View Full Version : Help choosing ATO
JohnnyM2
01/31/2007, 09:31 AM
I am setting up a 90 gal reef tank with refugium/sump and have found what many of you have already discovered: a few gallons of evaporation is enough to let the return pump run dry. So I need an ATO.
1. JBJ is inexpensive and seems to work.
2. Tunze is pricier but seems to have better float valves.
3. I am very interested in Spectrapures litermeter, though expensive, because it can run dry without damage and has other uses (like very accurate dosing). Problem is it doesn't seem to have a float valve to turn it on. You have to set a daily top off amount, higher than the actual amount needed, and then let the single hi level float turn off the pump if the level gets too high.
Hoping someone has enough experience to help guide this decision. Thanks
ErikS
01/31/2007, 10:00 AM
Tunze = bulletproof, but pricy. They don't use a float switch for level control, it's an electronic sensor. Very unlikely to fail. I believe they use the float to keep the pump from burning up.
JBJ = A good compromise. Very configurable with two floats that can be used as either a fill/safety or a fill from -> fill to configuration. Not sure if they've changed since I got mine......but the fill buzzer is annoying & you might have to change the fill timer (keeps the fill pump from buring up). JBJ has instructions on their website.
Others I've used -
Autotopoff.com = worked well....while it worked, relay burned out after a year.
ReefTec - POS, poorly designed & constructed - a substandard DIY IMHO
UltraLife Float switch - single float switch & pump control. No safeties, no warnings but works fine. I used it for over 4 years - thing still works fine.
If you have need for dosing the Litermeter will do the job, though so will any dosing pump. I don't like using dosing pumps for topoff because evaporation varies throughout the year. You have the cutoff.....but really too pricy for a topoff system anyway.
Mike75
02/01/2007, 02:29 AM
I just purchased a brand new JBJ, and it does not buzz when filling. I'm not sure if they changed it, or maybe mine is broken - which is fine by me. :-P I had read about how to open it up and disable it before I bought it, luckily I didn't have to.
Overall I'm happy with the JBJ, it's so nice to have an ATO in general. The only thing I don't care for, are the mounting brackets. They're better than suction cups, but the increments in which you can adjust the float switches are too large, at least for my sump.
I wanted the Tunze Osmolater, but just couldn't justify the price right now. The only other downside I see to it is that is uses suction cups, but I've heard of others making custom mounts for it.
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