Auto top-off/Doser discussion

[NateHanson]

What aspect of your RODI is electrical, so it can use a timer?

Another way to provide a safeguard is to use float switches and a solenoid to cut off your RODI supply if waterlevels are too high.

 

[dedfish]

Anyone have any experience with:
http://www.innovativeaquatics.com/index.html

 

[Mr. Slippery]

Quote from the website "Suction of liquid from containers 3 feet below pump and pumping vertically at least 15 ft."'

I was looking at these yesterday, that would be perfect for what I need. The only thing is that they are not new, theyre refurbished medical pumps.

 

[~Flighty~]

What aspect of your RODI is electrical, so it can use a timer?

Another way to provide a safeguard is to use float switches and a solenoid to cut off your RODI supply if waterlevels are too high.

I'll have to ask him but I think he put the water suply to the rodi on a lawn waterer timer thingy.

Nate, you of all people should know that if saltwater is being lost somehow the tank will look low and be filled(diluted) as fast as your rodi can make water.

 

[NateHanson]

Yeah, (thanks for reminding me ) I'm going to put a high-level switch on the display and on the sump. That covers a malfunctioning float valve, or a blocked drain. I figured those were the two most likely malfunctions. It won't guard against a leaking tank, or a leaking sump, but there's nothing I can think of that will prevent a problem from that situation. RODI input is valved down to a trickle, so that'll help slow any dillution problem for many days so it can be detected. I'm also going to put a screemer water detector thing under the sump. (where do you get those, HD?)

 

[nunofs]

What aspect of your RODI is electrical, so it can use a timer?

Mine has a pressure booster pump and the associated solenoid valve so a timer could be used on that solenoid... even without a pump, you could always get a solenoid alone (of the "closed-by-default" variety).

I'm also going to put a screemer water detector thing under the sump. (where do you get those, HD?)

FWIW, I got mine from http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=3856&N=2004+113171

Nuno

 

[Mr. Slippery]

I was just searching around about the Tsunami At-1. Everyone says that it takes 1" of evaporation to kick the pump on. That sounds like a lot to me. Especially if it will only be run at night- Say that one night, the switch does not get triggered because it hasn't reached that inch, but it is VERY close. The timer will shut the whole thing down in the AM, and the unit will not have a chance to turn back on again until the next night. So it will go over a day before it fills again. This totally defeats the purpose of having an auto top off, which is stability. Am I correct?

 

[dedfish]

Yea they are refurbed. A lot of people buy refurbed pumps on ebay for dosing. They do have an interesting guarantee...

A dosing pump purchased from Innovative Aquatics will do what you want it to do or your money will be refunded in full. All parts, including all tubing, are guaranteed for one full year from the date of purchase. We believe that our customers trust in us to provide them with a product that is accurate, fairly-priced, well-constructed, designed and will do what they require. If a product purchased from Innovative Aquatics does not fully meet your expectations, please contact us for a full refund.

 

[Greg Hiller]

Matt,

Yes, that is one aspect of the At-1 I forgot to mention, that can be an issue depending upon the type of sump you have, level, etc. Keep in mind that if you use a timer on your system it will still pump in slowly.

>This totally defeats the purpose of having an auto top off, which is stability.<

Well, that really depends. If I have a sump that has 20 inches of water in it, and the level changes by 1 inch it changes the salinity by 5% if we just consider the sump. If this sump is 30 gallons, and it's connected to a 270 gallon tank, then it changes the salinity by 0.5%. Keep in mind also, that you usually don't want a pump, or any piece of electrical equipment, turning on and off continuously. Hence the hysterisis of the At-1.

 

[Greg Hiller]

Again, keep in mind for the medical pumps, if you need the pump to work with a level controller, make SURE that it will turn on and off without you having to press a button.

 

[jackie]

Matt, what did you decide to go with? I desparately need to set up something different....I'm tired of filling 5 gal water bottles every 4 days. I'm currently using the gravity method. I'd also like to put a large rubbermaid in the closet....

 

[Mr. Slippery]

No I didn't yet. I'm setting up a 75 so after thats up I'll figure out what to do. My resevoir will also be in a closet, but probably a rectangle trash bin like the ones for the kitchen.

 

[Greg Hiller]

I used to use a rectangular bin for water storage. I recommend against it as it will bow a lot. Much better to use something round. FWIW.

 

[starrfish]

Hey Matt - I saw above that you were considering the Aquamedic peristaltic pump. I have been using the Aquamedic pump for about 6 months. The other day I was in Boston. Marc came over to fill my new tank. He called me because he walked into a few gallons of water on my floor. The tubing in the pump had split and leaked most of my kalk mix on the floor. Thank god he came when he did - it had only leaked a few gallons. This isn't the first time this has happened to me. I used to use a Kangaroo peristaltic pump and the same thing happened a few times. The Aquamedic tubing is a lot stronger than the Kangaroo, but it still split. I've decided to do the gravity method with my new tank - I'll be using a float valve in the sump, but with a ball valve to make sure it's only a drip to prevent a flood in case the float valve gets stuck (I think Nate mentioned this above). I also like the idea of only putting enough water in the reservoir to fill the sump and not overflow it if there is a problem with the valve.

Just thought I'd mention this since you were talking about getting the Aquamedic pump. Let us know what you decide.

Daire

 

[Mr. Slippery]

yea those hoses for those pumps are supposed to be replaced regularly to prevent that. It's kind of a pain but I don't have anywhere to make it gravity fed as the resevoir will be adjacent to the tank(actually between one end of the tank and the wall)

 

[starrfish]

Oh yeah...replacing the hose...forgot to mention that little problem. I have tried to replace the hose 2 times (with 2 different hoses) and I can't get the pump to spin. Marc has looked at it too. This happened to me on the first one I got 6 months ago and Marc actually gave me a new pump. Now it's happening again. I have an email into aquamedic to see if they know what the problem might be. (user error?? haha) This is another reason why I've decided to go another route.

I forgot to mention...I use a Reeffanatic Level Controller with the Aquamedic. The level controller is awesome. It's never gotten stuck, and it even has a backup controller. I highly recommend it.

 

[Mr. Slippery]

What really are my alternatives? I need a slow flow pump because it's being used in line with the kalk reactor so I need slow output.

 

[starrfish]

The Aquamedic pump is slow and it's cheap. I would just keep a bunch of the tubes as spares if you go with it. One thing you can do that someone else mentioned above is put the pump over your sump so if the tubing fails is drips back into the sump.

 

[starrfish]

Matt - I sent Aquamedic an email explaining my problem with the tubing and the pump not turning. They sent me an email today asking me to measure the length of the hose. I started thinking about this and decided that maybe the hose it too long and that's why the pump won't turn. So I just cut the tubing a little bit and the pump is turning. So....I would recommend the Aquamedic pump with the assumption that you have a few extra hoses on hand and you replace them at regular intervals. I would also keep the pump over your sump as a safeguard against flooding. I might just stick with this method now that I know how to fix the problem. Thanks for starting this thread!

 

[Mr. Slippery]

See, now we're getting somewhere. I have no problem replacing the hose, it can't be that hard. I was going to mount the pump just on the inside of the resevoir so if it does leak or siphon it will just pour right back in it. It's going to be fresh water so I don't want it draining into my sump. I'll fit the kalk reactor either under the stand or next to the resevoir and have the feed go up and into the overflow box so it won't siphon into the sump, which is lower than the reactor, when it turns off.