Tank transfer

[madstyle1]

I'll be doing a tank transfer. Will my apex need to be resetted or can I continue to use old settings on new tank. I'll be offline for a few months. New tank won't be running for a while. Thanks.

[fab]

Apex, itself won't even know it, so it should present no problem. If your tanks' needs are different then, of course, you will need to change Apex programs to satisfy those needs; e.g. flow rates, dosing rates, lighting levels, etc.

Well, this holds as long as you do not disconnect Apex modules from each other...

[madstyle1]

Ok thank you

[Frogfish]

Also, you will need to plug tnings back into the same outlets. Otherwise they won't work right.

[fab]

...Well, all this holds as long as you do not disconnect Apex modules from each other...

Frogfish is right on this. Ignore his excellent advice and you will regret it.

If do you unplug modules you will need to keep track of which ones need to be plugged back into the aquabus and in which order or your programs will not be addressing the right devices as their outlet addresses will have changed. If possible, just do not unplug any Apex modules from each other and keep track of which probes need to be plugged back into which modules.

I maintain an excel spreadsheet that records for each of my aqua bus addresses: type and name of module along with it's serial number.

Likewise for each outlet the spreadsheet records what is plugged into it, what name is used for it in my Apex programming, model, serial number.

I physically tag sensors and switches with a pseudo serial number. I record which sensor and which switch goes with which module and where it is employed in my system; e.g., sump1, sump2, quarantine1, calcium reactor,refugium, etc.

From these lists I know which specific items plug into which specific modules. If you completely tear down your Apex system, then you have the information to rebuild it from scratch by connecting modules to the Aquabus in that same order as their Aquabus addresses and plugging each specific device into it original module and outlet.

Be mindful that a probe's calibration data set is kept in the module it was plugged into when it was last calibrated. So if you have a temperature probe plugged into a PM2, that probe needs to be plugged back into that same PM2.

If you have multiple power bars, it doesn't matter which order the power bars are plugged back into the aquabus relative to each other. If your Aquabus address 4 was originally a power bar then it doesn't matter which specific power bar you plug in to be at address 4. What does matter is that the devices originally plugged into the power bar at address 4 get plugged into the power bar that ends up at address 4.

What you are after is to assure that modules get the same aquabus addresses as they before you start unplugging modules. You will want module and outlet aquabus addressing not to change from before to after the switchover, otherwise your programming will be awry and will need surgery.

Again, if you can leave all modules connected to the aquabus that will make the switchover a whole lot easier. You will avoid all the hullabaloo I just spelled out above.

[RussM]

Frogfish is right on this. Ignore his excellent advice and you will regret it.

If do you unplug modules you will need to keep track of which ones need to be plugged back into the aquabus and in which order or your programs will not be addressing the right devices as their outlet addresses will have changed. If possible, just do not unplug any Apex modules from each other and keep track of which probes need to be plugged back into which modules.

This is incorrect. A module will retain it's AquaBus address as long as it has not been connected to a different Apex and the Apex configuration has not changed. You can disassemble and reassemble a system repeatedly (even with different Aquabus connectivity) and the addresses should remain the same.

[fab]

Follow RussM's advice, always, over mine.

[goby13]

As of 02/27/2017 I can verify that RussM's advice is legit!!! Despite my best efforts to keep the sockets in line, the bus cables are impossible to keep straight. I found this thread and put the rest back together... held my breath and plugged it in.
It works as if it was on my last tank! Thanks!