Trident FAQ

[Chris155hp]

I believe they said less than $600 on the video.

That’s a shoe in for $599

Ide have to agree $599 is going to be the price point. Im more interested in the 6 month supply. I am assuming the shelf life of these unopened reagents is over 6 months or is it kinda subscription based that they send out a bottle every month or two?

 

[Chris155hp]

Reagent is $40 for 2 months supply of all 3 (alk 4 times per day, mag and calcium twice per day). Terence also mentioned last night about the option for a 6 month supply at a discounted price over 2 months, so it could be lower than that. Maybe they'll do 6 months for $99 or something.

Brandon

$99 per 6 months would be awesome only $200 per year, constant stability/monitoring one could easily make up that difference with frags. heck i spend more a year in salt

 

[MnFish1]

I dont know if this is allowed - but a question to someone who saw the presentation - was any information given as to why 'trident' vs. 'others'? I think it would be 'fun' to have an alk monitor - but not sure its 'needed'. It disappoints me that Neptune requires purchasing un-needed reagents on a 2 (or 6) month basis. I say unneeded because testing Ca and Mg with this frequency (to me only) seems to be unnecessary - its only function being marketing of the reagents for the device (fine is business) - just curious if Neptune brought any other reasons than 'Trident measures 3 things'. (BTW it looks nice)

 

[MnFish1]

$99 per 6 months would be awesome only $200 per year, constant stability/monitoring one could easily make up that difference with frags. hell i spend more a year in salt

Curious Chris - How would this make up the difference in Frags vs doing a manual test daily? (i.e. what is the daily swing in Alk that causes decreased coral growth?). I am only wanting your logic because Im considering purchase. Maybe the more fair question is - is 4x daily alk testing better than once daily alk testing (either with the Trident or manually) - and if there is not a huge difference - what is the cost difference of that testing - the cost of the salt has nothing to do with it - or?

 

[NeveSSL]

$99 per 6 months would be awesome only $200 per year, constant stability/monitoring one could easily make up that difference with frags. hell i spend more a year in salt

I'm completely speculating, but that number would make sense to me. It's a good point about the shelf life of the reagents, though.

Brandon

 

[ReeferBean]

I dont know if this is allowed - but a question to someone who saw the presentation - was any information given as to why 'trident' vs. 'others'? I think it would be 'fun' to have an alk monitor - but not sure its 'needed'. It disappoints me that Neptune requires purchasing un-needed reagents on a 2 (or 6) month basis. I say unneeded because testing Ca and Mg with this frequency (to me only) seems to be unnecessary - its only function being marketing of the reagents for the device (fine is business) - just curious if Neptune brought any other reasons than 'Trident measures 3 things'. (BTW it looks nice)

Don't quote me but they discussed that is by design and prolongs the life of the unit... keeps it functioning properly. Something along those lines.

 

[MnFish1]

Don't quote me but they discussed that is by design and prolongs the life of the unit... keeps it functioning properly. Something along those lines.

Also - the shelf life of the reagents is 2 months 'once opened'. According to earlier in the thread

 

[ReeferBean]

Also - the shelf life of the reagents is 2 months 'once opened'. According to earlier in the thread

Similar to leaving the cap off of your reagents, some evaporation takes place? That would most likely effect the accuracy of the tests?

 

[Zaffor]

Curious Chris - How would this make up the difference in Frags vs doing a manual test daily? (i.e. what is the daily swing in Alk that causes decreased coral growth?). I am only wanting your logic because Im considering purchase. Maybe the more fair question is - is 4x daily alk testing better than once daily alk testing (either with the Trident or manually) - and if there is not a huge difference - what is the cost difference of that testing - the cost of the salt has nothing to do with it - or?

We get lazy and dont test as often as we should to maintain the best stability. Things get in the way, life happens. I guess we pay for convenience. Same goes with AWC. Sure I can lug around buckets and accomplish the same thing. But the DOS + APEX handles it for me.

In this hobby it seems that - if you make it easy - you will do it.
If its a pain in the butt - it may go undone

Back to the trident - i believe 4x2x2 is minimum test frequency. Sure less would probably be fine but it is how they designed it to stay stable and keep water fresh in the lines (im guessing)

Stable alk is one of the more crucial parameters for sps stability and growth. A good indicator of whats going on in the tank in my opinion. A sudden spike in alk could mean corals are stressed and have stopped or slowed consumption. Not catching this right away could cause an undesirable increase which could lead to further stress. The opposite for growth spurts increasing consumption, where not testing daily could cause a dip and maybe eliminating that stability that encouraged the growth.

My 2 cents i guess.

 

[Zaffor]

I dont know if this is allowed - but a question to someone who saw the presentation - was any information given as to why 'trident' vs. 'others'? I think it would be 'fun' to have an alk monitor - but not sure its 'needed'. It disappoints me that Neptune requires purchasing un-needed reagents on a 2 (or 6) month basis. I say unneeded because testing Ca and Mg with this frequency (to me only) seems to be unnecessary - its only function being marketing of the reagents for the device (fine is business) - just curious if Neptune brought any other reasons than 'Trident measures 3 things'. (BTW it looks nice)

Maybe Neptune wants that “niche” for testing all 3 parameters. There are other options for units that test only Alk. Likely that the complexity of testing all 3 with such small volumes of water and single reags requires frequent testing to keep lines clear and crud from forming inside the small lines. I wouldnt call it “forcing” us to buy reags. If we already test alk as frequently as we should - we are already consuming around 10$/month at least on alk reags.

 

[NeveSSL]

...

In this *LIFE* it seems that - if you make it easy - you will do it.
If its a pain in the butt - it may go undone

...

Well said, Zaffor. Slight correction to your one statement. :)

I am personally fine with paying $20/month to have my reef tested as often as the Trident does. That saves me hours of time over doing it manually. Would I manually test that often normally? No, not without a reason. But the consistency will be fantastic. Bonus points for getting it even lower by buying 6 months at a time and more bonus points for the results of those tests automatically adjusting dosages.

Brandon

 

[Hitch08]

Glad to read that the product is in the hands of testers - although I still question why it was announced in August of 2017.

 

[Kyl]

Maybe Neptune wants that “niche” for testing all 3 parameters. There are other options for units that test only Alk. Likely that the complexity of testing all 3 with such small volumes of water and single reags requires frequent testing to keep lines clear and crud from forming inside the small lines. I wouldnt call it “forcing” us to buy reags. If we already test alk as frequently as we should - we are already consuming around 10$/month at least on alk reags.

I noted elsewhere it wasn't intentionally designed to operate like that, but the ultimate operation and frequency required is a result of the design. There is a difference, but still the same outcome. I'm in the boat of testing for the sake of testing just seems wasteful in a sense, but this is how the design process for this product has born out so there is no point in arguing about it endlessly - it won't be changing.

Still 50/50 on this over all, I think ultimately it will come down to just how the real world retail release turns out. I want it to work well, as with all the other industry options because it's better for all of us, and more importantly the rather delicate creatures and organisms we derive enjoyment from when they're thriving. This latest news dump was a welcome thing.

 

[MnFish1]

I noted elsewhere it wasn't intentionally designed to operate like that, but the ultimate operation and frequency required is a result of the design. There is a difference, but still the same outcome. I'm in the boat of testing for the sake of testing just seems wasteful in a sense, but this is how the design process for this product has born out so there is no point in arguing about it endlessly - it won't be changing.

Still 50/50 on this over all, I think ultimately it will come down to just how the real world retail release turns out. I want it to work well, as with all the other industry options because it's better for all of us, and more importantly the rather delicate creatures and organisms we derive enjoyment from when they're thriving. This latest news dump was a welcome thing.

Right I probably didn’t phrase my question properly. Does anyone know the cost of operation for monthly using just an alk monitor vs the trident. And the relative maintenance for each? I know they aren’t changing the design. That wasn’t the issue. The issue in my mind is there are 3 test areas to monitor fill reagents troubleshoot vs one in an alk alone monitor. In just curious from one of the people who have seen it in action. What is the ease of use maintenance and cost /month compared to other units on the market. Like I said up front maybe this is the wrong forum for this question. I was hoping @Terence would chime in with some more info

 

[MnFish1]

Maybe Neptune wants that “niche” for testing all 3 parameters. There are other options for units that test only Alk. Likely that the complexity of testing all 3 with such small volumes of water and single reags requires frequent testing to keep lines clear and crud from forming inside the small lines. I wouldnt call it “forcing” us to buy reags. If we already test alk as frequently as we should - we are already consuming around 10$/month at least on alk reags.

I don’t spend anywhere near 10$ per month on Testing. But I test alk once weekly and ca every 2 weeks and mg maybe every 3 months. If anything looks off or after a problem power loss etc I will test more often. I have found the more I test the more I chase my tail. The more I chase my tail the more problems I have. That said I’m a gadget person and I would like to see alk monitored better. Imho I would never use any kind of controller to dose alkalinity based on an electronic measurement

 

[FoD]

I've been waiting for this FOREVER it seems. I kind of agree with some of the opposition in this thread about testing all three. I've only tested Alk the past year. I can't remember the last Cal or Mag test kit brand I bought let alone the last time I tested. Maybe it's necessary, maybe not. Been reefing a while now, and when Alk is spot on, the others follow. I have never experienced good Alk and bad Cal and/or Mag. Maybe I'm in the minority? I've been waiting on a quality Alk tester (under $1k) for a bit now and have two Deltec CalRx running in series in waiting for this. Neptune...hurry the $&@! up already. Hopefully coding will be easy to control based on this device.

 

[Zaireguy]

The biggest question is going to be how hard is the reagents going to be to get ahold of once everybody starts getting the trident
You know us reefers are going to want and try and stock pile them as much as possible as long as they dont expire

 

[Mrx7899]

Can you turn off certain test like if I just wanted to test alk can I turn off calcium and magnesium.

 

[DaveMorris]

I don't understand why people wouldn't test for all three when they are tied together. If you adjust one, it typically effects the others.

 

[RussM Verified Sponsor]

Big Foot / Nessie / Lady Amalthea / Trident has been monitoring my tank too...

My unicorn is helping me do a better job of maintaining my tank. :D. I loathe doing manual testing!