KH Keeper Plus

[MtnDewMan]

I've been trying out the Reef Factory KH Keeper Plus for the last week or so. It has taken some time to settle in but seems to be pretty stable at measuring the alkalinity. Nice thing about this is the waste water goes back into the tank and the reagent seems to be pretty economical as well. A quick glance at the device shows the last test performed (red light means needs attention, green light means all is good within desired parameters, blue light means a test is in progress).

Any one have good success with this device?

 

[Sean Clark]

Looks sleek but that light seems a little intense for a status indicator. Hopefully it doesn't cause any algae growth in the tubing or anywhere else over time.

 

[MtnDewMan]

Looks sleek but that light seems a little intense for a status indicator. Hopefully it doesn't cause any algae growth in the tubing or anywhere else over time.

It can be turned off if desired. It's actually pretty nice to just look over and see the green color. But if there is an algae buildup it can be turned off.

 

[JoJosReef]

Watching. Thinking of KH Keeper and investing in Smart Reef ecosystem in general.

 

[Bent17]

Can you give your 6 month review on the Device? I am thinking of getting it and would like to see what you think about it

 

[CasperOe]

I had one running for eight months, had it replaced three times through Reef Factory and had the probe changed once as well. Never really settled in; after too many issues I got rid of it. I loved the idea of the Reef Factory ecosystem and I had several peices of equipment. Too many issues and poor customer support (back then...) made me switch to Neptune Apex instead.

I really hope they have cracked the code by now! They make some sleek looking things, it just didnt work out for me sadly.

 

[Bent17]

My choice is either the Apex pro with Trident or the KH Keeper. One costs double the price however but test Cal and Mag also.. If you had to go back with good customer service etc would you consider it again or no way you leaving Apex now?

 

[CasperOe]

My choice is either the Apex pro with Trident or the KH Keeper. One costs double the price however but test Cal and Mag also.. If you had to go back with good customer service etc would you consider it again or no way you leaving Apex now?

I probably would- and I have ordered one of the new Smart Testers for Phosphate testing- so I haven't written them off entirely

 

[Bent17]

Still split on the Apex.. I know its double the price but gives more functionality and flexibility as doesnt only test KH but Ca and Mag also. Only issues are that I need to build my cabinet and get rid of half my equipment like 2x 4head Redsea dosers, smart plugs etc etc..

 

[argiBK]

I’ve had mine for about 9 months at this point, it’s been very consistent within it’s own parameters.

My Hanna consistently reports ~0.4 dKH below my KH Keeper and I think that’s due to the pH probe which requires calibration at least once per month. I’m likely going to replace the probe by end of year to see if it brings it more in line with Hanna (you can compensate for the difference in app, however).

It can be frustrating to get it to connect to your WiFi initially, but that applies to anything IoT as these devices only work on 2.4 GHz networks. Had to devise some really convoluted sequence of steps to get it to see my WiFi IF it had failed to connect on a previous attempt (their app used to be great at this, but they automated it at some point which made the process worse).

Otherwise, the overall Reef Factory ecosystem and app are great and very plug and play. I just wish they had more presence/retailers in the U.S.

 

[Bent17]

Yeah connecting to wifi is no issue for me as I work in IT and thats my bread and butter I saw that some replace the probe with a different brand? I think its best to get a separate PH probe to test PH, however normally PH is very close to KH I believe anyways.

 

[argiBK]

Yeah connecting to wifi is no issue for me as I work in IT and thats my bread and butter I saw that some replace the probe with a different brand? I think its best to get a separate PH probe to test PH, however normally PH is very close to KH I believe anyways.

What are your tips? lol.

It got to a point where I had to temporarily deactivate my router’s 5GHz band, which caused a few other devices to disconnect (albeit momentarily).

 

[Bent17]

What are your tips? lol.

It got to a point where I had to temporarily deactivate my router’s 5GHz band, which caused a few other devices to disconnect (albeit momentarily).

Normally I turn off 5GHz and enroll it to the app and then once it connects I re enable it back to both from the router. You can also set the device to always connect via 2.5 and never had an issue

 

[teaktoc]

Watching. Thinking of KH Keeper and investing in Smart Reef ecosystem in general.

I have had terrible luck with this - set it up a month ago with new tank once salinity and hanna multi parameter photometer measurements all aligned with targets. The system began using all three pumps; aquarium to fill, reagent to add reagent and the return for empty yet now only the aquarium pump both fills AND empties, leaving reacted sample in the line. This unavoidably skews results. It also requires weekly calibration and is otherwise frequently disconnecting. A rather terrible wast of time and money so far in my experience.

 

[David_CO]

ive generally had good results with my kh keeper plus. the PH probe it shipped with was DOA reading like 1200 PH or something ridiculous. I found the reef factory support really awful. I ended up just using a spare apex PH probe because it took so long for them to ship out a replacement probe. they also inadvertently send an additional KH keeper.

Once I got through initial issues its been pretty good. The calibration is a bit more finicky than my Alkatronic, which i consider the standard for PH reagent alk monitoring.

 

[Naturalreef]

I have had issues since purchasing in December. They sent me a new unit in March as I could never get it to read correctly. The PH probe is the weak point. The new one they sent me is all glass and seems more reliable It takes a WHILE to break in. I think it’s finally working the way it should fingers crossed.

On a positive note, I do like the software. Their X4 doser works flawless. Every time it acts up though, I get closer to setting up my Hydros X10! But I also heard the X10 has growing pains as well.

 

[JoJosReef]

I have had terrible luck with this - set it up a month ago with new tank once salinity and hanna multi parameter photometer measurements all aligned with targets. The system began using all three pumps; aquarium to fill, reagent to add reagent and the return for empty yet now only the aquarium pump both fills AND empties, leaving reacted sample in the line. This unavoidably skews results. It also requires weekly calibration and is otherwise frequently disconnecting. A rather terrible wast of time and money so far in my experience.

I abandoned my aspirations for Reef Factory. Got the x3 doser and it would never stay connected. Troubleshooted everything I could with connectivity and did customer support, but I'm not able to do a million back-and-forths. So the only thing I can do now is connect directly to the unit with my laptop (connecting with phone will not work) and adjust settings from my laptop, which means I also have to periodically adjust the Time on the unit. I'm now in favor of something simpler and reliable.