BEST Auto Top Off (ATO)

[dragon99]

Tunze 3155
It's not the fanciest, but it's one of the most widely used and well reviewed.

 

[Cory]

People with peristatic pump, what do you use to lube the roller cage and hose?

 

[twobytwo]

I have the Hydor ATO. I was impressed at first, now a year later... not so much.

It started acting weird and BEEPING no matter if the water level was too low, too high or even just right. It just decided it was done working properly and started chirping all the time.

So I sent it back to Hydor under warranty and got a new one. This new one doesn't allow the pump to run as long, so I can never get my water level back to where it should be... it's almost always too low. I'm not impressed that a brand new replacement isn't working properly. Even when it seems fine before going to bed, I get up in the morning to constant beeping from the tank.

So, I'm in the market for something different.

 

[Brett]

People with peristaltic pump, what do you use to lube the roller cage and hose?

I have not replaced my tubing in over a year plus+ on my BRS peristaltic pump. But it only gets about 40 minutes of use per day (cycles on 10x a day for 4 mins). The tubing for my masterflex pump which runs 24/7 gets replaced approximately every 6 months, and I am sure I could go longer with the L/S tubing, but why risk it, in fact I know I did 9 mos once.

For ATO, I use a solenoid connected directly to feed water on my R/O unit which is controlled via an Apex with one float switch in the sump. The purified RO water feeds directly into the sump. No need for a freshwater reserve. Have not had a failure in 5yrs (and I have never had one--knock on wood, coming soon..lol.). It is backed up with a float in the sump in case it does get stuck on. I also have a "high sump" float switch that backs up the ATO float switch (along with the float).

 

[MTWiley]

I think you can see some MACNA video out there of a gray and orange one that should be out pretty soon... [emoji41]

How soon Terrence? When we talked at Reefapalooza in Southern California it sounded like the COR was due out in January and the FMM was still a ways out. Has that changed?

 

[Gomery12]

Another Avast ATO user. Simple to use and hooked right up to my RKE unit! My unit is an old one and those pumps you can hear. But it hasn't failed me. I only fail it when I forget to add water to the ATO bucket!

 

[jsker]

I'm currently using the Puratek Auto Level Controller... and I must say it's amazing. Absolutely worry free with backup.

Not a single thing mounts in the water. The level sensor mounts on the outside of the sump/container and is as tiny as can be. It can even read through a solid colored surface... like black acrylic or plastic. As a backup, it has a programmable timer for max runtime. My ATO pump runs for a total of about 7 minutes/day. So I have the max runtime set to 10 minutes/day. At the 10 minute mark, it will emit a screeching alarm tone that has to be turned off. If the sensor did fail for some reason, and it stuck on, it would need to run for about 2 weeks before it would overflow my sump. Not that this is related to the Puratek, but I also use my Apex to pull the ATO offline if the salinity gets below a certain amount.

With all of that being said, I will be getting the Apex ATO once it is released. It will have backups and I'll also be able to program a max runtime.

@Terence I just hope the Neptune FMM fits in place of the Puratek

IMG_7158 by Toby Broadfield, on Flickr

That just showing off Nice improvement over the already great Apex board. Are you using fusion on the pad for the graphs?

 

[Cory]

Another Avast ATO user. Simple to use and hooked right up to my RKE unit! My unit is an old one and those pumps you can hear. But it hasn't failed me. I only fail it when I forget to add water to the ATO bucket!

What do you grease it with if you dont mind me asking?

 

[R_C]

I've only had the JBJ and I completely love it. The beep when the pump is on is an awesome feature and the switch light for when you are low in either channel (sump or ATO container).

 

[Gomery12]

What do you grease it with if you dont mind me asking?

I've never greased it.

 

[Cory]

I've never greased it.

Wow. I wonder why my tube rips every month or two. It has the black hose on it? Do you run limewater in it?

 

[Gomery12]

Wow. I wonder why my tube rips every month or two. It has the black hose on it? Do you run limewater in it?

Nope, just RODI. No my hose is clear. Mine was bought prior to the revamp in 2014.

 

[DereksReef77]

Tunze for me. Currently running 7 of them. 2 nanos the rest 3155. No issues whatsoever. Some have been in use for 3 years now. I can't compare to other ato's cause I've only ever used tunze.

 

[Water Dog]

Tunze Osmolator 3155

 

[michael.cser20]

I use a dual float switch from autotopoff.com and a aqualifter. Works amazing and only costs around 50$ for the setup. Can't beat that

 

[Broadfield]

That just showing off Nice improvement over the already great Apex board. Are you using fusion on the pad for the graphs?

It's actually just the standard Neptune Apex app. But I use Fusion for everything else.

 

[jsker]

It's actually just the standard Neptune Apex app. But I use Fusion for everything else.

Thank you I going to have to PM you on how later.

 

[sav_1975]

I've got a TMC V2 plus, 2 sensors and a decent enough pump. Simple to set up and has been running for 2 years with no issues at all.

 

[enthejungle]

This post reminded me to fill my ATO reservoir. I'm running a Tunze

 

[rioreef]

AutoTopOff.com

Double float valve connected to solenoid (NC) for direct RO topoff. Power to solenoid on timer and active twice a day for 20 minutes each

Main float has cover to protect. Clean the floats about every six months

Running this way for almost 12 years (Feb 2005)