slingfox
Well-Known Member
I originally posted the review below in the existing 6-in-1 thread but have decided to move the review into this new 7-in-1 for ease of finding by forum members in the future.
I purchased the Kactoily 7-in-1 monitor and ran it for about 4 weeks after seeing some videos of the device on YouTube. I did not calibrate the device with the included calibration solution since I wanted to see how it ran straight out of the box. I only paid attention to four of the outputs:
1. Temperature: Was consistent with my Helios heater and RedSea temperature probes. Along with the Kactoily I had three temperature probes in the sump placed in slightly different areas. All the temperature monitoring devices were within half a degrees of each other.
2. pH: Very consistent when tested against Salifert's pH test kit (ie, within a tenth of a decimal point every time). I tested 5 times during the 4 week test period.
3. Specific Gravity: Lower when checked against my refractometer and Hanna checker--both of which I calibrated against reference solution once a week for confirmation purposes. That said, the Kactoily was consistently low showing 1.023 SG vs 1.025 SG on the other two devices. You can calibrate the Kactoily probe with reference solution. I did not do this but I believe that doing would bring the Kactoily in-line with the reference devices.
4. ORP: Had massive nonsensical fluctuations for first 7-10 days (ie, would
jump wildly from 25 mV to 350 mV and everywhere in between from one second to the next). Eventually the reading settled into a plausible range for a reef tank (ie, mid 200s to lower 300s). I did not have anything to check the ORP against since a dedicated ORP meter is further down my equipment procurement list. Since I purchased the product Kactoily has updated its website to warn users that there is a one week or more break-in period for the ORP probe to provide consistent readings.
Verdict: Overall, I found the Kactoily monitor to be quite useful since it provided an easy way to quickly check some key parameters when I walked by the tank. I found the readings to be relatively accurate and consistent except for ORP which seemed volatile (even towards the end of the testing period) and I did not have a reference device to check against.
Despite the ORP issues, for the price and pretty decent functionality I think the product is a reasonable purchase. I was particularly impressed with the pH monitoring during the short time I had the device. SG and temp were also nice to have. Since I had no other way to measure ORP, having at least some figures to go by was better than nothing.
I ultimately returned the device since I wanted to exchange it for the 7-in-1 wireless version which just released. That unit is in pre-release but is supposed to ship in December 2023. Being able to check temperature, pH, specific gravity, and ORP (verdict still out in this one but if stable and consistent) via an app will be nice. If the readings on the Kactoily go out of line I will know that I should pull out the traditional tests/measures to start diagnosing the situation.
I purchased the Kactoily 7-in-1 monitor and ran it for about 4 weeks after seeing some videos of the device on YouTube. I did not calibrate the device with the included calibration solution since I wanted to see how it ran straight out of the box. I only paid attention to four of the outputs:
1. Temperature: Was consistent with my Helios heater and RedSea temperature probes. Along with the Kactoily I had three temperature probes in the sump placed in slightly different areas. All the temperature monitoring devices were within half a degrees of each other.
2. pH: Very consistent when tested against Salifert's pH test kit (ie, within a tenth of a decimal point every time). I tested 5 times during the 4 week test period.
3. Specific Gravity: Lower when checked against my refractometer and Hanna checker--both of which I calibrated against reference solution once a week for confirmation purposes. That said, the Kactoily was consistently low showing 1.023 SG vs 1.025 SG on the other two devices. You can calibrate the Kactoily probe with reference solution. I did not do this but I believe that doing would bring the Kactoily in-line with the reference devices.
4. ORP: Had massive nonsensical fluctuations for first 7-10 days (ie, would
jump wildly from 25 mV to 350 mV and everywhere in between from one second to the next). Eventually the reading settled into a plausible range for a reef tank (ie, mid 200s to lower 300s). I did not have anything to check the ORP against since a dedicated ORP meter is further down my equipment procurement list. Since I purchased the product Kactoily has updated its website to warn users that there is a one week or more break-in period for the ORP probe to provide consistent readings.
Verdict: Overall, I found the Kactoily monitor to be quite useful since it provided an easy way to quickly check some key parameters when I walked by the tank. I found the readings to be relatively accurate and consistent except for ORP which seemed volatile (even towards the end of the testing period) and I did not have a reference device to check against.
Despite the ORP issues, for the price and pretty decent functionality I think the product is a reasonable purchase. I was particularly impressed with the pH monitoring during the short time I had the device. SG and temp were also nice to have. Since I had no other way to measure ORP, having at least some figures to go by was better than nothing.
I ultimately returned the device since I wanted to exchange it for the 7-in-1 wireless version which just released. That unit is in pre-release but is supposed to ship in December 2023. Being able to check temperature, pH, specific gravity, and ORP (verdict still out in this one but if stable and consistent) via an app will be nice. If the readings on the Kactoily go out of line I will know that I should pull out the traditional tests/measures to start diagnosing the situation.
