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Use of Aquadyne controllers.
Folks,
I have a 120gal Planted Aquarium. pH is 6.7 to 7.0 (manual). Temp is 29C.
Waterchange is 3 gal a day. Light 240W, 11 hours a day. 6 Wattley
Turquoise Discus, 23 Cardinal Tetras, 8 Panda Corydoras, 2 Zebra Plecos, 11
Marbled Hatchets, 2 Clown Plecos and 6 Chinese Algae Eaters. Several
Vallisneria, Eichniodorus, Hydrophilia, Chyptocoryne, Bacopa and
Micranthenum species.
Wet/Dry Trickle Filter, turning water over every hour. DIY Manual CO2
Injection with DIY Reactor w/ older Beckman Labtype pH meter for monitor
only, no control. 6 40W Fluorescent--Vita-Lites on cheap timers. DIY
Manual Heating Cables controlled by Honeywell UDC w/ PotterBrumfield Relay.
Ebo Heaters for backup.
Shortcomings: No feedback control on pH. Did not use Laterite in
substrate (I will!). Been using cheap fertilisers. AGA Oak Stand & Canopy
are made of 3/4" plywood (scares me, I need to gussy it up!). Using a
cheap timer for Water Changes (worry it will fail ON!) All my systems s
eemed Hodge Podged. Admittedly, Plant growth is not optimum. Would like
to automate the entire system using one solution.
I have been considering building my own using an inexpensive PC,
specifically, the PLCDirect DL405 and DirectSoft software. However, it's a
very expensive solution (~$2K) and will require alot of programming. Has
anyone used a PLC to automate all systems on there aquarium? If so, how
did you interface the pH probe and perform calibrations?
I am also considering one of the Controllers manufactured by Aquadyne,
specifically, the AquaNode 500. Has anyone used this product or the
Octopus 2000/3000? Has anyone used the auxillary Digital I/O (2in,2out)
for Automated Water Changes,Dosing,Level Control? What was your overall
opinion of the quality of the instrumentation and power/ease of use of the
software? Is anyone willing to share the cost of the fully configured
system?
Lastly, I have seen many discussions of PMDD. What is it an abbreviation
for? I currently fertilize with Iron Daily and Plant food weekly. How
often is PMDD used and does it satisfy all fertilising needs?
Peter W O'Dwyer jnr
odwyerpw at capital_net