Hi,
I am about to start running a shallow reef setup that will predominatly contain high end zoas, in a large garden type idea. I am considering in the future using a triton or similar routine but am keen to use a controller in an attempt to minimise loss.
I am aware of abilities such as auto top-up warnings, skimmer cup warnings but I would also like to be able to monitor salinity, temperature, pH, alkalinity, and even mag, calcium etc too. I am not fussy about lights being linked.
I am leaning towards a ghl controller, but have no idea where to start.
Are there any similar devices? Or would you recommend a ghl?
Start by making a list of what you need. Requirements gathering.
Factor in future upgrades.
Coral type doesn't really matter up front but do decide soft, lps, sps, or mixed.
Budget.
DIY skills and time.
Dosing.
Automated testing.
I'm going to try and be neutral to start so no recommendation. Budget is important as are the time you have to setup and fiddle to include DIY skills. Here is why. Over the counter shrink wrap you are looking at two players in the market. GHL and Neptune. Both work. They work well. If you want GHL information search the forum here for
@Ditto - he has a good thread, a few threads, on GHL. If you want Neptune Apex then search for
@SuncrestReef . Yes, I'm focusing on two controllers because, well, those are the dominate controllers in the reefing market like it or not. Over the counter, support, with a lot of users / hobbyists behind them. Plain and simple.
Now let us talk open source. Open source brings you to Pi based solutions or Arduino Reef Angel. Personally speaking, and having used, I'd go with the Reef Angel. The custom libraries that people maintain are better than anything GHL or Neptune can produce. Storms and weather are usually on or off on all others whereas the RA will do base weather on the main code loop truly making it random. Geo locations, tides, you name it. No over the counter solution has them. So those are your choices but the quality is a bit lower and you have to be familiar with coding. I personally used the RA for 6 years and still use it for my non kessil lighting.
Ok, so now let us talk about automated testing. Two on the market today. Oh, wait. Three. Trident from Neptune, Alktronic, and Reef Bot. Trident tests Ca, Mg, and Alk. Alktronic does Alk, and Reefbot, well, tests whatever kits it supports. If you want to do automated testing today those are your choices. Revert back to your requirement list and this may lead you to a specific controller. Take the Trident - only works with Neptune products. So if you invest in the Apex and later want to test Ca, Mg, and Alk - it would save you money in the longer run because you already have a controller that supports it and then add the trident when you want. If you want you can also do that with GHL but their automated solution isn't available today.
There is so much crap you can do it really comes down to how much you want to invest in your time or not, ease of use, and if you want to automate testing today or tomorrow and then choose. If you do want to do automated water testing then your choice is really narrow. If you don't then it opens up to some of the DIY solutions or open source if you will.
Personally I've used Neptune products since 1999 when they had their X10 relays. Crazy but they worked. I switched to the Reef Angle for about 6 years in between tanks and it is a really amazing device. Entry price is cheaper and as I already said the custom libraries are freaking amazing. yeah - weather may seem like a worthless feature - and I do agree when it is set to the same time daily. However, being part of the main code and it randomly happening based on the main loop of code so it may be days before you see it, well, it is gold. I did switch to the Apex when I upgraded tanks. Why? Because I knew about the trident and wanted to do automated testing. So it made sense financially. And I'm happy.
So there you have it. I try to be unbiased. Main players are Apex and GHL. Open source RA and Pi's. Make your list. Check it twice. Factor in future upgrades. I think you will be fine.
Best of luck.
