Apex !!! WTH are you doing !!!

[binford4000]

First this is not an Apex slam! I was out camping got an alarm from my Apex wich first alarm was Ph is reading 2.3??? No problem need to replace the probe when I get back. Lets keep going honey,lets snorkel this lake today I can fix that later. Then I get a second alarm saying my tank is now an ice cube and ready for some ice tea since it is at 16 F???? And the Ph is still reading in the 2's and guess what,both heaters are running full blast so trip is over !! Need to pack up and haul but home! I get on my phone to turn the heaters off and when I do the thing rests itself and temp is now 79 and Ph is 8.3 as it should be. Guess we're back on. This morning the wife says go home and check my tank please. Womans intuition is always right. As soon as I left the site and got phone service the alarms we're going nuts. Thank GOD I believe in over kill and that big fat chiller worked like it did! Both heaters have been running since 1:30 am. I unplugged the complete apex and the DC8's and rebooted it. It seams to running ok now. But still put finnex controllers on the heaters for fail safe. ANYONE ever have this happen ?? I am confused by this but would like to solve it so any input would be most appreciated . And yes I have a new found love for my power sucking chiller which I will never unplug like I was debating. That beast saved everything in the tank! It just paid for itself! Get lucky sometimes!

[pjr]

Unreal! Automation is bliss, carnage avoided.

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[jimsflies]

My apex kept sending me power out alarms a few weeks ago and locking up. Then I lost all connectivity...I need to send it Neptune to see what's wrong.

Unless you really need a heater, I would unplugged them this time of year.

[slapshot]

I have had mine go wacko. Unplugged it and rebooted it, no problem since.

[petercar]

Mine went wacko ..the lights where off on diplay tank,return pump was off skimmer was off the 2 powerheads where going sump light wasnt on ..the apex window has been up on the computer ..it froze so did a reboot ..presto it all worked


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[BlackGrandPrix]

I still don't understand why people put their tank in the hands of one piece of equipment. Especially electronic.

[binford4000]

Thanks everyone for the input. I just got home and it seems to be running ok. I am going to reinstall the firm ware and profiles today and see if that smooths things out. I am glad the chiller draws to many amps to put on the apex. It draws close to ten amps so it would defeat the purpose and obviously it is smart not to pug it into it anyway.plan to be on the phone with them in the am. Sure hope they don't give the usual "send it in and we'll take a look at it " answer. As far as trusting just one thing to control the system that is going to change. Good point! It becomes easy to trust these things but when it fails look out. I was thinking about how much money would have been wasted if the chiller hadn't been able to handle the job. It would have easily been in the thousands! Lucky day for sure ! I need to send the chiller company a letter thanking them for making such a good unit !

[slapshot]

I still don't understand why people put their tank in the hands of one piece of equipment. Especially electronic.

I still check everything, but when I'm at work or on vacation it's a God send. I put a red led in the wall and hooked it up so if anything starts to go off kilter the light comes on. Everyone in the house knows to call me if the light is on. Saved me countless times.

[jimsflies]

I still don't understand why people put their tank in the hands of one piece of equipment. Especially electronic.

The key to automation is to build in redundancy and fail safes. For example, Binford's built in thermostats on his heaters should be set barely above the temp that he wants to maintain so that they will not heat the tank beyond that even if the controller is calling for heat. Further, code should be added to the controller to deal with potential absurd (clearly erroneous readings...probe failure). For example, if temp < 60, then heater off and alarm condition. And if he is controlling anything based on pH that should be programmed in as well....e.g., If pH <7.5, then kalk off (and if pH >8.5 kalk off).

[jimsflies]

Thanks everyone for the input. I just got home and it seems to be running ok. I am going to reinstall the firm ware and profiles today and see if that smooths things out. I am glad the chiller draws to many amps to put on the apex. It draws close to ten amps so it would defeat the purpose and obviously it is smart not to pug it into it anyway.plan to be on the phone with them in the am. Sure hope they don't give the usual "send it in and we'll take a look at it " answer. As far as trusting just one thing to control the system that is going to change. Good point! It becomes easy to trust these things but when it fails look out. I was thinking about how much money would have been wasted if the chiller hadn't been able to handle the job. It would have easily been in the thousands! Lucky day for sure ! I need to send the chiller company a letter thanking them for making such a good unit !

FYI Neptune doesn't like to do phone support much anymore. Your best bet is to open a ticket on their website and they will open a dialog with you. They even seem to answer that system on the weekend from my experience. You can also post in the forum on their website and usually get some input.