or so ago but overnight it decided to kinda work and put a small amount into the tank of this sulphur dioxide. So, I put the effluent tube into a bucket and I am running about three gallons at least through the reactor. Already the tank ORP is rising back up. Disaster averted.

LISTEN TO YOUR APEX! That's what its there for.

Dude love your thread!
Lots of great info!
But worn out DOS heads...people talking about replacing after nine months...this should really be a life time ...minimum 10 year replacement part??
Its a piece of surgical tubing and a small dc motor
Not trying to minimize the importance of a monitoring system and I love my apex!
But we have enough to worry about in this hobby without having to replace DOS heads yearly))
Talk to the guys and gals down in engineering

 

[Terence]

It took me multiple days to go through your entire thread, but wow it was great and incredibly informative. I took notes multiple times in case I ever plan a big upgrade. Thank you for creating and curating a thread as large as this.

Quick question (I hope this doesn't stray into the tangent Neptune support category): I have and love my Apex. I also have a number of great Neptune accessories including DOS. A while back you mentioned you needed to replace some of the DOS components. Mine are about 9 months old. Do you have a recommendation for how to monitor or check when the pumps will need to be replaced?

Thanks for following along. The pump heads are rated for 750 hours of use. So, it really depends what they are being used for in order to determine when they should be changed. For most dosing applications they should not need changing but once every couple of years. If you use it for water changes - a bit more often.

Much of the wear will not be something you can see so it is best to estimate your usage based on your application.

Dude love your thread!
Lots of great info!
But worn out DOS heads...people talking about replacing after nine months...this should really be a life time ...minimum 10 year replacement part??
Its a piece of surgical tubing and a small dc motor
Not trying to minimize the importance of a monitoring system and I love my apex!
But we have enough to worry about in this hobby without having to replace DOS heads yearly))
Talk to the guys and gals down in engineering

Who said anything about 9 months? The previous poster was simply saying his were 9 months old.

That said, there can absolutely be a case where they would need replacing at that interval. For instance, when someone is using the DOS for water changes or for large water transport of any kind. It is a mechanical assembly. The rollers wear. The tubing wears. Peristaltic pump tubing does not last 10 years - just from the environmental change to the material it would not last that long.

But lets try and keep my thread on track now guys We have a forum at http://forum.neptunesystems.com if you want to hash this out in any more detail.

 

[CoralDanimal]

Thanks for following along. The pump heads are rated for 750 hours of use. So, it really depends what they are being used for in order to determine when they should be changed. For most dosing applications they should not need changing but once every couple of years. If you use it for water changes - a bit more often.

Much of the wear will not be something you can see so it is best to estimate your usage based on your application.

Thanks for the information Terence. I only use mine for two-part dosing so the number of hours will be very low. I'll head to the forum if I encounter any issues. Back to the good stuff (your tank build)!

 

[Tristren]

So I thought I would document the incident from yesterday by using the graphs on the Apex to tell the story. Any older "face" in this hobby who puts out there that they do not trust monitoring and automation is simply ignorant or just a luddite. The power of this tech to keep a great tank despite human deficiencies (read: laziness) even amazes me at times like this.

This really is a great example of the benefits of having (and paying attention to!) a controller.

But:

This issue was caused by me. Not the technology. As is often the case. But tech is easier to blame.

The actual problem was caused by the failure (and then kind of restart) on the part of the dosing head.

Normal wear and tear to be sure, and the Apex absolutely flagged the impact for you, but a piece of equipment failed. It wasn't user error.

Cheers, Tony

 

[Terence]

The actual problem was caused by the failure (and then kind of restart) on the part of the dosing head.

Normal wear and tear to be sure, and the Apex absolutely flagged the impact for you, but a piece of equipment failed. It wasn't user error.

Cheers, Tony

I respectfully disagree. If your brake pads wear thin on your car, and you hear the wear indicators scrape, and you continue driving, and you ruin your rotors, whose fault is that? Did the brake pads fail you. No. They simply wore out. Laziness and complacency were the culprit by not listening to an indication of the worn pads and acting on it.

The DOS head wore out. It was my fault for not replacing it before it did. It was my fault for not listening to my Apex when it told me my Sulphur Denitrator ORP probe was showing 12.4 pH for days on end. Finally, when my brake pads scraped the rotors I listened and corrected the situation before I drove off a cliff due to failed brakes!

 

[Albertastorm]

I respectfully disagree. If your brake pads wear thin on your car, and you hear the wear indicators scrape, and you continue driving, and you ruin your rotors, whose fault is that? Did the brake pads fail you. No. They simply wore out. Laziness and complacency were the culprit by not listening to an indication of the worn pads and acting on it.

The DOS head wore out. It was my fault for not replacing it before it did. It was my fault for not listening to my Apex when it told me my Sulphur Denitrator ORP probe was showing 12.4 pH for days on end. Finally, when my brake pads scraped the rotors I listened and corrected the situation before I drove off a cliff due to failed brakes!

OK ...but should you worry about brake pads at 10 K

 

[Albertastorm]

Beautiful tank,,,great info,,your the best buddy..but Neptune needs to do something about life of DOS!

 

[Terence]

OK ...but should you worry about brake pads at 10 K

Depends how you drive.

Beautiful tank,,,great info,,your the best buddy..but Neptune needs to do something about life of DOS!

I don't think you are getting it. The DOS head-caps and their peri-tube (like all peristaltic pumps) are a consumable product. Not unlike brake pads or even inkjet cartridges. Depending on how much you use it determines how fast it will need replacing.

Ultimately this is not the place to hash this out. If you want to have this kind of discussion, I encourage you to engage other DOS users over on our forum dedicated to the DOS here: https://forum.neptunesystems.com/fo...-amp-DDR-%96-Dosing-and-Fluid-Metering-System

Thanks for the compliment on the tank!

 

[revhtree]

So I thought I would document the incident from yesterday by using the graphs on the Apex to tell the story. Any older "face" in this hobby who puts out there that they do not trust monitoring and automation is simply ignorant or just a luddite. The power of this tech to keep a great tank despite human deficiencies (read: laziness) even amazes me at times like this.

This issue was caused by me. Not the technology. As is often the case. But tech is easier to blame. I neglected to pay attention to my errant Sulphur Denitrator monitoring value (pH pegged at 12.4) for over a week, maybe two. However, my laziness was caught by my Apex by me using my tank ORP as an early warning signal for something out of the norm. Did it tell me what was wrong. Absolutely not. But I knew something was not right and had to investigate once the tank's ORP dip was not transient, but rather ongoing into the morning.

Thanks for documenting this. Really makes me reconsider what I'm not carefully monitoring!

 

[Mark Gray]

Nice Thread Looks good