Which Controller for Beginner?

[MeanGreenStompa]

I'm setting up a sump at long last, tucked away in a walk in closet (my old 65gallon aquarium). This gives me the opportunity to set up a controller and obviously the 'big fish' seems to be the APEX system. Before I set down the path of purchasing this, are the others worth considering and if so, why? Especially, are they all equally easy for a newbie to set up and run or are some especially problematic or have a steep learning curve?

 

[zheka757]

i think the real question should be, why you think you need one? a lot of people have tanks with no controllers and are just fine. its not essential to have one on a tank

 

[Jedi1199]

i think the real question should be, why you think you need one? a lot of people have tanks with no controllers and are just fine. its not essential to have one on a tank

I agree with this 100%. For a newbie, it is more about learning to recognize issues than to rely on automation.

 

[fishski13]

Like mentioned above, just make sure you really need a controller. I feel like for new people especially for people running a sump, a controller just adds another step of confusion which takes away focus from what actually matters in the tank. Dont get me wrong a controller is something that could be very useful but is not a necessary things especially for newbies.

But if you do decide to go with a controller I think the apex would be the best just because there is so much information on them out there and so many people have them compared to other controller, that if you need help people are here to help you.

 

[rtparty]

Every tank uses a controller in some way. Have a heater with a thermostat in it? You have a controller.

Can things like the Apex, Hydros, GHL, etc be a little overwhelming? Yes, but that is everything in life. Learning curves in everything we do.

I have experience with the three above. Apex won in my battle between it and Hydros. Both are easy to use IMO. Especially with the Tasks function on Apex. I found some of Hydros was harder to setup.

I couldn't handle the constant WiFi issues and broken modules with Hydros any longer.

 

[ZombieEngineer]

Easiest - Apex and Hydros

Most powerful - Apex and GHL

Best interoperability - Apex

Cheapest - Hydros

Most expensive - GHL

Best Support - Apex

Worst Support - Hydros

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

IMO there are no controllers for newbies. They are very expensive, and only worth it if you're in it for the long run. Honestly, majority of people joining this hobby don't make it past 2 years. I would say try out the hobby for a year first before making that kind of purchase. Just my 2 cents.

 

[MeanGreenStompa]

Apologies, I didn't mean to mislead in the title.

I am a freshwater keeper of 35 years and have been keeping the 180 as a saltwater tank for the last 3. I am a beginner to the concept of a reef aquarium controller but I'm an experienced aquarist.

 

[rtparty]

Easiest - Apex and Hydros

Most powerful - Apex and GHL

Best interoperability - Apex

Cheapest - Hydros

Most expensive - GHL

Best Support - Apex

Worst Support - Hydros

I'd put GHL support worse than Hydros personally. At least there are 5-6 forum goers to help with Hydros. When I ran GHL there were like 2 and neither solved my issues.

From a company stand point GHL has one person to help. CoralVue has 3-4.

 

[PeterC99]

+1 On the Apex. Helped me take my reef to the next level. Look at the note on the bottom - reminding me it’s been 6 months since I’ve cleaned my skimmer.

 

[Smokey_reefer]

apex!

 

[chvvkumar]

+1 for Apex. Contrary to a lot of comments here, I got into the Apex system back in 2013 with my Jr. for my freshwater tank. I no longer have my reef any more but my og apex still works great with my freshwater tank after a short stint on my reef tank.

I was a newcomer to controllers but I actually find it very easy to set one up and program it by hand (you don't have to but you can if needed). May be becasuse I am a technical person but I found it trivial to get going with the Apex.

If you can and have the means to get one it makes your equipment scheduling and monitoring so much easier.

 

[Poochaku]

Hydros

 

[lvzx14]

The apex fusion interface is a lot nicer than the alternatives imo.

 

[reefteaser]

I’ve been using the Hydros wave engine since it came out. I use it for my two reef octopus return pumps and two gyres. Having one power brick for all those pumps, and an app to control them makes wire management easier and tidy. Not a full blown controller, but I’ve been very satisfied with it with no major issues.

 

[paintman]

If you can't take care of your tank succusefuly manualy, a controller will not help you. But then agian I am ole school and still work my 200 gal. with ordinary household switches. All the blinky blinky doesn't send tangles up my spine.

 

[ZombieEngineer]

If you can't take care of your tank succusefuly manualy, a controller will not help you. But then agian I am ole school and still work my 200 gal. with ordinary household switches. All the blinky blinky doesn't send tangles up my spine.

I seriously doubt you don't use a controller in some manner. Do you manually switch on and off the lights every day? Do you top off your water with a jug? Do you still run constant speed pumps with no adjustment whatsoever?

If you said no to any of those questions, then you are effectively saying the equivalent of "I use a flip phone, but don't trust them fancy smartphones". You are using a controller, just an archaic one.

If you said yes to all of them, then no one cares about your old school method. Someone asking about what controller is best is not asking how they can turn what is supposed to be a fun hobby into a full time unpaid job.

 

[Fredrxn]

Apex is the best love mine

 

[ColonelCrow]

I'm setting up a sump at long last, tucked away in a walk in closet (my old 65gallon aquarium). This gives me the opportunity to set up a controller and obviously the 'big fish' seems to be the APEX system. Before I set down the path of purchasing this, are the others worth considering and if so, why? Especially, are they all equally easy for a newbie to set up and run or are some especially problematic or have a steep learning curve?

I just started into the marine side of this hobby about 2 months ago and i opted to buy apex systems ant setup before i ever mixed my first gallon of saltwater to give myself the best chances for success a i could.

Its given me more headache than anything else. It turned me into a worry worting control freak!

But thankfully with the help of the guy i thought was a best friend(who would ever want their friend to get sucked into this hobby?) And probably the fact i got it so early, my mind somewhat quickly evolved away from relying on it for anything specific.

The best use im getting out of it in these early stages now are monitoring power. Altering probe alarms because i dont need the numbers to be what evsryone says is prime at the probe level... i need the probe to keep me aware of trends and spikes not actual numbers.

The ability to monitor my tank both in numbers and with a web cam through the apex app is priceless as well as relaxing for me while im at work. When i started j would check the app to see the numbers like a teen on facebook. Ive since stopped and trust the system more but am working toward setting up a webce for it so i can really take it to work with me.

To summarize i guess its just important to know what you want from it. You can program to an extend other equipment but it is lacking in this factor(coming from a hobbyist programmer of 3 languages i would love love love more power in this feature, at least give us the ability to store variables and create our own alarms that can alert us of more than just the first trigger! Ive written more powerful spreadsheets than this thing.

I digress know what youre intent for it is before you decide. I have zero regrets. Its encouraged me to learn more both about the hobby as well as how to use new tech and im excited to learn how to use it better every day.

 

[doubleshot00]

As a complete newb reefer under a year I would never suggest to someone a controller non the less an APEX. Unless you have endless hours of time to read and learning about it. Then go ahead. We as newbs need to focus on the reef and fish over a controller.