Been doing this for a year and a half. I use the neptune sensors high and low in my 5 gallon ato tank along with an avastmarine feed pump in my main rodi brute can (basement) where i collect my rodi water. As soon as the low sensor becomes open apex turns on my avastmarine pump and fills up the ato reservoir in addition my ato high sensor is set to stay Open always, as soon as the water reaches it and the sensor becomes closed the avastmarine feed pump shuts off...best thing i ever did...Apex is amazing..
Can be a stupid question, but I was wondering if I can use one of the sensors levels on my skimmer as well. Would that be ok? So when my skimmer go crazy it will turn off...
Yep, you can use an optical sensor on your skimmer if you like. It would just require some minor programing if you're using the Apex and OS-1 sensor. Alternatively, AutoAqua makes a product called the smart skimmer security sensor that is plug and play if you prefer.
Thanks for the video but i HAVE A question!! My DOS sits above my saltwater mixing station which is in my garage which is about 40-50ft from my tank which is where my Apex panel sits!! Will I need the Aquabus Extension Cable that's 30ft and can I connect two of them togerther? or it might be just easier to mount my DOS under my tank and then run the lines in some PVC pipe around the house to my Mixing station... Like to get your thoughts?
Just run the aquabus cables chained together to your mixing station. Neptune instructions say the total combined length of the aquabus cables needs to be less than 200’.
An issue I’ve encountered is when the filter floss gets stocked up, it prevents less flow resulting in a ato sensor turning on as the sensor is activated. The result is the salinity has been diluted. When it shouldn’t have due to the filter floss. Any ideas to prevent this (besides replacing filter floss more frequently). Currently I have a sensor mentoring flow which will indicate I need to replace the filter floss.
Same here, added one in my bubble trap as that one tends to clog up at unpredictable times. One of the things I highly recommend is having a "Min Time 030:00 Then OFF" on your ATO to have more spread windows + have a "When ON > 003:00 Then OFF" to force ATO from auto to off (which will generate an Err alarm). I know something is off looking at my ATO flow sensor graph what the cadence is of it turning on. Still trying to find a more reliable way of programming an alert when that happens. I'm working on my own apex ingestion as Neptune doesn't allow/supply any ML models unfortunately, but definitely doable. I may release it in the next 6 months when I find some time. photos.app.goo.gl/P8ysbinGZqrU89VSA
Great video. Have you tried adding the sensors on the original ATO reservoir? (instead of the sump itself) that way we don't waste that water volume and avoid too much current and salt creep? Thanks, love tour videos!
@@BRStv i mean adding the Osmolator sensors to the original top off reservoir that comes with the aquarium and of course having a bigger separate container for RO water. I was just thinking that avoids salt creep on tue sensors. I hope I explained myself a bit better 😊
@@BRStv I mean adding the Tunze sensors and hose to the original RODI reservoir that comes with the aquarium (instead the sump itself) to avoid salt creep and current movements
A vast majority of this you can do with the Osmolator, or any other ATO system. The only exception would be towards the end of the video when Randy starts talking specifically about the ATK.
Am I the only person who has had multiple apex optical sensors fail? Even on my ato reservoir with just RO water. Every 6 months then, fail! Stop working. Super frustrating
The main disadvantage is that you lose a layer of redundancy. Another potential issue is if you plumb the RODI system directly to your sump, you'll likely be filling very small amounts of water at a time, which increases your DI consumption due to TDS creep.
You can always remove the float, but that does unfortunately eliminate that extra redundancy. If you need something a bit more compact, the Tunze Osmolator 3155 is a great choice. The Apex can still turn power on/off in an emergency.
Inevitable things happen to our reef tanks. Avoid the inevitable by mastering them with the Neptune Apex.
➡ brs.li/BRStv_Master_Neptune_Apex
The Salinity Probe on the Apex is not accurate! My tank is exactly 35 and my probe reads 38.
5 years with an apex and i just learned to tie my ato outlet to my return pump outlet.... Im glad brs makes videos so i dont have to be smart.
Thanks Randy!
Never thought about adding the return pump outlet to the ATO code.
Added now, priceless! 😁
Been doing this for a year and a half. I use the neptune sensors high and low in my 5 gallon ato tank along with an avastmarine feed pump in my main rodi brute can (basement) where i collect my rodi water. As soon as the low sensor becomes open apex turns on my avastmarine pump and fills up the ato reservoir in addition my ato high sensor is set to stay Open always, as soon as the water reaches it and the sensor becomes closed the avastmarine feed pump shuts off...best thing i ever did...Apex is amazing..
Brilliant Randy thanks very much for this series really great
Thanks randy every episode i got atleast 1 nugget i changed and added
these are great videos. next tank for sure. thanks!
Can be a stupid question, but I was wondering if I can use one of the sensors levels on my skimmer as well. Would that be ok? So when my skimmer go crazy it will turn off...
Yep, you can use an optical sensor on your skimmer if you like. It would just require some minor programing if you're using the Apex and OS-1 sensor. Alternatively, AutoAqua makes a product called the smart skimmer security sensor that is plug and play if you prefer.
Thank you!
Good content man
Thanks for the video but i HAVE A question!! My DOS sits above my saltwater mixing station which is in my garage which is about 40-50ft from my tank which is where my Apex panel sits!! Will I need the Aquabus Extension Cable that's 30ft and can I connect two of them togerther? or it might be just easier to mount my DOS under my tank and then run the lines in some PVC pipe around the house to my Mixing station... Like to get your thoughts?
Just run the aquabus cables chained together to your mixing station. Neptune instructions say the total combined length of the aquabus cables needs to be less than 200’.
An issue I’ve encountered is when the filter floss gets stocked up, it prevents less flow resulting in a ato sensor turning on as the sensor is activated. The result is the salinity has been diluted. When it shouldn’t have due to the filter floss. Any ideas to prevent this (besides replacing filter floss more frequently). Currently I have a sensor mentoring flow which will indicate I need to replace the filter floss.
Same here, added one in my bubble trap as that one tends to clog up at unpredictable times. One of the things I highly recommend is having a "Min Time 030:00 Then OFF" on your ATO to have more spread windows + have a "When ON > 003:00 Then OFF" to force ATO from auto to off (which will generate an Err alarm). I know something is off looking at my ATO flow sensor graph what the cadence is of it turning on. Still trying to find a more reliable way of programming an alert when that happens. I'm working on my own apex ingestion as Neptune doesn't allow/supply any ML models unfortunately, but definitely doable. I may release it in the next 6 months when I find some time. photos.app.goo.gl/P8ysbinGZqrU89VSA
how to use it with the tunze wave box as the water level go up and down all time?
Great video. Have you tried adding the sensors on the original ATO reservoir? (instead of the sump itself) that way we don't waste that water volume and avoid too much current and salt creep? Thanks, love tour videos!
Hmmm...not exactly sure what you mean by that.
@@BRStv i mean adding the Osmolator sensors to the original top off reservoir that comes with the aquarium and of course having a bigger separate container for RO water. I was just thinking that avoids salt creep on tue sensors. I hope I explained myself a bit better 😊
@@BRStv I mean adding the Tunze sensors and hose to the original RODI reservoir that comes with the aquarium (instead the sump itself) to avoid salt creep and current movements
Can we do all of this while using the osmolator instead of the ATK?
A vast majority of this you can do with the Osmolator, or any other ATO system. The only exception would be towards the end of the video when Randy starts talking specifically about the ATK.
Am I the only person who has had multiple apex optical sensors fail? Even on my ato reservoir with just RO water. Every 6 months then, fail! Stop working. Super frustrating
Any advantage/disadvantage to having the solenoid skip the ATO reservoir and go straight to the return pump chamber in the sump?
The main disadvantage is that you lose a layer of redundancy. Another potential issue is if you plumb the RODI system directly to your sump, you'll likely be filling very small amounts of water at a time, which increases your DI consumption due to TDS creep.
But i May switch it soon only because when my barrels for salt are filling it doesn’t top off my tank
Mines hooked straight to the RO filter
To bad the Neptune ATK won’t fit where I have to have my ATO, that huge float valve won’t fit in a small chamber
You can always remove the float, but that does unfortunately eliminate that extra redundancy. If you need something a bit more compact, the Tunze Osmolator 3155 is a great choice. The Apex can still turn power on/off in an emergency.