Anyone reliably using Apex ATK?

[rkpetersen]

Suggestion: Program in email alarms (via virtual outlets) so that you are notified if the low sensor stays open too long or closed too long. The natural behavior of this sensor is that it toggles back and forth between open and closed, and if it stops doing this, it usually means that there's something wrong with the sensor or another ATK component. The email alarms will tell you there's a problem before you're likely to notice it yourself.

 

[Joe Carioti]

Suggestion: Program in email alarms (via virtual outlets) so that you are notified if the low sensor stays open too long or closed too long. The natural behavior of this sensor is that it toggles back and forth between open and closed, and if it stops doing this, it usually means that there's something wrong with the sensor or another ATK component. The email alarms will tell you there's a problem before you're likely to notice it yourself.

Yep, I have an alarm for the low sensor being off for too long and the top sensor being on for too long. Neither scenario should happen under normal circumstances.

 

[rkpetersen]

Yep, I have an alarm for the low sensor being off for too long and the top sensor being on for too long. Neither scenario should happen under normal circumstances.

Yes. You should also have one for if the low sensor is on for too long. I had a low sensor fail in the CLOSED position, so that the ATK thought there was plenty of water in the sump and therefore didn't activate, as the level went down down down. Fortunately I realized what was happening before the return pump sucked air. That's when I added these alarms (and replaced the sensor.)

 

[LoneStarReef]

Yes. You should also have one for if the low sensor is on for too long. I had a low sensor fail in the CLOSED position, so that the ATK thought there was plenty of water in the sump and therefore didn't activate, as the level went down down down. Fortunately I realized what was happening before the return pump sucked air. That's when I added these alarms (and replaced the sensor.)

Great idea. Can you guys share your program for this?

 

[rkpetersen]

Great idea. Can you guys share your program for this?

Sure, it's super easy. Here's an example virtual outlet:

[ATOLoClsd240]
Set OFF
If ATOLo CLOSED Then ON
Defer 240:00 Then ON

Then add this line to your email alarm/notification tile:

If Output ATOLoClsd240 = ON Then ON

This warns me if my low sensor has been closed for 4 hours continuously. So it will tell me if there is really something wrong with the ATK, but won't false alarm me if I happen to add a bit too much water during a water change.


Another:

[ATOLoOpen060]
Set OFF
If ATOLo OPEN Then ON
Defer 060:00 Then ON

Alarm line:
If Output ATOLoOpen060 = ON Then ON

I have my ATK activate at min 30 minute intervals, not the default 60, and evaporation is pretty consistent such that if that sensor stays open for 60 minutes continuously, something would be wrong.


And so on. Just modify the parameters to suit your particular setup.

 

[LoneStarReef]

Sure, it's super easy. Here's an example virtual outlet:

[ATOLoClsd240]
Set OFF
If ATOLo CLOSED Then ON
Defer 240:00 Then ON

Then add this line to your email alarm/notification tile:

If Output ATOLoClsd240 = ON Then ON

This warns me if my low sensor has been closed for 4 hours continuously. So it will tell me if there is really something wrong with the ATK, but won't false alarm me if I happen to add a bit too much water during a water change.


Another:

[ATOLoOpen060]
Set OFF
If ATOLo OPEN Then ON
Defer 060:00 Then ON

Alarm line:
If Output ATOLoOpen060 = ON Then ON

I have my ATK activate at min 30 minute intervals, not the default 60, and evaporation is pretty consistent such that if that sensor stays open for 60 minutes continuously, something would be wrong.


And so on. Just modify the parameters to suit your particular setup.

Thanks!!

 

[User1]

Just got one on Thursday and so far it is working. Once I figured out the right way to set it up. Only thing I don't like about it is the magnet on the inside. It should be heavier/thicker. I'm new to Apex so trying to decipher the code above and what it does...

 

[Joe Carioti]

Just got one on Thursday and so far it is working. Once I figured out the right way to set it up. Only thing I don't like about it is the magnet on the inside. It should be heavier/thicker. I'm new to Apex so trying to decipher the code above and what it does...

The programming are the instructions for how the switch should work when in the AUTO position. "Set OFF" means to be off by default. "If ATOLo CLOSED Then ON" means to turn this switch "ON" if the ATOLo water sensor is in the "Closed" position. "Defer 240:00 Then ON" makes the switch wait 240 mins before turning on.

In combination, this programming will mean the alarm switch will be off by default, and then turn on 240 minutes after the ATOLo water level sensor changes to the CLOSED position.

 

[Joe Carioti]

I feel like I need to report that I woke up today to my ATO reservoir empty and a burnt out PMUP. I'm pretty disappointed that the ATK didn't cut power to the PMUP after realizing that it had been running for 4 straight hours...

The ATK marketing material claims that the system learns the average length of refills and then prevents the pump from running longer than 2x that refill time. My refill times are 45s to 60s. I would have expected the ATK to shut off the pump after about 2 minutes and give me an alarm. It did not do that. I'm waiting to hear back form Neptune about a replacement now.

 

[User1]

The programming are the instructions for how the switch should work when in the AUTO position. "Set OFF" means to be off by default. "If ATOLo CLOSED Then ON" means to turn this switch "ON" if the ATOLo water sensor is in the "Closed" position. "Defer 240:00 Then ON" makes the switch wait 240 mins before turning on.

In combination, this programming will mean the alarm switch will be off by default, and then turn on 240 minutes after the ATOLo water level sensor changes to the CLOSED position.

Thanks Joe.

Also - just read the follow up post. I'm sorry to hear about the pump. I need to check / note how fast my water is being used. I've not done that actually.

 

[Joe Carioti]

The ATK marketing material claims that the system learns the average length of refills and then prevents the pump from running longer than 2x that refill time. My refill times are 45s to 60s. I would have expected the ATK to shut off the pump after about 2 minutes and give me an alarm. It did not do that. I'm waiting to hear back form Neptune about a replacement now.

Okay, I just spoke with Neptune and now I understand that this feature I'm describing only applies to the ATK when running in standalone mode. When connected to an Apex, it's suggested to go through the ATK Task to set up the PMUP with all the proper programming to prevent it from overheating. I was missing a specific line of code for "When On > 5:00 Then Off" which prevents the PMUP from running for longer than 5 minutes at a time.

I'm adding an extra water level sensor to my ATO reservoir as a way to keep the PMUP from running dry at all.

 

[rkpetersen]

I feel like I need to report that I woke up today to my ATO reservoir empty and a burnt out PMUP. I'm pretty disappointed that the ATK didn't cut power to the PMUP after realizing that it had been running for 4 straight hours...

I'm sorry this happened, hopefully your reservoir wasn't too large and your livestock are ok (and no water on the floor.)

I was just going to ask you if you had the When On > xxxxx Then OFF line in your code, then saw your last post. If that line activates, the power to the pmup is turned off, and an Error condition is generated, turning the ATO tile to OFF and requiring a manual reset to AUTO to resume function. That code is programmed by default, so yours must have been accidentally deleted.

The other question though, is - Why did your pmup stay on like that in the first place? Did it just go bad? Because others have had similar (or worse, much worse) experiences with this pump. Makes me a bit anxious.

 

[rkpetersen]

I'm adding an extra water level sensor to my ATO reservoir as a way to keep the PMUP from running dry at all.

Yes, plug an optical sensor into one of the extra FMM ports, program it, fold the sensor back on its wire and secure it with a zip tie so that it's facing up, and drop it in your reservoir. Another useful safeguard. It would be nice if they included an optical sensor for reservoir low level detection with the ATK package.

Oh, and be sure to set that FMM port for 'optical sensor' on the module setup page. Turn off auto-detect for all the FMM sensors and just set them to the correct values manually. Auto-detect is buggy and can cause both minor and serious problems.

 

[Mark Gray]

I did get one and I’ve been happily using it for the past 2 weeks with no issues. I did move the sensors around a bit to my liking, but the mount is easy enough to use and I’m very happy with the programmability from having the high and low water sensors.[/QUOTE
only THING i HAVE HAD HAPPEN IS i HAD TO CLEAN THE PHOTO EYE'S

 

[Joe Carioti]

I'm sorry this happened, hopefully your reservoir wasn't too large and your livestock are ok (and no water on the floor.)

I was just going to ask you if you had the When On > xxxxx Then OFF line in your code, then saw your last post. If that line activates, the power to the pmup is turned off, and an Error condition is generated, turning the ATO tile to OFF and requiring a manual reset to AUTO to resume function. That code is programmed by default, so yours must have been accidentally deleted.

The other question though, is - Why did your pmup stay on like that in the first place? Did it just go bad? Because others have had similar (or worse, much worse) experiences with this pump. Makes me a bit anxious.

Everything is okay. The reservoir ran dry overnight, so the salinity just went up a little bit.

I didn't realize that the ATK task is the only way to get the proper programming rules set up. I manually configured the pump as an ATO, but that doesn't include the extra rules and alarms that would have prevented the pump from running while dry.

 

[Joe Carioti]

Oh, and be sure to set that FMM port for 'optical sensor' on the module setup page. Turn off auto-detect for all the FMM sensors and just set them to the correct values manually. Auto-detect is buggy and can cause both minor and serious problems.

I did manually set the ports to 'optical sensor' but I don't see where I can turn off auto-detect. I did have one of my sensors register as a flow meter yesterday out of the blue, so you're right about it being buggy.

 

[rkpetersen]

I did manually set the ports to 'optical sensor' but I don't see where I can turn off auto-detect. I did have one of my sensors register as a flow meter yesterday out of the blue, so you're right about it being buggy.

Go to Modules page, then the FMM Module page, Action -> Configure, make sure the all the 'Use auto detection' checkboxes are unchecked.

 

[Joe Carioti]

Go to Modules page, then the FMM Module page, Action -> Configure, make sure the all the 'Use auto detection' checkboxes are unchecked.

This must be from the display because I don’t see any of these options from the classic Apex dashboard. I don't have a display unit hooked up right now (it's loaned to a friend), so I'll have to do that once I get it back.

 

[User1]

Well, I'm new to the ATK like I said above, and thought I had it dialed in, but...maybe I just did something silly because I also just ran into the "runs until container runs empty" symptom Well, that should be a sad panda face but it isn't bad because I caught it in time since I was home. Now...to try and trust this before I travel next week. Somehow I triggered it to stay on or it did it on its own. Could be because I'm using default labels still so I'm guessing me. The gear icon, advanced, has it set up like below. I ran through the wizard to program it.

Fallback OFF
Set OFF
If Swx4_1 OPEN Then ON
If Swx4_2 CLOSED Then OFF
When On > 005:00 Then OFF
Defer 000:10 Then ON
Defer 000:04 Then OFF
Min Time 060:00 Then OFF

Guessing swx4_1 is an eye? Swx4_2 is the other eye?

 

[rkpetersen]

This must be from the display because I don’t see any of these options from the classic Apex dashboard. I don't have a display unit hooked up right now (it's loaned to a friend), so I'll have to do that once I get it back.

Ah, sorry. It's a page in Fusion or Apex Local for the 2016 model. I should remember that there are different models available. ;Cyclops