ATO or no ATO

[Nhjmc]

Hi,
If I faithfully top my tank off daily do I really need an ATO? Wanted to ask and see what others thought on this. Thank you.

 

[dreamcatcherr9]

In theory, sure. In practice, not so easy.

Just takes one day to forget.

My 20g has ATO that goes off twice a day (about 1 gallon every 3-4 days).

You would have to test salt levels daily without ATO.

IMO it’s really worth the investment.

 

[SifuMemphis]

if you're very diligent on topping off each day.... it's not really needed? But that being said, ATO is one of the #1 things most would buy given how important it is.

 

[Adamantium]

ATOs are priceless, IMO. I was topping off everyday for months, but even so, salinity has swings. With an ATO, it stays rock solid. Best purchase I’ve made so far.

 

[Webslinger]

ato KISS

 

[Gernader]

ATO is definitely worth it.

 

[Bryn]

Hi,
If I faithfully top my tank off daily do I really need an ATO? Wanted to ask and see what others thought on this. Thank you.

I believe so, especially in smaller tanks where salinity swing is large. I rate salinity stability more important than dKH, or Ca.

Cheers.

 

[Webslinger]

You must n

I believe so, especially in smaller tanks where salinity swing is large. I rate salinity stability more important than dKH, or Ca.

Cheers.

You must not have corals

 

[Fishbird]

The water level in my tank drops a couple of mm a day. I have marked the level where it should be to keep my salinity consistent and I top off manually 1-2 times a day. That said, I am going to be setting up an ATO in the next couple of days because I will have to be away from the tank for a few days in a couple of weeks.

I really thank it's tank dependent, whether or not manual top offs can keep salinity constant. I have corals and I have had my tank for over 5 months now. If the water level drops 2mm my refractometer doesn't register a change in salinity and I fill it back up. I only add maybe half a cup of water, at the absolute most, at a time.

 

[Webslinger]

good luck

 

[Albertan22]

Always ATO, unless you never plan to leave your house overnight ever again. An ATO is life changing.

 

[Webslinger]

Always ATO, unless you never plan to leave your house overnight ever again. An ATO is life changing.

More "back saving"

 

[Bryn]

You must n


You must not have corals

I do have corals, but moving dKH or Ca is easier, than salinity, and ATO is a cheap way of controlling it. But then again, a Jabeo DP-4 Dosing Pump is cheaper than a Tunze Nano ATO. Dang it, now look what you made me do, Honey can I borrow the credit card again?

 

[muzikalmatt]

An ATO is a must for keeping your tank stable imo. Salinity swings affect all of your tanks parameters so if you can't keep salinity stable you can't expect to keep the other parameters stable either.

 

[andrewkw]

One day you might want to go back out. Probably not anytime soon, but eventually. The one plus of no auto top off is it forces you to look at your tank at least once a day. However you should want to go check things out, not be forced to remember to top off.

 

[WIReefer]

Highly recommend ATO since it adds water almost instantly when needed no salinty swings. Was the best thing I added to my tanks. Stability

 

[Cell]

ATO's are not required equipment at all. They provide added convenience and consistency is all.

 

[fish farmer]

Hi,
If I faithfully top my tank off daily do I really need an ATO? Wanted to ask and see what others thought on this. Thank you.

It's a choice like anything. Do you ALWAYS go home everyday? What would happen if you had to leave for a weekend or got in an accident and wound up in the hospital for the night. Just some things to consider.

 

[ZoaAddiction81]

I love my JBJ

 

[snowhite]

I've been functioning with no ATO's for about a year, but now with 2 - 24x48x12" frag tanks I'm "shocked" by the amount of evaporation. At least every other day top offs if not every day.
Definitely going to have to go the ATO route with a least a 10-20 gallon reservoir feeding both.