Neptune Apex

ebeez · Feb 22, 2018

I have been experiencing drops as well but also found it was my WIFI going up and down on one of the bands..

Mark Gray · Feb 22, 2018

I recently had a connection problem with my Apex, LOL I was out of town on a business trip. I still am not sure why or how he managed it but my dog unplugged the router, Other and my big dumb dog I have not had any problems

vetteguy53081 · Feb 22, 2018

May be your Internet connection? Ive never had I-net issue and Just this past Monday installed the all new Apex and it connected easily and has been steady.

Krawl · Feb 22, 2018

It seems to be working tonight but just got home (9:00pm) so no apex call tonight. It will have to wait till Monday. Gone all weekend. I agree tmit can be a nice tool it just seems to lose connection at the wrong times! I almost wish they had a hardwired switch you could control all the outputs on. My issues was I had the life support items off to do the water change. Then it lost connection so I could not turn those items back on.

-Krawl

Saltyanimals · Feb 22, 2018

I run a 2016 and had fairly regular disconnects but for me it was my WiFi. Good router but just distance too far so I ended up going with a network cable. Even this still gave me occasional issues. Not as frequent as with WiFi but still issues.

Fix for me: set a static IP address. I can’t recall the last time i had a connection issue after this. I haven a very high number of devices in my house and maybe it was network traffic or IP issues. But going static solved it for me.

Ferrell · Feb 22, 2018

I had issues up until about a week ago. Knock on wood. Lost connection all the time, lights on and off for no reason, vsp would go off and on.
Did the firmware update and also rebooted The apex and all abs been good for over a week. I scratched my head for weeks before rebooting. Seems to help

Flexin · Feb 22, 2018

I have mine hardwired into a WiFi range extender and that is connected to my router via wireless. I’ve had no connection issues at all. Hopefully support can help to at least to ensure it is not the device. Not all wireless is quality and the same throuout the house. You can also have interference from the equipment. Like others suggested check the signal inside the stand with everything running. Also, if this happened since the beginning consider resetting the device, but talk to tech. When I got mine it was in test a test mode and caused confusion on my part during setup.

SaltMan · Feb 23, 2018

I have the Apex Classic for 5 years now, my connection is rock solid using a powerline adapter. I hope you're able to find a resolution.

recess62 · Feb 23, 2018

Are you able to connect to the device locally?

boozeman27 · Feb 23, 2018

Dom274 said:
I promise you, the issue is with your internal network/wifi. Take a laptop (Or another device that measures signal strength) and put it next to your apex. Just because other devices in the house work, doesn't mean that the wifi isn't to blame. Wifi is absolute witchcraft. It can work perfect in one spot, and be garbage 2ft to the left due to something stupid like the lighting in the room (Wifi really doesn't like florescent lights, or really any kind of high voltage circuitry). Honestly, with the kind of lighting the people commonly use on their tanks, I'm surprised any wifi works nearby. Worst case scenario, run a temporary wired connection and see if the issue stops. That will at least answer the question...

This is 90% of people’s problem, a crappy or outdated router. Or worse, a provider sourced router (like Comcast). You have spent thousands on your system but probably have an outdated network. I have never had an issue with Wi-Fi connection with my apex.

FWIW, I use the google mesh router in my house and get great reception everywhere, (including my basement where my tank is). If you have an Apex which is basically your fishes life support, then I highly recommend getting the best router you can afford to insure stability.

https://store.google.com/product/google_wifi

BoomCorals · Feb 23, 2018

boozeman27 said:
This is 90% of people’s problem, a crappy or outdated router. Or worse, a provider sourced router (like Comcast). You have spent thousands on your system but probably have an outdated network. I have never had an issue with Wi-Fi connection with my apex.

FWIW, I use the google mesh router in my house and get great reception everywhere, (including my basement where my tank is). If you have an Apex which is basically your fishes life support, then I highly recommend getting the best router you can afford to insure stability.

https://store.google.com/product/google_wifi

This affects more people than they realize. Your average D link or whatnot is fine for a couple devices. But these days when you have phones, streaming, computers, and other devices, those basic routers get overwhelmed even if the bandwidth isn’t being stressed. Get something like a nighthawk AC1900 and it will handle way more. I have 23 devices on mine and can also stream 4K Netflix on 3 TVs at once, etc.

kswan · Feb 23, 2018

WiFi signal makes sense for intermittent disconnects but the issue I had was it will not reconnect without a reboot of the system. That was the frustrating part for me. My router is 4-5 years old. Maybe any upgrade would have helped but luckily I had the option to hard wire the connection.

Flexin · Feb 23, 2018

Especially how TVs are now run through the internet. Had AT&T and their own service could not keep up with watching regular programming (in my area), the tv would pause to catch up. And they way they dial our service down, they provide just enough bandwidth for certain devices.

Soubds like your router is maxed out with devices and you had to force the connection with a reset to prioritize it over other competing devices. ...router/internet service...

gcrawford · Feb 23, 2018

My legacy Apex has not had an issue in over 5 years. Hard wired is the way to go IMO if you are able to do that. I do however have wireless cameras around the house and they tend to drop randomly. WIFI IMO is not dependable enough for me to access/control my reef.

Dom274 · Feb 23, 2018

Saltyanimals said:
Fix for me: set a static IP address. I can’t recall the last time i had a connection issue after this. I haven a very high number of devices in my house and maybe it was network traffic or IP issues. But going static solved it for me.

Good call, I forgot to mention that. Setting static IPs for your devices that should always maintain a connection helps as well. If the device is suffering from spotty wifi, the disconnect/reconnects can cause issues with the DHCP lease from the router.

jwshiver · Feb 23, 2018

Krawl said:
Not to mention it happens at all the wrong times to.

You mean any time between 12:00 am and 4:00 am while you are asleep then the Apex alarm wakes you up? YES

DHill6 · Feb 23, 2018

Contact support, email the issue, they will contact you. Mine is always connected, I update wirelessly also without an issue. If I remember right they changed the address on it right after installing to avoid conflict with other equipment in the house that also ran wireless.

Saltyanimals · Feb 24, 2018

I just figured it out myself because of the constant drops may have locked IPs, but glad to see that support recommends the same from DHill6's comments. Looks like we have a few consensus on setting the static IP. Hope that helps.

Akersta · Feb 24, 2018

I’d be very cautious of connectivity issues as this is what I seemed to be battling until my Apex lost its configuration this week. I started a tread under Neptune’s vendor forum on how to back up your configuration. Probably not related but please be aware.

Saltyanimals · Feb 26, 2018

I would love to see a feature to backup the entire Apex configuration to a file. I had to cut and paste Apex code into a Word document since there was no backup feature that I found for it. Pain in the ____.