n2585722
2500 Club Member
If you just setup the inputs there will not be any trends yet. Give it a few hours.
Apex or Hydros controller
- Thread starter Bogeyon181967
- Start date
- Tagged users None
ReeferLou
Active Member
If you are a hands-on type and like to tinker I would recommend a reef-pi. I built one with PH, temperature, 8 outlets control, 4 dose pump control (Jebao 4S). and ATO (used a skimmer overflow detect) for about 300 in parts and hours of sweat. Look in the DIY thread for more info.
Sarcazian
Active Member
Have you used them?
You mean like graphing?
Thank you. I feel a lot better and I could have sworn that I saw graphs when researching. I will give it a few hours I guess? I updated the FW to the newest release, plugged in the temp monitor, and it has only been online for a couple of hours now.
I shouldn't have jumped, but I also could not find / click on anything that seemed to show graphs. Normally, if a graph still need to build data it shows as blank or some type of feedback.
So, do I just click on the temp input when it is ready? Right now, it does nothing that jumps out in status or inputs.
n2585722
2500 Club Member
Click on the three dots on the right side of the screen even with the Inputs heading. I will give you the popup menu show in screenshot below. Just click on view graph. The inputs will show as graphs.
Sarcazian
Active Member
Click on the three dots on the right side of the screen even with the Inputs heading. I will give you the popup menu show in screenshot below. Just click on view graph. The inputs will show as graphs.
That was it - Thank you!
I mean, it does makes sense once you know and maybe I should have RTFM.... but that is a weird spot to hide it and not very intuitive. It could just be me though.
Of course, adding the sensors and probes was super easy for what I have from the kit. As strange as it sounds though, do find it to simplistic overall. But, as long as it works, and more add-ons come out, in the end is all that will matter.
n2585722
2500 Club Member
I have not found anything that the Hydros could not do that I was doing with my Archon. It depends on how complex you want to take it. Mine controls my RODI for my fridge for the ice maker along with auto refill of my DI storage tank when it goes low. It also transfers from my mix tank to my fresh saltwater tank when the fresh saltwater tank goes low if the mix tank is ready to use. After the transfer it refills the mix tank with DI water. All I have to do is add the salt mix and press a button when it is ready to use. It does this along with the common tank function of a controller such as ATO, AWC, heat, cool and pump control. I do have 4 Control units in a collective to control all of this. I have 19 inputs setup and 39 outputs setup.
n2585722
2500 Club Member
Also there are three dots in the upper right corner of the app. Click on them for another menu. One item is Help. That will take you to the online manuals. The three dots for menus and setup items is starting to get popular with new apps and programs. Microsoft Edge uses the three dots for this. Upper right corner of app or section also seems to be common with these. They did trip me up the first time I ran into them. I don't remember which app or program it was but it was a few years back.
minus9
5000 Club Member
I'm waiting for the Hydros to come with a hard wired power bar, then I'm all in. I love my apex system, but the EB832 has too many issues with failing and I don't see Neptune addressing them any time soon. If GHL had an interface like Hydros or fusion, it would beat apex all day long, but since it's programming is from the 80's, I'll pass. I have a GHL Doser 2 and it's the best doser out there and the app works most of the time without issue. I also have the wave engine, which is integrated into my apex system. I like having these different units integrated into one big system, as I'm getting the best of all worlds, kind of. I'll probably buy the Hydros xs and power it off of my wave engine and use it for leak detection and other redundancies. So if haven't guessed by now, I'm an avid hybrid user, as it really covers a lot of ground. I think people get into "this is better than that", but that way of thinking really narrows your options and doesn't fully address all of your (our) concerns. Same applies with lighting, don't be afraid of mixing it up.
n2585722
2500 Club Member
@minus9, what is it that worries you about the wifi power strips? I would not use them for dosing, ATO or AWC. I do use them for my return pump, skimmer pump, heaters and other various task. I use the drive ports for ATO, AWC and dosing. If the power strip looses wifi it will continue with the state the outlet was in when the wifi was lost. Mine have done this from time to time usually only lasting a few seconds. I know it has happed since I get a text and an email when connectivity is lost with any of the Control devices or wifi devices. As long as you have your phone with you you will know there is an issue. They have not caused an issue with my tank yet. I even went through some massive rolling blackout a few weeks back and everything would come back up without issue When the power came back on. The black outs lasted for several days. At one time the power was off an hour and on an hour. This lasted all night at that rate. The longest it was off or on was 4 hours at a time.
minus9
5000 Club Member
I think it mostly comes from no long term usage data, so I'm not completely against them, just making sure there are no issues likes the EB832. I know I'm not going to use an apex on my 25g lagoon build and will most likely get a Hydros system. I like how CoralVue is completely open to third party manufacturers and integrating their products, too bad others don't follow suit. I will say that Carlos is a one man customer support machine and goes beyond in helping customers. AAA+
n2585722
2500 Club Member
I consider myself one of the lucky ones since we did have intermittent power. It is an all electric home so if there is no power nothing works. My daughter and her family were without power almost a week. It is a good thing they had gas powered vehicles to use to get warm. Luckily it was more of an inconvenience than anything else for them. Before this I think the power might have been out less than ten times in the 43 years we have lived in the house.
I agree with you regarding the WiFi issue and the fallback. Both are the only reasons I haven’t ditched my Apex (yet). I don’t believe there’s any real difference in quality between the power bars however. In fact my guess is (and it’s only a guess) the relays in the WiFi power are likely more reliable then the inexpensive relays used in the EB832. Overall material quality is about equal.
n2585722
2500 Club Member
The Control 4 Hydros has two probe ports they can be either a pH or a ORP probe on each. If you need more than 2 probe ports you can always add another Control 4 and setup a collective. The two controllers would act as one larger controller. You can use the pH read back for control. In fack the Hydros has a Calcium Reactor output type. They also sell a CO2 solenoid that hooks to one of the drive ports.
n2585722
2500 Club Member
If you need it at this time yes, but expect more Control units like the Control 2 and XS to come out. It makes sense to have a variety of different units for someone to pick and choose what is right for their setup. After all it is a modular system. It is just that all the modules are also the brain for the collective also. With that if one control unit goes out for some reason it won't kill the whole works. The rest will continue to function. You will of corse loose the inputs and drive ports associated with that control unit, but WiFi control will transfer to one of the remaining control units. You will also get text messages and emails when something like that happens. I currently have 5 Control units in my setup. When my house looses internet I get nine text. One for each control unit and one for each WiFi strip I have. If just one power strip was to drop out for some reason I would get a text stating that strip is off line.
