Dosing with the reefkeeper

[SeymourDuncan]

This is a simple task to mess up on, just warning you now. Before you attempt to dose anything make sure you have at the very least a test kit.
Today I will be using the Reef Keeper Lite and an Aqualifter to dose calcium & alk buffer. There is one very important $9 investment you must make first.
A single outlet surge suppressor is a must have to trigger the aqualifter on an off due to its low wattage.

Now pick an outlet, plug in the surge suppressor, then the aqualifter. Run your hose from your bottle into the lifter the route the output over your water, not submerged.

Next is up to you to decide how much you want to dose. A capful of mine takes 9 seconds to fill with my specific head pressure and hose length, yours may be different.

To calculate your flow rate just hold out a measuring device under the tube and power it on, either time how long it takes to fill your desired volume.

Next you will want to program your timer. This can really blow your mind when uneducated on the RK.

Press menu and scroll to timers.
Select timer of choice, press enter
Day of the week is up to you. I select all
Next set the time of day to power on
For on duration set the amount of time you want to run.
Off duration will need to be set if you desire a repeating timer, for example you want it to be on 9 seconds and off for 20 minutes. Doesn't apply for 0 repeats.
Next select repeat count to 0 if this will only be on once a day.
Oscillate off
Random No
Save

Not done yet!!
Go to main menu and select modules>pc4>and whatever channel your pump plugs into

Go to mode, select auto
Go to function, select multi-timer
Select timer you just set and set to 1, set the others to 0
In standby>select ignore unless otherwise needed
Standby delay 0 unless otherwise needed
Default off
Save

Wait for auto-dosing!

This can be applied to any liquid substance or what ever your pump can handle.

Failsafe: say you are dosing kalk, but are afraid of a pH spike. With a pH probe you can set the RK to trigger on the kalk if your pH is low or kick it off if it is too high, but that is another thread!

 

[mcarroll]

Rummaging through some old threads. This got no replies? Seems like a good addition to the Stickies to me, or a forum FAQ post. Something.

This'll at least bump it through the new posts one more time.

 

[evolved]

And I'll move it to the right place too

 

[Dock Ellis]

On the RKL you can use outlets 1 or 4 and don't have to get the single outlet surge protector. I was having that problem and came here and a few people pointed me to this answer and it's worked great for me.

 

[pickupman66]

Dosing with an aqua lifter pump may be considered very inaccurate. I would not recommend dosing with this pump.

 

[n2585722]

A single outlet surge suppressor is a must have to trigger the aqualifter on an off due to its low wattage.

It is not the low wattage consumption that causes this. It is the back EMF pulse created when power is removed from the pump. This pulse turns the triac back on. It quickly turns back off but this just causes the pulse to repeat which triggers the triac back on. This on and off oscillation is at a very high frequency so it appears to ge on constantly. This pulse is a high voltage of several hundred volts but a very small load will stop the pulse. A surge protector clamps the line voltage at a specific voltage. This stops the sequence of events from happening and the triac will remain off. As for using it on the relay outputs without the surge protector. Any non inductive load with enough current sink will work. In the case of the aqualifter a 47000 ohm resistor in parallel with the pump will work. An illuminated power strip liberator will work in most cases. The light is enough load to stop the voltage spike. All inductive loads will do this if some kind of suppression is not built into the device. With the green craze a lot of manufacturers are leaving these circuits out of their pumps. The higher wattage pumps are not usually an issue as the voltage spike created by them is not as high. Sorry if this is getting too technical but I thought you might want to know how it can stay on when it is turned off.

 

[mcarroll]

I've never fully understood (as a RK owner) why they'd create a product that has such a bizarre side-effect. Why not have all four outlets built like the two that work normally? That's what I'd like an answer to.

Thankfully, I got used to it - my gu10 LED fixture blinks on/off like a camera flash once every time the ATO cycles on or off, but I just don't pay attention to it. (Mind you - the ATO is not even plugged into the RK! R.i.d.i.c.u.l.o.u.s.) If the tank was in a place where I had to be near it more often I think it would be a problem for me.

 

[DaveMorris]

All of the triac outlets out there have the same issue. It happens on the Apex as well. It is the nature of the triac circuit. The new PB4 and PB8 power bars that are built for the Archon controller have this taken care of.

 

[n2585722]

I've never fully understood (as a RK owner) why they'd create a product that has such a bizarre side-effect. Why not have all four outlets built like the two that work normally? That's what I'd like an answer to.

Thankfully, I got used to it - my gu10 LED fixture blinks on/off like a camera flash once every time the ATO cycles on or off, but I just don't pay attention to it. (Mind you - the ATO is not even plugged into the RK! R.i.d.i.c.u.l.o.u.s.) If the tank was in a place where I had to be near it more often I think it would be a problem for me.

It is the pumps that are the offender not the controller. Put a surge protector on the ATO. Otherwise it may cause issues other than the blink. After all that is a voltage spike that is being generated and can damage sensitive electronics. It may not be your controller that gets damaged since that spike is on your AC line if it is affecting the controller and is not plugged into it. As far as relays go they have their issues also. That is why they have two triac outputs and two relays. The things that turn on and off ofter are better on the triac outputs as long as they don't exceed 3 amps. The triacs won't wear out like a relay.

 

[mcarroll]

It is the pumps that are the offender not the controller. Put a surge protector on the ATO. Otherwise it may cause issues other than the blink. After all that is a voltage spike that is being generated and can damage sensitive electronics. It may not be your controller that gets damaged since that spike is on your AC line if it is affecting the controller and is not plugged into it. As far as relays go they have their issues also. That is why they have two triac outputs and two relays. The things that turn on and off ofter are better on the triac outputs as long as they don't exceed 3 amps. The triacs won't wear out like a relay.

I already have the ATO running through an Eliminator E107 (a surge suppressor) and the two PC4's running through a separate (generic) surge suppressor. However, the Eliminator is connected to the same surge suppressor as the PC4's.

If the surge suppressor is supposed to offer some protection, it doesn't seem to be working....but maybe there's further explanation I'm missing?

(This is how my system has been set up...no changes made...yet.)

 

[n2585722]

I could not find the specs on that. It needs to have clamping voltage of 330v. The surge protector needs to be between the PC4 and the offending device. If the device is plugged into the PC4 outlet then the surge protector needs to be plugged into the same outlet. If it is plugged into a different outlet then the surge protector needs to be there. Make sure no wiring for the ATO or it's pump are near any wiring from the controller. The wiring acts as an antenna and if close enough it can be transferred inductively between the wiring. Any wire carrying electric current creates a magnetic field. Voltages can be created in wires that are in this field if the current stops.