Running low on time for testing. Trident worth it?

ac4570

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Hi everyone,

I have been good with testing my levels often in my reef tank, but lately with an increasing workload I have found myself less diligent. After a long week I completely forgot to test and when I finally did I found my alk dropped to 7.0 from my usual 8.6 (my dosing line clogged). So basically my main question is, does anyone with experience with the trident think it has been truly worth it? I have the means to pay for one, but want to be able to justify the purchase. Thanks!
 

Pistol Peet

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TRident it is definitely a reputable way to go I know that it can be costly though you can also have amazing Reef results using the Trident method to me it's more of a cost Factor vs. A Time Factor
 

SliceGolfer

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I hear mixed results with Trident. One LFS thinks it’s amazing, the other tells me about the hardware failing. Getting reagents seems to be the number one issue right now. I hope there is a v2 model that solves the headaches.
 

Dustinj1293

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Reagents are hard to come by in the six month supply my lfs has tons of the 2 months
Ive had nothing but great results outta mine but I have read about some of the issues people have
 

robbyg

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If you have an Apex system already then the Trident is a good option. If your only interested is a Alkalinity then you can save money on the yearly reagent costs by getting an Alkatronic or Kh Director. Pros and cons to the three choices for Alk. Save money with the other two and a side benefit with the Alkatronic is both the Apex System or most any controller can interface with it and you have data from its native App. The con is the loss of Ca and Mg test.
 
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ac4570

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Wow I woke up to some great replies! Lol. Thanks everyone! I definitely should have mentioned that I do already have an apex and DOS. I have looked into the Alkatronic as well, but think that even though Alk is the most important for me, Ca and Mg would be nice to have as well. I’ve seen mixed reviews as well but they seem mostly positive, so I’ll be giving it a try and hoping I get a good one!
 

DC Reefer

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I have two and they save a ton of time. I don't "fully rely" on them, but they have been quick to point out if something is off. Mine seem to be better at monitoring Alk than CA and MG, but those don't move nearly as quickly. Also my understanding is you have to have the new Apex as it doesn't work w/ the classic.
 

92Miata

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Wow I woke up to some great replies! Lol. Thanks everyone! I definitely should have mentioned that I do already have an apex and DOS. I have looked into the Alkatronic as well, but think that even though Alk is the most important for me, Ca and Mg would be nice to have as well. I’ve seen mixed reviews as well but they seem mostly positive, so I’ll be giving it a try and hoping I get a good one!
This is one of those questions where its a matter of priorities - the Trident is kind of a jack of all trades, master of none, and the Alkatronic and KHDirector are both very high quality, much more focused devices.



IE, do you want to pay for versatility, or higher quality. Neither is wrong.
 
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ac4570

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Thanks again everyone! Just wanted to follow up by saying that I got my trident today. I mostly picked it over others because I already have the apex and dos. I think having the Ca and Mg are nice benefits for me, even if it may not be as accurate as others with Alk, it’ll definitely be helpful in giving me any warning that something seems off.
 
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I'll throw my hat in - you already have a lot of great replies though:

1. If you already own an Apex then it really isn't that difficult of a decision honestly because that is a requirement. Since that box is checked do you dose and you replied yes. So now you have two check boxes completed out of three. The third is budget. Why is budget an important box to check? Because you are going to buy reagents. This isn't about reagents good or bad or a money grab but more to make you aware that you will need to buy them anywhere from every 2 months to every 6 months. 50 bucks for 2 month kits 99 bucks for 6 month kits. These "months" are estimates and will vary depending on chemistry levels, testing schedule, and your manual testing needs. You will be close though but just bea ware that they are calculated or estimated based on the lowest testing of 4 alk, 2 ca, 2 mag per day.

2. If you do not own an Apex then you have a couple options:
Reefbot. You can search around but you supply the test kit based on the communities best test kit recommendations and it will automate your tests. Has a wider coverage of tests I guess compared to others as it uses existing kits to automatically test if that makes sense.

Alktronic. Tests alk only. I believe it has a DIY reagent. Please read or search as I can't really comment on it but just be aware it is out there.

GHL Ion. Not out today but probably Q1 2021. Tests a few different things and similar things to the Trident. Uses probes instead of reagents mixed in with a calibration solution. I'm not going to go into the rat hole of reagent vs probe vs calibration solutions, etc. If this matters then look at what you can with the ION and Trident and calculate price per test if it matters (not snarky - just something to maybe help address pro/con, etc).

But back to the trident. Is it worth it? If you are into data or test manually Alk, Ca, or Mag daily, few times per week, or are lazy then yes. It is worth it. At a high level it is an automated test that is repeatable which saves the hobbyist time and money. That is it more or less in a nutshell. I already had an Apex. I am a lazy reefer. I do not test much regardless of my tanks cycle. However, I do know as it matures over time corals grow, seasons change, and so does my tank. I figured having a daily test showing consumption usage would be wise. I could also use some of that data to send alerts or messages to warn me of pending doom or something in question.

One think to be fair. I'm pretty sure you do not need a trident just like you do not need a skimmer or other things we as hobbyists say are critical. There have been, and are, successful tanks running without some of these items be it automated tester, skimmers, refugiums, auto filter media, socks, uv's, etc. On the other hand they are tools that help the hobbyist be a bit more successful when used correctly (note correctly).

TL; DR - since you have an Apex already and a DOS I would recommend you looking into the Trident first to save money. It is worth it. It does work. Reagents are available. 6 month kits are back in production.

Edit: Only thing I forgot to add is that there is a "maintenance" window although we as hobbyists do not know yet what that cycle is. 18 - 24 months is what was originally suggested and no price (send in, and DIY mentioned). A fellow hobbyist here has his Trident since early beta and hasn't been serviced yet working consistently well.

Best of luck to you and yours!
 

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