Neptune Apex Par Meter????? Should I?

[oreo54]

You sold me on this one. I went to their web site and read up on it and I like it. Just ordered me one from BRS. thanks for the info, huge help.

I RARELY suggest someone buy something different from what they already bought BUT since this is rather fresh..
Suggest this instead:

SQ-520 Full Spectrum Smart Quantum LED PAR Sensor

Increased Accuracy for LED Lighting Measurements! The Smart Quantum SQ-520 PAR Sensor is a USB powered sensor that will hook up to any PC or MAC allowing you to use your personal computer instead of an expensive dedicated monitor with the included 15 foot long USB cable. Hooking a sensor up...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[BedrockIOMC]

I RARELY suggest someone buy something different from what they already bought BUT since this is rather fresh..
Suggest this instead:

SQ-520 Full Spectrum Smart Quantum LED PAR Sensor

Increased Accuracy for LED Lighting Measurements! The Smart Quantum SQ-520 PAR Sensor is a USB powered sensor that will hook up to any PC or MAC allowing you to use your personal computer instead of an expensive dedicated monitor with the included 15 foot long USB cable. Hooking a sensor up...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

I think the other will be good. It's already shipped and on the way. It has good reviews and I think will be what I need. Thanks though

 

[ca1ore]

I bought the PMK and it’s about the least useful of all my apex modules. Had I a mulligan, I’d pass.

 

[BedrockIOMC]

I bought the PMK and it’s about the least useful of all my apex modules. Had I a mulligan, I’d pass.

Whys that?

 

[ca1ore]

I just don’t find it to be particularly accurate or useful. You really cannot use it in continuous use because the sensor fouls so quickly - unless you clean it off frequently. Corals adapt pretty easily to varied lighting levels, so precision measurements aren’t really necessary IMO. I’ve been keeping reefs long enough that I can eyeball that my tanks are in the acceptable, and broad, range. It’s good practice to light acclimate animals regardless, and you can mostly see where each is happiest. Too little quickly becomes obvious with loss of color. Thus PMK not useful for me. I suppose if folks are slavish about ‘numbers’ or lack that ‘something doesn’t seem right’ je ne sais quoi then it might be more useful.

 

[BedrockIOMC]

I just don’t find it to be particularly accurate or useful. You really cannot use it in continuous use because the sensor fouls so quickly - unless you clean it off frequently. Corals adapt pretty easily to varied lighting levels, so precision measurements aren’t really necessary IMO. I’ve been keeping reefs long enough that I can eyeball that my tanks are in the acceptable, and broad, range. It’s good practice to light acclimate animals regardless, and you can mostly see where each is happiest. Too little quickly becomes obvious with loss of color. Thus PMK not useful for me. I suppose if folks are slavish about ‘numbers’ or lack that ‘something doesn’t seem right’ je ne sais quoi then it might be more useful.

Good, thank you for the info.

 

[ShepherdTech]

I just don’t find it to be particularly accurate or useful. You really cannot use it in continuous use because the sensor fouls so quickly - unless you clean it off frequently. Corals adapt pretty easily to varied lighting levels, so precision measurements aren’t really necessary IMO. I’ve been keeping reefs long enough that I can eyeball that my tanks are in the acceptable, and broad, range. It’s good practice to light acclimate animals regardless, and you can mostly see where each is happiest. Too little quickly becomes obvious with loss of color. Thus PMK not useful for me. I suppose if folks are slavish about ‘numbers’ or lack that ‘something doesn’t seem right’ je ne sais quoi then it might be more useful.

If the sensor does get an algae film or coralline algae, it comes off easily even by scraping with a fingernail. Simply not an issue for me and it reads very consistently in my experience. If you’ve been feeding for decades and can depend on your eyes, great, but most people like myself don’t want to depend on their eyes. I love to have data points as well and will use it as a guide for coral placement. It can be moved around the tank and

I just don’t find it to be particularly accurate or useful. You really cannot use it in continuous use because the sensor fouls so quickly - unless you clean it off frequently. Corals adapt pretty easily to varied lighting levels, so precision measurements aren’t really necessary IMO. I’ve been keeping reefs long enough that I can eyeball that my tanks are in the acceptable, and broad, range. It’s good practice to light acclimate animals regardless, and you can mostly see where each is happiest. Too little quickly becomes obvious with loss of color. Thus PMK not useful for me. I suppose if folks are slavish about ‘numbers’ or lack that ‘something doesn’t seem right’ je ne sais quoi then it might be more useful.

It cleans completely in about 15 or 20 seconds. It is made out of a special material that is easily cleaned and that includes scraping coralline algae off (I just used my fingernail yesterday evening when I didn’t have anything close by. Wish I had your eyes and experience in eyeballing to go along with this PMK!

 

[ca1ore]

I’m happy it’s useful to you; it isn’t to me. YMMV.

 

[BedrockIOMC]

Just a FYI, i got mine yesterday and found out that it will not run with a chromebook. They have a app for MAC. I hope they get one for the play store soon so it can run with a Chromebook but as of now if a Chromebook is all you have then you need to get something else. Sucks for now but the Chromebook platform is the future and they will have to get on board with it. I love my Chromebook it faster and easier than a PC for sure and the price!!! unbeatable!!!!! anyways I'm not here to sell Chromebooks just passing on the info.

 

[BedrockIOMC]

I just don’t find it to be particularly accurate or useful. You really cannot use it in continuous use because the sensor fouls so quickly - unless you clean it off frequently. Corals adapt pretty easily to varied lighting levels, so precision measurements aren’t really necessary IMO. I’ve been keeping reefs long enough that I can eyeball that my tanks are in the acceptable, and broad, range. It’s good practice to light acclimate animals regardless, and you can mostly see where each is happiest. Too little quickly becomes obvious with loss of color. Thus PMK not useful for me. I suppose if folks are slavish about ‘numbers’ or lack that ‘something doesn’t seem right’ je ne sais quoi then it might be more useful.

I got ya, I can totally understand. I am not the biggest fan of neptune anyways. I have had MAJOR issue with the system and hard to get help from them so that is easy for me to understand trust me.I have had to even file with the BBB because of them and still they didn't do anything. But anyways, I went with the Apogee SQ 420 . To me it's a no brainer and the best option for the PAR field for a tank. I don't want one to leave in my tank just one that I can check the levels if/when I make changes to anything or add new corals into my tank. I like to check the place I set a coral so I know the PAR right where it is at. That's what kills me when it comes to renting a PAR meter. To you never know if the PAR is the same as it is on the other side of the tank just because it is on the same level that you check across the tank. I just like knowing for sure.

 

[jccaclimber]

Chiming in for future viewers, I also find that things foul too fast in my tank to leave one in. For the money I opted for the 520 (updated meter, USB to laptop), although there are versions of the old and new sensor that come with a handheld meter. The one use I did see for the Neptune version was a guy that had it at the rim of his tank out of the water (no fouling) to track the life of his halide bulbs. He also used it outdoors for a bit during an outdoor tank experiment. This could be done with the USB sensor and download the data later, but easier to do with the Apex he already had.
One final note, Apogee sells a USB version. Neptune sells an Aquabus version which happens to use a USB-A connector as well. These are NOT compatible.

 

[chicago]

resurrecting this one... do you guys find the apex par to be accurate... I am at a loss for this thing.. have had it two years. decidedt to clean it up and see what it reads.... showing zero in some spots where my other meter shows 100 ??