Keeping Salinity Stable. ATO?

[Bryan47]

So my first question is, on my refractometer I don't think 1.026 and 35 are equal is this correct? If so which one should I be paying attention too?

Second my tank isn't in a sunny area but I feel like I have to add a gallon or two every other day. Is an ATO really my only option for this? What ATO's do you recommend? I of course want one that isn't liable to get stuck or have a fault so I end up with water everywhere. I don't have an aquarium controller so I can't use that to make an ATO.

I just want to know which are tried and true and which ones to stay away from. Thanks guys!

 

[joekool]

This is a good unit easy to install and comes witheverything but the water storage container.
AutoAqua Smart ATO - Auto Top Off System - Bulk Reef Supply

An auto top of would help keep salinity in check but you could just add the top off manually. An Ato allows for less work on your part especialy if you want to leave for a couple days.

 

[Bryan47]

I'm not seeing a link or anything ?

 

[Bryan47]

Ok nvm now I see it!

 

[Bryan47]

So for a good one I'm looking at $150+?

 

[billwill]

Autotopoff.com

 

[eliramos]

I paid about 100 for my jbj auto top off
I haven't had any issues for over a year
The float switches have been super reliable. And it's definitely been a reason for my tank being in such a stable state.
I'll tell you that until you've had a tank without an ato you'll never really know how much easier life is with just that one mechanism!

 

[gfox]

An ATO is a must have to keep your water level stable for your skimmer.I use an Avast Marine ATO.

 

[AdamNC]

Tunze 3152 nano or the Tunze 3155 for above 50 gallon. Well worth the money.

 

[that Reef Guy]

An ATO is a must have to keep your water level stable for your skimmer.I use an Avast Marine ATO.

ATO is not mandatory.

I have never used one and never had a problem.

Just do it manually.

With all the Horror Stories I have read about with ATO's Crashing Tanks and killing everything I will never use one.

The same goes for Calcium Reactors (I know plenty of people that have lost a fortune in Coral from these).

Even if I win the Lottery I will be doing Manual Top Offs for the Rest of My Life.

 

[Bryan47]

Until I can afford a really good one I won't be adding one. I like the ones with multiple sensors incase one fails! Thanks for everyone's input when I am ready to purchase I will come back to this thread!

 

[Bryan47]

The tunze has an optical sensor and float back up sensor, do any of the others have this two sensor safety system ?

 

[glb]

I don't have one. I just topoff.

 

[Martyd]

ATO is not mandatory.

I have never used one and never had a problem.

Just do it manually.

With all the Horror Stories I have read about with ATO's Crashing Tanks and killing everything I will never use one.

The same goes for Calcium Reactors (I know plenty of people that have lost a fortune in Coral from these).

Even if I win the Lottery I will be doing Manual Top Offs for the Rest of My Life.

ATO's don't crash tanks. ATO's hooked up to an unlimited supply of RO water can. I use a Tunze 3155. It has never failed. It uses an electric eye and a float switch as a back up. It also shuts off automatically if the the ATO container runs dry and I also believe it does the same thing if the pump runs too long. The key to using any ATO is to not use a fresh water reservoir that is larger than the tank can handle. Mine is 5 gallons and the tank is 105 g. If the entire contents somehow got pumped into the tank, it would reduce the salinity, but not to the point of crashing the tank and more importantly, it will not flood the tank.

 

[Bryan47]

Yes I really like the tunze system it seems failproof...well Nothing is failproof but it seems as failproof as it gets. It's certainly pricey but you get what you pay for. Is the Tunze 3155 considered the best on the market?

 

[Greenstreet.1]

There's a new one out its called puretek i think there's a post on it and a new give away.
But the tunze is great I have been using it for over two years with no problems.

 

[Bryan47]

Excellent thank you!

 

[kendavjac]

I didn't use an ATO for about 10 years. 2 years ago I got a tunze osmolator for my 30 gallon tank. I wish i had made the switch years ago, best $100 i spent on my system. I fill up my reservoir abut once every 7-10 days and forget about it. my tunze only has one sensor, but auto shuts off after 5 minutes (0.75 gallons). I'm ordering another for my newly setup 125.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

So my first question is, on my refractometer I don't think 1.026 and 35 are equal is this correct? !

If 35 ppt and sg = 1.0264 do not line up, it is a brine refractometer and not a true seawater refractometer.

If you calibrate it with a 35 ppt standard, you can set it for 35 ppt or sg = 1.0264, then stick with reading whichever unit of measure you set correctly.

 

[SloppyJ]

Tunze ato is one of the best things I've added to my tank. I have tried others that relied on float switches and I've had problems with them and snails causing it to go off.