Using Apex for temperature/heater control

[Boxofpurplerocks]

Hey guys, quick question for all you Apex users out there. What is the general consensus about using an Apex as the primary means of temperature control for the tank? How reliable is it? Do you guys use an additional controller too as an extra failsafe?

Looking to add temperature control to my tank, and rather than buying a temp controller, I'm thinking about just taking the plunge and buying an Apex. Let me know your thoughts!

 

[Bob Escher]

I use finnex heaters with external controllers and I have my APEX as well.
I have two heaters on my system. There is two ways to go about it. Either have the APEX as the backup or the heater controller as a backup. You always want a backup just in case something goes wrong with the heater

There is a discussion on here that describes how to use it this way
I would buy a external controller as well

 

[Silver14SS]

I prefer to use a heater with it's own thermostat in addition to the aquarium controller. Set the heater thermostat slightly above your controller programming, that way if the controller somehow leaves it on, the heater will shut itself off when it reaches it's thermostat set point. Possible both could stick on, but I imagine fairly unlikely.

I've used ReefKeepers, Apex Classic, Apex 16, and GHL Profilux 4 and never had an issue with this approach.

 

[LiveWire]

I use the same heaters and run the same config as @Bob Escher. It is easy to setup and works like a champ. It keeps things from anciently getting overheated from a stuck contact and it also will keep everything alive if one heater fails.

 

[Boxofpurplerocks]

I use finnex heaters with external controllers and I have my APEX as well.
I have two heaters on my system. There is two ways to go about it. Either have the APEX as the backup or the heater controller as a backup. You always want a backup just in case something goes wrong with the heater

There is a discussion on here that describes how to use it this way
I would buy a external controller as well

Got it, that makes sense. Would a heater with an internal thermostat that is set up on the aquarium controller have the same effect.. i.e. the apex controls the heater, and the internal thermostat is only used if the apex fails?

 

[BigHildy53]

Got it, that makes sense. Would a heater with an internal thermostat that is set up on the aquarium controller have the same effect.. i.e. the apex controls the heater, and the internal thermostat is only used if the apex fails?

Yes. I use Jager heaters. I use Apex as the primary and the internal control as the secondary. And with the Apex you can send emails if the temperature is above a certain point.

 

[Tastee]

My primary heater is an Aqueon gold, connected to the EB6 and controlled by my Apex. My backup heater is connected to mains power and not controlled by the Apex. My chiller is connected to the EB6 but controlled by it’s internal thermostat. This gives me redundancy to cover most situations.

The primary heater’s internal thermostat is set to turn on just below the Apex on setting. The Apex off is 0.5C above the on. This means the internal thermostat off setting will be not too far above the Apex off setting (the heater has a heating range of about 2C).

If the primary heater fails on the Apex will turn it off. If it fails off the backup heater will kick in and I will get an Apex alert.

If the backup fails on the chiller would kick in. If temperature went above the Apex high mark I would get an alert. If not (i.e. the chiller was successfully fighting the backup heater) I would need to notice this situation in my Apex dashboard or by looking at the tank as the chiller is not controlled by the Apex and the EB6 doesn’t have power monitoring (I am in Sydney Australia and we can’t get the EB8).

If the primary and backup heater both fail off I will get an Apex alert. I test my backup every month or so as well to protect against it failing unbeknownst to me.

If the Apex fails on the primary heater’s internal thermostat will shut it off and I will get an Apex alert. If the Apex fails off the backup heater will kick in and I will get an Apex alert.

If the chiller fails off I will get an Apex alert. If the chiller fails on the Apex will cut power to it above a preset threshold and I will get an Apex alert.

That seems about the best I can do in my current configuration.

 

[Hipertec]

Yes. I use Jager heaters. I use Apex as the primary and the internal control as the secondary. And with the Apex you can send emails if the temperature is above a certain point.

How do you get Apex to send an email if the temp gets above a certain point?

 

[jaxredsoxfan]

You just set up email alerts on the Apex and add the code for the device you want an email on. Here's mine:

 

[Hipertec]

Thank you. Are you able to post a higher Res image? Much appreciated.

 

[BigHildy53]

Here's my Apex email alarm.

 

[Blutspitze]

I use the same approach as most have listed here - use the Apex's thermometer to control the heater's outlet on/off and have the heater's internal thermometer act as a backup, set higher than the Apex. It's worked nicely and kept the temp steady with only a couple degrees' difference.