This thread is fantastic!! I am most def. an Apex noob. I have been running a RSM250 mostly manually for years. A few months ago I decided to take the plunge and upgraded to a AquaVim 155gal corner tank. This obviously is a big learning curve for me coming from a AIO tank. I wanted as much automation as I could so I picked up the new Apex and bought some other pieces used.
I'll try to keep it to heating for now and not go into my entire setup. I was looking for titanium and the best bang for my buck I could find was 2x Aquatop 400 watts with controller. I have a fancy inkbird which has a plug for heat and a plug for the chiller as well as wifi. I have not hooked up the chiller yet, but plan too once my corals are moved over from the RSM250. I have the 2 aquatops in my skimmer chamber and they are set to somewhere between 80-82 so they are essentially not in control (in hindsight I wish I got ones without controllers and am actually looking for replacements). I have them both plugged into a 2-way splitter which is plugged into the heater outlet on the inkbird which I set at 78. The Inkbird is plugged into my EB832 on Port 4. It's set to advanced and my programming is set to this:
Fallback OFF
If Tmp < 79.9 Then ON
If Tmp > 80.0 Then OFF
If Output Cor_3_1 Percent < 90 Then OFF
If Power Apex Off 001 Then OFF
Defer 001:00 Then ON
So... my thinking here was as long as the temp is below 79.9 the inkbird is always on and controlling the heaters. If the Cor20 goes off or low due to feed mode, water changes, maint, it turns off.
I learned the hard way during some sump work that I was doing that the skimmer chamber was able to get up to 100 degrees because the temp probes were upstream under the inlet and there was no flow. Thankfully I caught this before the hot water got into the DT and I let it cool down to room temp before powering stuff back on.
I do have a heat pump for my home which provides central air and heat - so we usually are around 70 or so all year round give or take 5 degrees either way.
I want to possibly replace these heaters with ones that are element only. I was also wondering if I should consider adding a second inkbird to the mix, one for each heater. I am also thinking of increasing wattage as I do not believe these heaters are keeping my temps steady enough.
Any help on setup and/or programming would be most appreciated. I'm leaning toward new heaters and possibly doing one in sump and one in tank instead of both in the sump...
Here's a weeks worth of data
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