What all do controllers do.

[marvelousone]

I know this is a dumb question. What all can you do with a controller. What is the benefits.

 

[Reefpuck]

That's a big question.

Go to
https://www.neptunesystems.com
Read.

Then Google "Neptune Trident"... which is coming out soon.

Those are all the reasons I use one.

 

[Waters]

Since there are programming languages built into a lot of them (Apex for example), you can get it do do pretty much anything you want.

 

[Dr. Reef]

its a broad question but for *** bits it can control lights pumps feeding skimmers automatic water top off dose certain elements. etc

 

[Ditto]

A controller helps monitor your tank parameters and can assist on tasks that you may be manually doing or not at all, and can control devices connected to the controller.

It not a necessary to have one, but it can make life easier and also provide you peace of mind. A controller can also act as a safety net to warn you something is happening.

As what they can do, everything but make my cup of coffee in the morning hehe (just kidding)

They can monitor your tank parameters, they can be used control devices, lights, pumps, chillers and heaters for example, they can do auto water changes, act as your ato top off. They can also dose your tank of chemicles if your doing this manually and the list goes on.

There are some great write ups on these forums about controllers I use GHL. If you search these forums you will see some great discussions about controllers

 

[Mark Gray]

I have 2 Apex controllers 1 does more than the other but really just becase the tasnk needs more.
It monitors Salinity PH, ORP and Temp, It turn my pumps down at night it tops off my tank it doses for my coral it keeps my ATO reservoir full it turns pumps down during feedings. It turns protein skimmer off during feedings. I rand for like 35 years before I bought a controller now I won't run without one

 

[marvelousone]

So I know everyone has their preference but which one does the most or they all do the same.

 

[jda]

They only do what you tell them to do. For some, the give too much of a sense of control that keeps them away from the tank - this usually ends up in crashes. For some, they only send them alerts when something might be out of whack. For nearly all, they are expensive light timers.

The bottom line is that they can be great if you use them right, or horrible if you trust them too much. Try and not be like the masses that think that they have them set up right only to find out with the first failure that they did not - no controller failure, probe failure nor programming mistake should cost you your tank... but it does with some who get too "cute."

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

So I know everyone has their preference but which one does the most or they all do the same.

They're not all the same, but they all can do about the same things. The most popular one out there is probably Neptune's Apex, especially since Digital Aquatics went out of business.

I personally don't like the Apex and will be doing a DIY controller based on open source software when I need another/new controller. It's worth noting that almost nobody else shares my opinion, though, so take it for what it's worth.

 

[Greybeard]

I can tell you what I do with mine

Light timer: Blue, white, refugeum, and under-cabinet lights are all plugged in, on/off with timers. An additional benefit, if the temp exceeds max, main lights go off.
Heater controller: Internal heater thermostat can be set a few degrees higher, giving you a margin of safety on a stuck heater.
Wave controller: Turns my two AC wave pumps on/off as I choose.
Skimmer: Can delay it's startup after a power failure... I've got a high level sensor in the sump, turns off the skimmer. No more flooded skimmer cup.
ATO safety: High level, pH out of range, both disable my ATO system.
Dosing pump safety: Same as ATO, High level, pH out of range, disable the dosing pump.
Alarms: High sump, pH out of range, Temp out of range, loss of communications... I get an email alert, audible alarm.
Data trending: I can see graphs of temp, pH, duration and regularity of refill cycles, electrical amp usage... great as an early indication that something isn't right.
ATO Reservoir refill system: High and Low level sensors and a 110VAC solenoid, let me refill my 5g ATO reservoir automatically. Mechanical float valve for safety.
Water change mode: Disables return pump, reactor pump, skimmer, wave pumps, so that I can do water changes without manually unplugging stuff.
Water change barrel refill: Push a button, my water change barrel refills itself. High level sensor and safety float valve.
Phone based manual control: Want to extend the day for a party? Just switch the lights to ON, override the timer.

I think that's about it, for now. I'm looking at adding a DOS to do automatic water changes... we'll see.

 

[Breadman03]

As what they can do, everything but make my cup of coffee in the morning hehe (just kidding)

Wanna bet?

But seriously, you can have the Apex do pretty much everything but go to the store for you. With Alexa and some creative coding, you might even be able to have that automated.

 

[vetteguy53081]

SCHEDULING !

I have it set to control lights, heater, auto feeder and ATO. Another feature is that it will turn off my hottest running lights if temp at tank gets too warm.