Kamoer X1 Pro 2 - My Experience

BitReef

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I want to document my experience with the Kamoer X1 Pro 2 wifi dosing pump. Hopefully this may help other users in the future.

This is NOT a complaint thread. I really, really want this pump to work. It fits my system and budget perfectly. I simply want to record my experience, and hopefully success at setting up and running this pump (although it’s off to a bumpy start) in hopes of helping others make an informed decision and avoiding unnecessary headache.

My System: 29gal, with a 10gal sump. I plan on dosing Tropic Marin’s All-For-Reef so I only need a single doing head. I have a very small cabinet so I do not have room for a larger pump. I need a pump that I can configure and operate over wifi (or Bluetooth). I have a mesh wifi system that doesn’t allow 5ghz to be disabled. I have an iPhone that doesn’t allow 5ghz to be disabled. This is a pretty common setup.

My background: I work in IT security and hold a number of IT certifications. I am very familiar with network technology. I feel this is relevant due to the wifi/networking issues that have arisen in regards to this pump.

Experience to date: I purchased the Kamoer X1 Pro 2 from Bulk Reef Supply in Jan 2021. I have read many threads prior to my purchase about connection issues. I completely understood the 2.4ghz vs 5ghz issues and felt like, due to my background, I could easily get past those issues.
I have spent 2 days trying to connect the pump. I have tried multiple methods including, but not limited to: Connecting with no wifi changes. Connecting while I stand out in my driveway where only the 2.4ghz signal reaches. Connecting from different parts of my house with wifi access points disabled (trying to isolate 2.4ghz). Turning off my mesh wifi, enabling the 2.4ghz wifi builtin to my modem with the same SSID and password. So far, no luck.

Current Status: I have contacted CoralVue support and am waiting for a response.

I really, really want to like this pump. I’ll keep this thread up to date until some conclusion is made.
 
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BitReef

BitReef

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Status Update: CoralVue Support contacted me and provided a more detailed set of setup instructions. They stated that my app must be connected to the 2.4ghz band. They stated that I should completely kill the app each time I attempt a connection, instead of just closing it. And stated that I should push and hold the “Reset” button on the pump IMMEDIATELY after plugging it in to start the connection mode. The pump is only in connection mode when the blue light is flashing rapidly. Other than that the steps were basically what I’ve already been doing. So far, no luck.
 

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Here's what worked for me. My 5 and 2.4 were using the same SSID. I changed the name of the SSID for the 2.4 network on the router. Connected my phone to the 2.4 network and ran the setup app on my phone. It complete successfully, and then reconnected to the 5Ghz network and everything was fine. I believe the secret is for the phone to be connected to the 2.4Ghz network when I ran the app for setup. I have setup 2 pumps this way. Hopefully it will work for you.
 
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BitReef

BitReef

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With my wifi system, it is not possible to give the 2.4 and 5ghz channels different SSIDs. I do believe that’s a design shortcoming, and I wish I had more control. But it’s very common in modern mesh wifi systems.
 

1Tlew0

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Here's what worked for me. My 5 and 2.4 were using the same SSID. I changed the name of the SSID for the 2.4 network on the router. Connected my phone to the 2.4 network and ran the setup app on my phone. It complete successfully, and then reconnected to the 5Ghz network and everything was fine. I believe the secret is for the phone to be connected to the 2.4Ghz network when I ran the app for setup. I have setup 2 pumps this way. Hopefully it will work for you.

I ran into a similar issue (last night) as well, which left me feeling frustrated and defeated. Fortunately my SSID between the 5 and 2.4 were different. So after switching to the 2.4 network, the pump connected without any issues.

Good luck and keep us updated! :)
 

StlSalt

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Google Nest does make it difficult. You could try the guest network route just to see if it works.


Set up a guest network connect to it with the phone and then try to setup the Pump.

What a pain in the butt, Thanks google for assuming you know what's best for everybody.
 
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BitReef

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Yeah, I actually didn’t want to mention Google because I figured I would get hammered for it . Also, in my opinion, it shouldn’t matter what “brand” wifi an end user has. There should be an easy, repeatable way to get these pumps working.
I did try the guest account trick with no luck. I also disabled my google wifi altogether and started up the 2.4ghz router built into my modem. Also no luck. Honestly, my hunch is that some of these pumps are just bad and have to be replaced. I’ve seen a couple of people have similar issues to me and nothing worked until they got a new unit. I’m kind of hoping to create a check list for other people. “Try this, then that, then this third thing. If none of those steps work, contact support for a replacement”. I’m getting a little ahead of myself though.
 

StlSalt

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Yeah, I actually didn’t want to mention Google because I figured I would get hammered for it . Also, in my opinion, it shouldn’t matter what “brand” wifi an end user has. There should be an easy, repeatable way to get these pumps working.
I did try the guest account trick with no luck. I also disabled my google wifi altogether and started up the 2.4ghz router built into my modem. Also no luck. Honestly, my hunch is that some of these pumps are just bad and have to be replaced. I’ve seen a couple of people have similar issues to me and nothing worked until they got a new unit. I’m kind of hoping to create a check list for other people. “Try this, then that, then this third thing. If thise don’t work, contact support for a replacement”. I’m getting a little ahead of myself though.
Interesting that it wouldn't work with an old 2.4Ghz router. Maybe there are some bad ones out there, I have seen similar posts. My only input is that the setup device must be connected to the 2.4 network for setup. Even though I can control both pumps now that setup is complete by connecting my phone to the 5GHz side of the network it had to be on the 2.4Ghz network for setup. Otherwise the setup gets stuck at 60% every time.
 

Red_Beard

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The question then is it a hardware issue? Or a firmware issue... either way if you cant access it to update, it is a failed product. Hopefully they cover this in their 1year warranty. Wish i could help more.
 

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I'm thinking about getting this pump for my frag/observation tank utilizing AFR, but now I'm second guessing the choice. It's funny, but I'm in the process of researching Ubiquiti UDM for my home network (replacing older airport extremes), so it's good to know there are reefers here using UniFi. I really hope this pump works out, don't want to spend a ton of money for a single pump.
 

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I have Google Nest wifi

Yeah, I actually didn’t want to mention Google because I figured I would get hammered for it . Also, in my opinion, it shouldn’t matter what “brand” wifi an end user has. There should be an easy, repeatable way to get these pumps working.
I did try the guest account trick with no luck. I also disabled my google wifi altogether and started up the 2.4ghz router built into my modem. Also no luck. Honestly, my hunch is that some of these pumps are just bad and have to be replaced. I’ve seen a couple of people have similar issues to me and nothing worked until they got a new unit. I’m kind of hoping to create a check list for other people. “Try this, then that, then this third thing. If none of those steps work, contact support for a replacement”. I’m getting a little ahead of myself though.
Let me tell you I am a beta tester for the Hydros Control and almost every person I heard that had issues connecting was using Google mesh. I am not sure the reason since I do not use it. I know some picked up a router just for their Control. There is something with Google Mesh that devices have issues with it. Might want to be talking to Google instead to find the issue. It might be the WiFi chip some device use and are just not compatible with it.
 
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BitReef

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That’s interesting. I wonder why. Other than this Kamoer issue, Google mesh has been the best wifi I’ve had yet, and I switch hardware a lot.
 

LegendaryCG

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I’m a network engineer so I deal with this type of thing often.. IOT devices often have issues with band steering enabled. This is when your SSID is the same for both 2.4ghz and 5ghz. Most IOT devices only use 2.4. The solution to A band steering issue is to make a separate SSID for each band and then manually select the 2.4 band for IOT devices and use the 5G for computers and stuff that support it.
 
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BitReef

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But what if your router doesn’t support separate SSIDs for different bands? Or support disabling the 5ghz band.
 
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