Automatic water change with dosing pump?

[showard]

Thats awesome! I do not have a basement sump which is why I am looking into a highly accurate pump to do the work. Also the tank is in my bedrom. I looked at the options on the site before because it came up in a google search early on but it seemed like you needed to mount the metering containers above the sump. I could do it but if the metering containers are big though I could not fit them under my stand. If I could get the containers, pump and controller I would do that because it it purpose built then there would be no changing of tubing.

 

[nemodan]

For AWC, I don't think you should be using a dosing pump. Dosing pumps are designed more for short turn on time and will not be able to handle the continuous operation. I have a GHL dosing system and when I used one of the pump for my ATO, the head stripped out pretty quickly(within 6 months). The motor itself is heavy duty but the head will be worn out from the heat due to friction. I'm using a liter meter pump for my ATO now. Even that, with AWC in continuous operation, I'm not sure how long it will last. If you want to do 1/4 of a gallon every hour, it'll probably be okay.

The Masterflex is a great choice because it's designed for continuous use. Even so, you will have change out the head tubing every now and then. I'm running one on my CA reactor since Dec '15 and I can see that the head tubing will need to be changed in a couple months.
The link you posted is only for the head. You will need to get the pump unit itself which can be quite expensive for a new one. Ebay is much for affordable. These pumps are built for medical and scientific purposes so the build quality is very well controlled and will last for a very long time.

As for the AWC discussion. Would it benefit anything? I've thought about doing it, but I've read conflicting reports suggesting that a weekly water change in larger amount will actually more effective in keeping the nutrients level down. For example, the bacteria will multiple faster than your AWC can replenish new water to the tank. Sure, the level will be more constant but that I'm just not sure if it's worth all the work. Another thing to keep in mind that to run the pump 24/7 isn't exactly keep. The Masterflex running at 75W continuously is almost equivalent to adding a 250W of light over your tank.

Rick. The new GHL doser 2 is designed for continuous WC. Like the DOS from Neptune.

Best !!
Daniel

 

[this is me]

That's a pretty good idea. Your ATO would need to be something you could also turn off and not just a manual float valve. I would also want 2 back up float sensors. One to turn the main pump off if the after level got to low and one to turn the drain pump if it got to low. You could also run the drain pump the same way instead of running it for a set time. I would then want 2 on the drain pump in case one failed.

Some controller has the feature that if X is on, Y cannot be on at the same time. In other words, if it's time for "water change mode", the ATO float would be completely ignored. This will ensure that the ATO is not pumping fresh water because the water level has gone down.
Come to think of it, you can actually use your current ATO sensor(s) to also do AWC. During "Water change mode", the ATO sensors would be ignored while the Solenoid1(drain) is active. When solenoid 1 is off and solenoid2(fresh sw) is on, the ATO sensor will be used again, but the ATO pump is not being used as long as it's in the "water change mode" state. I'm pretty sure I can do this with the GHL controller as it has a logic programmable mode. Not sure on other controllers but it would be a simple implemtation.

And actually as I finished typing all this, I think this is exactly what AWC mode in most controller do. But instead of turning on/off your pump, turn your water solenoids.

I am thinking masterflex now lol what would be the downside of getting a DOS over the masterflex? Also which head/pump combo do you use and how do you control when it turns on and off? Also I would be running it a few times a day.

The one that Chris posted will be fine for AWC. The adjustable flow rate is quite more money and it's not needed for pumping water until it has reach a certain level base on your sensors.

Rick. The new GHL doser 2 is designed for continuous WC. Like the DOS from Neptune.

Best !!
Daniel

Thanks Daniel. I'm not aware of this since I haven't looked into new reef gadget for awhile. I'm somewhat outdated. Lol
But my concern is not the motor, it's the head. If it's marketed for continuous use, I would think it's somewhat more robust than a regular dosing pump.

 

[this is me]

Hell, I probably will end up using a couple of valves and just turn it on and off when I want to do my water change.
I'm always near the tank anyway.

 

[choff]

Hell, I probably will end up using a couple of valves and just turn it on and off when I want to do my water change.
I'm always near the tank anyway.

That's what I did before I got the Genesis. It wasn't so much a time saver than it was more the philosophy. I was doing a 50g weekly WC on 330g system. It used to take me 10 min using valves. Now I do 42g a week on my 290g (took a 40b fuge offline), but 1 g every 4 hours. I think this keeps the system slightly more stable than the mass WC.

 

[showard]

Soo basically its neptune dos vs masterflex vs genesis. I will look more into genesis setup and pricing but I need to rule out the dos or the masterflex. I feel like the dos would be more accurate and there may be a slight deviation of a tiny amount of mL over time but the masterflex (to my understanding) needs to be controlled and triggered by something so unless I use optical sensors I will not get reproduceable results. Unless I am very wrong then please enlighten me. Float switches will have the same amount of deviation I think. Unless I put the masterflex on a timer and run it for the same amount of time every single time then have a float to let me know when the tanks holding the new water and waste water are empty/full. I can see that working. Anyone disagree?

 

[this is me]

Okay, I went over the Neptune DOS website and read on the marketing material.
https://www.neptunesystems.com/dos/
Sounds pretty good but still not sure how robust the head is with continuous operation. I don't know how much Neptune charge for the head but my GHL Profilux head cost $60 to replace.
The rated lifespan of the motor is 5000hours. That's 208 days. That's less than 7 months.

Again, continuous water change is a luxury and nice to have. Keeping it running is not economical and practical(I'm sure you will have to change out parts and keep an eye on the system pretty often).
If you really must do it, I suggest running at pulse duty cycle. Meaning run the pumps for 5mins, stop for 5 mins, and cycle it throughout the day. This way it gives the pumps and head time to cool down.

 

[choff]

A Genesis unit is not going to fit under a tank stand, so if it's in your bed room you will want to find another option. The pumps will pump the fresh salt mix and removal water into 2 separate 1 gallon containers, but then it's gravity from the bucket to the tank for fresh mix and gravity from old water to drain

 

[showard]

Ah ok so DOS it is lol.

 

[showard]

Okay, I went over the Neptune DOS website and read on the marketing material.
https://www.neptunesystems.com/dos/
Sounds pretty good but still not sure how robust the head is with continuous operation. I don't know how much Neptune charge for the head but my GHL Profilux head cost $60 to replace.
The rated lifespan of the motor is 5000hours. That's 208 days. That's less than 7 months.

Again, continuous water change is a luxury and nice to have. Keeping it running is not economical and practical(I'm sure you will have to change out parts and keep an eye on the system pretty often).
If you really must do it, I suggest running at pulse duty cycle. Meaning run the pumps for 5mins, stop for 5 mins, and cycle it throughout the day. This way it gives the pumps and head time to cool down.

The heads cost around 30$ and yes I have done more research and it seems it would be best to remove and replace 1 gallon a day and then break the gallon up into tiny increments throughout the day, continually removing DOC's.