InkBird settings with APEX

[ReefJCB]

Just picked up an inkbird and looking to set it up in conjunction with my APEX. I’m assuming people have the InkBird set up for the actual parameters you’re aiming for and the apex within half a degree on both ends for redundancy? Is that correct?

 

[SuncrestReef]

Some people set it up as you described, and others have the Apex set to control the heater with the InkBird set as the backup.

The InkBird can’t maintain the temperature in as precisely as the Apex. The closest I could get was about 0.8 degrees with InkBird, but 0.1 degrees with Apex.

The drawback to having the Apex as primary is that the EB output will cycle more often and eventually wear out, but I have no idea how long that would take. Mine has been working fine with the Apex controlling it for over 2.5 years.

 

[Reefer1978]

Here's mine and it's pretty simple. InkBird is used to control the temp (with it's margin of error), Apex programming is only a failsafe in case InkBird overheats the tank.

Fallback ON
Set ON
If Tmp > 80.0 Then OFF

 

[Greybeard]

Mine is very similar to above. Inkbird controls the heater, Apex shuts it off if it exceeds max setpoint, and alarms if temp varies outside of high/low setpoints.

Use the Apex to control the heater itself, and you'll eventually burn up the port. Apex power ports just can't handle that many cycles.

 

[Reefer1978]

Mine is very similar to above. Inkbird controls the heater, Apex shuts it off if it exceeds max setpoint, and alarms if temp varies outside of high/low setpoints.

Use the Apex to control the heater itself, and you'll eventually burn up the port. Apex power ports just can't handle that many cycles.

Neptune says they are rated for millions of cycles, but lets say we don't believe them and it's 100k. If your heater cycles 24 times a day, that's 8760 a year, so you have about 12 years before your Apex outlet kicks. It will be dead / upgraded before then. My current InkBird cycles 12 times per day, and my heater is too big for the tank. Correctly sized heater (or even 2) and you should be able to bring it in to 6-8 times per day and not have to use the InkBird.

Only reason I am using the InkBird is to have redundancy with the Apex.

 

[Greybeard]

My inkbird, according to the peaks in my temp log, turns itself on and off about 15 times a day.

A few years ago, when I had the old EB8 style Apex power bar, I was using the Apex to run my heater, without owning an Inkbird. The Apex gives you much more granular control. I was holding two tenths of a degree F. I don't recall how many times a day the heater would cycle, but far more than my current setup does.

After 2 years of that, the Apex EB8 stuck on. Happily, the email alarm let me know that it had done so, and I was able to unplug the heater without damage.

If you do a quick search on here, you'll find many reports of EB832 port failures. Far more common than would be possible if Neptune's stats were accurate.

In any case, using the Inkbird as primary, and the Apex as backup, makes more sense. The inkbird is NOT designed to be turned on and off every few minutes. It has to re-initialize itself each time. By using the Inkbird as primary, it's always on... unless it fails, and the heater exceeds max setpoint, which should be caught by the Apex, port turned off, and an alarm set, so that the Inkbird and/or Heater can be replaced.

 

[Reefer1978]

My inkbird, according to the peaks in my temp log, turns itself on and off about 15 times a day.

A few years ago, when I had the old EB8 style Apex power bar, I was using the Apex to run my heater, without owning an Inkbird. The Apex gives you much more granular control. I was holding two tenths of a degree F. I don't recall how many times a day the heater would cycle, but far more than my current setup does.

After 2 years of that, the Apex EB8 stuck on. Happily, the email alarm let me know that it had done so, and I was able to unplug the heater without damage.

If you do a quick search on here, you'll find many reports of EB832 port failures. Far more common than would be possible if Neptune's stats were accurate.

In any case, using the Inkbird as primary, and the Apex as backup, makes more sense. The inkbird is NOT designed to be turned on and off every few minutes. It has to re-initialize itself each time. By using the Inkbird as primary, it's always on... unless it fails, and the heater exceeds max setpoint, which should be caught by the Apex, port turned off, and an alarm set, so that the Inkbird and/or Heater can be replaced.

Luck of the draw I guess. I had an old EB8 that also controlled a heater to .5 degrees and all was fine after a few years. .2F is also a crazy stable temp, I wouldn't be surprised of the apex port died with that precision, not something they were designed for.