ReefBot - Reliability, Technical Support and ROI

[AquAttila]

I have been doing some extensive research on this product and it seems that it really has mixed reviews. I am so skeptical of adding any new equipment but really like this concept of having tests done automatically and able to track, alert when things go wrong before it's too late.

Some of the reviews I have read is that it works for the first week and then it seems to break down, support is also not the best. I like to hear if there is any success that some may had and tell me if they ran into issues what they may have been. I am very interested in the phosphate and nitrate testing and accuracy. It seems that I keep running into issues with PO4 testing as one kit tells me I am at .25 (Salifert), 1.0 or above when I use (Nyos) and better yet Hanah test indicated 2.0! then I used PhosBan-L to lower and killed several corals because it is way off and I took the hanah as accurate.

Thanks!

 

[Big G]

Bump

 

[AquAttila]

thanks for the bump. Yea, I am surprised no one has given any feedback on this as I am very anxious to hear the experience others had with this product. It is a lot of money to pay for something that is not accurate and continues to break . hope there will be some good feedback!

 

[DarthSimon]

I bought a Reefbot while doing the Trident NSI testing early last year. Had multiple issues with it, and eventually they replaced it and I sold it. Was never reliable for me. Had issues with memory cards multiple times having to reformat, as well as broken arm.

 

[AquAttila]

DarthSimon, thanks for the feedback. Yet another equipment that is so unreliable in this hobby! It is such a great concept if it worked well ... would love it just for the PO4, Nitrate and Iodine. When it did work, did you feel that the test results were accurate? you mentioned that the company did replace the unit - was the support difficult or you had no problem with getting the support you needed?

 

[joe berkman]

I got mine at Xmas time. I’m not remotely tec savvy. But I had the locale computer shop print me a spare SD card.Which I recommend. Side from this it’s improved my tank significantly. I test alk cal po4. And swap nitrate and mag. Wirks fo me

 

[DarthSimon]

Rather not say.... it was not a great experience owning a ReefBot ;(

 

[AquAttila]

Joe, good to hear at least it is working for you! I want to buy one but the $900 is a lot of money, especially the mixed reviews.

Darth, sounds like you hated the device . well, that sucks. I am with you as I have purchased several equipment in this hobby and feel that the reliability in most is just not there... it's unfortunate and you would think companies would try to perfect their products.

 

[Halal Hotdog]

A private coral vendor locally has one and his experience has been mixed. He bought one because he is trying to transition to full time coral sales and needs stability to have maximum growth. He was also frustrated at the reagents that it allows. He owns a trident and is happier with that, but far more limited on what it can test. For $900 I don’t feel it is as consistent as it should be, but right now it is the only game in town.

 

[BZOFIQ]

..He owns a trident and is happier with that, but far more limited on what it can test. For $900 I don’t feel it is as consistent as it should be, but right now it is the only game in town.

Trident and Reefbot are completely different devices. You are comparing apples to water melons.

I too am considering a ReefBot down the line and have seen lot of positive feedback.

 

[BZOFIQ]

Here is some more reading material that should help you decide either way...just search the site.

reefbot users

hey guys if your using a reefbot I would love to know whar test your running and who your using im setting mine up and looking for tested results thx

www.reef2reef.com

Reefbot - Dead on accurate, what a great product

Have to say my new Reefbot is dead on accurate. the build quality is remarkable. A tool I should have bought the day it was available

www.reef2reef.com

Getting sick of manual testing

I use salifert tests for the basic 3 after a water change weekly. I'm getting very sick of relying on these is there any reliable digital testers for these basic ammonia nitrite and nitrate levels? Hanna has the ammonia checker but it's for freshwater and I'm not sure if they can be used for...

www.reef2reef.com

there is a lot more....

 

[jschultzbass]

I've been very interested in getting one myself. It has a LOT more moving parts than any other tester out there so there will be more issues. That's pretty much guaranteed. At my work we have an automatic tester that honestly works similar but costs $100,000 or more and still needs work a couple times a month. Reefbot has a lot of pros and some cons. Just does things different. Still on the fence.

 

[AquAttila]

Thanks for the references! I will check it out ... I have watched some of the youtube videos on it but like anything else, it seems to work out of the box well - but there is really no follow up on how it performed over time. I agree, ReefBot is the only game in town and concept is awesome! I would not consider the apex trident just because I don't need to auto dose, plus I am more interested in the PO4, nitrate and iodine testing. I do have a Kh guardian so I have Kh covered and also have dosing pumps for Cal and Mag. So, getting the reefbot would be great not to have to do manual testing.

 

[Halal Hotdog]

Trident and Reefbot are completely different devices. You are comparing apples to water melons.

I too am considering a ReefBot down the line and have seen lot of positive feedback.

Strongly disagree. They both fall in the realm of autonomous testing, even though they do it in different ways. They do not test the same elements, but that is true of many testing kits on the market.

 

[BZOFIQ]

Strongly disagree. They both fall in the realm of autonomous testing, even though they do it in different ways. They do not test the same elements, but that is true of many testing kits on the market.

Strongly disagree?

One (Trident) is locked into testing Ca, Alk and Mg - minimum 4 time a day - Period, end of the story.

The other (ReefBot) can test whatever tests you fit it with at whatever interval you want.... and you have the ability to change reagents on a whim to test for different parameters

Do you still think its apples to apples?

 

[Halal Hotdog]

Strongly disagree?

One (Trident) is locked into testing Ca, Alk and Mg - minimum 4 time a day - Period, end of the story.

The other (ReefBot) can test whatever tests you fit it with at whatever interval you want.... and you have the ability to change reagents on a whim to test for different parameters

Do you still think its apples to apples?

Yes, it is still apples to apples, that's why there are numerous threads comparing them.

Hanna has a line of testers that use light and color to give a numerical reading, where as other test kits just show you a color. Those are also comparable.

Cars have different features and some offer technology that others do not, those too are comparable.

Products do not have to be completely identical in order to compare them. Trident and Reefbot are different forms of autonomous testing, and yes they are not identical.

 

[BZOFIQ]

Yes, it is still apples to apples, that's why there are numerous threads comparing them.

Hanna has a line of testers that use light and color to give a numerical reading, where as other test kits just show you a color. Those are also comparable.

Cars have different features and some offer technology that others do not, those too are comparable.

Products do not have to be completely identical in order to compare them. Trident and Reefbot are different forms of autonomous testing, and yes they are not identical.

Ok, I'm just going to give up here - Never saw a point in comparing a mustang to an F-150; yes they both have 4 wheels and a steering wheel but going any further is pointless. You, on the other hand, have at it.

 

[robbyg]

Thanks for the references! I will check it out ... I have watched some of the youtube videos on it but like anything else, it seems to work out of the box well - but there is really no follow up on how it performed over time. I agree, ReefBot is the only game in town and concept is awesome! I would not consider the apex trident just because I don't need to auto dose, plus I am more interested in the PO4, nitrate and iodine testing. I do have a Kh guardian so I have Kh covered and also have dosing pumps for Cal and Mag. So, getting the reefbot would be great not to have to do manual testing.

Here ya go.

 

[DrMMI]

I have two units. One for my tank at work and one at my house. While I've had my issues here and there with them, for the most part, they were pretty minor. My biggest issue is that it keeps going offline and I have to go through a whole process to get it to reconnect. I'm also dealing with an issue with the needle holder in one of them. I contacted support and they're sending me a new one. My issue with support is that because of the time difference, there's usually hours between replies. Despite all this, I don't regret getting them. Before I had them, I was not testing regularly and it led to a lot of issues with my tanks. Like any piece of technology, there's going to be issues to deal with. Overall, I'm happy I got them. With regards to the accuracy, it's been pretty spot on with manual testing.

 

[DarthSimon]

Honestly my experience with my Reefbot was an absolute nightmare. The Device was offline more than it was online. The issue with it going offline had to do with the SD Card the firmware was loaded on. It was a pain in the butt getting cover off and reformatting the card on my PC every time it happened. I went offline 7-8 times in a 5 month period. Then the needle arm broke. After all that I had it. They shipped me a brand new one and I sold it new in box.

I have had the Trident since January of 2019 and did NSI beta testing. Much better product. NOT perfect, but much more reliable.