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Automated water change.
- Thread starter S Hunter
- Start date
customclimates
Non-member
I use the Liter Meter III with the optional pumps. It changes from tea spoons up to 36 gallons of water per day. I pre mix the salt in a Brute container & let it sit with an 802 power head to stir. One pump pulls the water from the sump and spits it down the drain while the other pump takes it from the Brute container and into the tank. This all happens in a 24 hour period. If I want to make a 70ish gallon water change I just let it run for two days then shut it off. No water ever needs to be lifted or emptied this way. IMO the Liter Meter III is one of the top items I have ever purchased for my tank. 
Scott
Non-member
I use the Liter Meter III with the optional pumps. It changes from tea spoons up to 36 gallons of water per day. I pre mix the salt in a Brute container & let it sit with an 802 power head to stir. One pump pulls the water from the sump and spits it down the drain while the other pump takes it from the Brute container and into the tank. This all happens in a 24 hour period. If I want to make a 70ish gallon water change I just let it run for two days then shut it off. No water ever needs to be lifted or emptied this way. IMO the Liter Meter III is one of the top items I have ever purchased for my tank.
Cool, but aren't you effectively dumping new water by filling and emptying at the same time?
Like if you did two 10% water changes instead of one 20%. The second 10% would throw away some of the first 10%'s new water.
Am I missing something, or is that just a price to pay for automation?
Miller
Non-member
I was just wondering that.....must be the price you pay for automation.
Jennifer has automated water changes, the name of the system that automatically changes the tanks water is Barry
customclimates
Non-member
It does not do it simultaneously … It does the water change in series. 
customclimates
Non-member
Auto top off is pump A ( fixed on pump ) Pump B is water out & Pump C is water in.
Cool, but aren't you effectively dumping new water by filling and emptying at the same time?
Like if you did two 10% water changes instead of one 20%. The second 10% would throw away some of the first 10%'s new water.
Am I missing something, or is that just a price to pay for automation?
The price is small for simultaneous addition and removal. Changing 1% daily for 30 days, in a continuous fashion (or 30% all at once, continuously) is as effective as 26%in the normal remove and add fashion. I show that in detail here:
Water Changes in Reef Aquaria
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-10/rhf/index.php
I change 1% daily with a dual head Reef Filler pump. It sends in water from an 88 gallon reservoir (two Brute cans plumbed together) into a refugium and the second head draws sump water and sends it down the drain. It runs for about 1-2 h per day, on 15 minute cycles. A big plus is that you need never heat, aerate, or match salinity or anything else from your water change water as it is changed so slowly. It also takes no effort aside from making up the salt water.
Like if you did two 10% water changes instead of one 20%. The second 10% would throw away some of the first 10%'s new water.
Am I missing something, or is that just a price to pay for automation?
The price is small for simultaneous addition and removal. Changing 1% daily for 30 days, in a continuous fashion (or 30% all at once, continuously) is as effective as 26%in the normal remove and add fashion. I show that in detail here:
Water Changes in Reef Aquaria
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-10/rhf/index.php
I change 1% daily with a dual head Reef Filler pump. It sends in water from an 88 gallon reservoir (two Brute cans plumbed together) into a refugium and the second head draws sump water and sends it down the drain. It runs for about 1-2 h per day, on 15 minute cycles. A big plus is that you need never heat, aerate, or match salinity or anything else from your water change water as it is changed so slowly. It also takes no effort aside from making up the salt water.
Chuck Spyropulos
Non-member
Automated Water Change system
I use a 50 gallon plastic barrel (got it from Greg Hiller - years ago), two MAG mixing pumps, a MAG pump in my sump for draining and a MAG pump in the barrell for filling.
Once a month or so I fill the barrell with water via a tee off of my top off system and a Kent float valve in the barrel that shuts the water off into the barell when full. Then I pour in 20 cups of salt and turn on the mixing pumps. After a few days of mixing, I do a manual 50 gallon water change by turning on the drain pump in the sump, turning off the drain pump, then turning on the fill pump in the barrell.
I used to do automated water changes (1-2 gallons per day) by connecting the drain pump and the fill pump to X10 controllers. Then I would configure the turn on/off time for these in my Aquadyne Octopus Controller. I calibrated the water flow for the drain and the fill pumps using gate valves, a stop watch and a gallon container. I believe I adjusted the flows for 1 GPM and ran each pump for 2 minutes or so. The calibration does not need to be exteremely precise but I did check my salinity every few weeks to make sure it was in check. I do intend to add the X10 timers again - just not a priority right now. I never had a problem with the X10 timers - they were extremely reliable. However, any time I traveled for periods longer than a couple of days, I disabled the automated system to avoid any risk of water change problems in my absence (just in case
).
I use a 50 gallon plastic barrel (got it from Greg Hiller - years ago), two MAG mixing pumps, a MAG pump in my sump for draining and a MAG pump in the barrell for filling.
Once a month or so I fill the barrell with water via a tee off of my top off system and a Kent float valve in the barrel that shuts the water off into the barell when full. Then I pour in 20 cups of salt and turn on the mixing pumps. After a few days of mixing, I do a manual 50 gallon water change by turning on the drain pump in the sump, turning off the drain pump, then turning on the fill pump in the barrell.
I used to do automated water changes (1-2 gallons per day) by connecting the drain pump and the fill pump to X10 controllers. Then I would configure the turn on/off time for these in my Aquadyne Octopus Controller. I calibrated the water flow for the drain and the fill pumps using gate valves, a stop watch and a gallon container. I believe I adjusted the flows for 1 GPM and ran each pump for 2 minutes or so. The calibration does not need to be exteremely precise but I did check my salinity every few weeks to make sure it was in check. I do intend to add the X10 timers again - just not a priority right now. I never had a problem with the X10 timers - they were extremely reliable. However, any time I traveled for periods longer than a couple of days, I disabled the automated system to avoid any risk of water change problems in my absence (just in case
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