Vacation time? How do u automate ur Tank? Just a scary thought all together! (o;

[higorc]

I just came back from a 4 day trip to Marthas Vineyard... I left my 7 month old daughter with my parents, and put them in charge of feeding my tank. Is it bad that I was more worried about the tank than my daughter?!!! :confused: I mean I missed her like hell, but I get worried sick about my Reef!!! :rolleyes:


A few things I did before I left;

-Fed the Tank
-Set the Central Air to 75 degrees
-Made sure the ATO reservoir was full
-Emptied/cleaned Skimmer Cup
-Cleaned the Glass
-Double checked all equipment and Reef Keeper's timers and programing
-Checked water parameters a couple days before
-Prepared frozen food with instructions on how much to feed. Usually once a day.


Got back yesterday and noticed-

-Somehow a snail clogged the Skimmer's pump intake and it was barely skimming... :( (No ill effect though)
-ATO Reservoir just made it (7G container)
-Dirty glass (normal though I guess...)

All corals and fish were still fat and happy. It's amazing how much growth you notice when u are away for a few days! My Blue Eye Blonde Zoa Colony had two new polyps!




To celebrate, I took a vid :celeb2:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCJk7wXsZTM&feature=em-upload_owner


I am going away pretty soon for 10 days and I am REALLY nervous being away from the tank that long (daughter is coming with us this time! :p). I think I will ask for daily picture of the tank from my parents and have them call me when they are over feeding the tank so I can walk them through a little "Check List"...


I am thinking of getting a bigger ATO containner for that time. What do you do when u go away and leave ur tank in someone else's hands?!

Higor

[Allmost]

set skimmer on its driest mode. make twice RO/DI water than you think will be needed. get an auto feeder, fish nanny's always overfeed.

I was like you, I just came back from a 3.5 week vacation ! my RO/DI water ran out, and my friend had to top off with tap water ! that's the only mistake I made, so make sure you have it covered.

[Donkeykong]

Unless I am going to be gone more than 4 days I do not have anybody feed my tank, but I do feed heavy the 2 days leading up to leaving. I also have an Apex hooked up to several probes and float switches that will email me if any of the parameters or water levels are lower or higher than they should be. I love my controller, it gives me so much piece of mind when I am away.

[KafudaFish]

1. Before you go have them come over and go over all equipment and how you feed. They may think silence is a golden instead of, crap the return pump is not working!
2. Write a detailed list of everything they are suppose to do each day.
3. What to do if something happens like a fish finding the sump.

[higorc]

set skimmer on its driest mode. make twice RO/DI water than you think will be needed. get an auto feeder, fish nanny's always overfeed.

I was like you, I just came back from a 3.5 week vacation ! my RO/DI water ran out, and my friend had to top off with tap water ! that's the only mistake I made, so make sure you have it covered.

I have always been a little weary of those "auto-feeders", I have to say I thought of getting one a couple times. I like the idea of having someone over the house for feeding though, that way they can observe the tank and equipment for anything out of the ordinary...

I will probably get a bigger ATO reservoir for the 10 days I am away. But of course with that I will be thinking about the ATO float sticking (even though I have two floats for safety!) and pumping all the water in. There's always something to worry about ins't there?!


Unless I am going to be gone more than 4 days I do not have anybody feed my tank, but I do feed heavy the 2 days leading up to leaving. I also have an Apex hooked up to several probes and float switches that will email me if any of the parameters or water levels are lower or higher than they should be. I love my controller, it gives me so much piece of mind when I am away.

I love my RKL, I definetely couldn't be away from the tank with out it. I just wish it would email me like the Apex... o well, that's why I like to have some one come over and feed it daily. It's an extra pair of eyes around when I am not. :spin2:


1. Before you go have them come over and go over all equipment and how you feed. They may think silence is a golden instead of, crap the return pump is not working!
2. Write a detailed list of everything they are suppose to do each day.
3. What to do if something happens like a fish finding the sump.


I hear you there. They usualy call me when they are over the house tending to the tank. I talk to them for a few minutes and have them do a quick check up...

[tanked37]

One thing you missed that is often overlooked until it happens is cleaning (vinegar) your ATO float switch. If it sticks on or off that can be an issue. Mine stuck off once early in the morning and when I got home from work the return pump was almost sucking air. If I had been gone for 2+ days the return pump could have died and who knows what else. Sticking OFF is not something ppl generally think about.

[higorc]

One thing you missed that is often overlooked until it happens is cleaning (vinegar) your ATO float switch. If it sticks on or off that can be an issue. Mine stuck off once early in the morning and when I got home from work the return pump was almost sucking air. If I had been gone for 2+ days the return pump could have died and who knows what else. Sticking OFF is not something ppl generally think about.

+1 on that! That is a very important piece of equipment. I am thinking of temporarily getting a bigger ATO reservoir for the 10 days I am away, and I can't even imagine if it sticks "On" and it pumps all my Kalk - RODI water in the tank.

I usualy have a 7G ATO reservoir w/ Kalk+RODI, and I did have it dump all of it in the tank once during tank maintenance by accident (that's what happens when you forget to shut off the ATO system when u doing a water change! :headwalls:).

Thank God it was only 7G though! My PH shot up to 9.5 and salinity droped a couple of points, but imagine if I had it hooked up to something bigger?! It wouldn't have been pretty...

Thanks for the heads up. That will definetely be in my list of "what to do" before I leave.

Higor

[thegrun]

I have my tank set up to handle a 14 day vacation as far as reservoir sizes go (Water, two part and skimmer waste). I like the Eheim auto-feeder, I made a holder that has a feeding tube that extends down a couple of inches below the waterline so the food doesn't get sucked into the overflow. When we are gone of over a week I have my brother-in-law come by every 3-4 days to check things out, he has been trained to take care of the more common issues. An alternative to the auto feeder would be to zip lock bag all your daily food requirements, marking them with the dates to use each bag. Here is a picture of the auto feeder:
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)

[DopeCantWin]

I use to be about as automated as you can get, right now I'm still pretty close. The RO/DI source is hooked up to the tank going though a Kalk Reactor. I recharge the Kalk Reactor once a week, so Ca and dKH is consistently dosed. Food is provided by a feeder, which I don't have connected right now. Skimmer is going to an external 1 gallon jug. It has a float valve to turn off the skimmer when full. I empty it once every 1-2 weeks. I've gone away on vacations over a week without much worry. Someone will come to the house to check that there are no emergencies. But sometimes I would go a week without touching the tank even when I'm around.

I don't have any snail, so no worry of that plugging up the Skimmer. Although if a large piece of Chaeto tears off it could plug up the tank return pump. It would have to be a very large piece, that pump is 3000 gph. I'll probably throw a piece of egg crate in before it so that doesn't happen before I leave for vacation next time.

[slief]

My system is completely automated. I've run an Apex for years now. It handles my ATO via a pair of redundant float switches. My ATO tank is 100 gallons and I have a 100 Gallons of premixed salt water for my automatic water changes which are now handled by a Genesis Renew. Prior to the Renew, I used a Litermeter 3 and Litermeter slave pump for automatic water changes.

My Apex monitors my PH, ORP, Salinity water levels, water on the floor etc. If the sump levels get too high, ATO and water changer are shut down and I get an email and text to notify me. Same goes with sump level being too low. If water on the floor is detected, ATO and water changer are shut off and I get email and text notification. I have a lot of fail safes built into my system which give me piece of mind when I travel and I travel frequently and am typically gone for a week at a time. Lastly, I have a webcam setup on my tank as well. When I travel, I do so with the piece of mind that I can monitor my tank from anywhere in the world while the tank essentially takes care of itself as it has done so for years now.

As for feedings, I do have an automatic feed but I rarely use it. My tank is very well established and there are plenty of critters reproducing which provide a constant supply of food while I am gone. I will however leave pre packaged daily or every other day food packets if my wife is home or for the neighbors to feed as I do have to have somebody feed and let the dogs out when we are gone.

Having said that, if you travel, having a good controller is a great investment as it will allow you to keep on eye on things while you are away. At the same time, I would certainly increase your ATO holding tank size as it sounds like you already know it's too small.

[higorc]

My system is completely automated. I've run an Apex for years now. It handles my ATO via a pair of redundant float switches. My ATO tank is 100 gallons and I have a 100 Gallons of premixed salt water for my automatic water changes which are now handled by a Genesis Renew. Prior to the Renew, I used a Litermeter 3 and Litermeter slave pump for automatic water changes.

My Apex monitors my PH, ORP, Salinity water levels, water on the floor etc. If the sump levels get too high, ATO and water changer are shut down and I get an email and text to notify me. Same goes with sump level being too low. If water on the floor is detected, ATO and water changer are shut off and I get email and text notification. I have a lot of fail safes built into my system which give me piece of mind when I travel and I travel frequently and am typically gone for a week at a time. Lastly, I have a webcam setup on my tank as well. When I travel, I do so with the piece of mind that I can monitor my tank from anywhere in the world while the tank essentially takes care of itself as it has done so for years now.

As for feedings, I do have an automatic feed but I rarely use it. My tank is very well established and there are plenty of critters reproducing which provide a constant supply of food while I am gone. I will however leave pre packaged daily or every other day food packets if my wife is home or for the neighbors to feed as I do have to have somebody feed and let the dogs out when we are gone.

Having said that, if you travel, having a good controller is a great investment as it will allow you to keep on eye on things while you are away. At the same time, I would certainly increase your ATO holding tank size as it sounds like you already know it's too small.


I really like the Apex's ability do do so many more things than the RKL. Sometimes I feel like the RKL is very limited... I love my RKL and couldn't leave with out it, but I am sure one day it just won't be enough anymore!

And you are right, I definetely need to get a bigger ATO reservoir. The issue though is "space"...

Higor

[Palting]

For the usual one week, maybe 2 week vacation:
1. Fill up ATO reservoir
2. Set skimmer to super dry.
3. Make sure all GFI are set up right
4. Stop fretting! Enjoy the vacation!! LOL!!
I've left the tank unattended for up to 2 weeks over the last 3 years. No feeding, no particular changes. Skimmer is set to dry usually, but if it overflows (it has on occasion), it overflows into the sump and no biggie. For major catastrophes (example: the tank explodes), there's noting you can do to prevent it anyway, so enjoy the vacation and stop worrying.

Longer vacations, like a month, is a different issue. I hire the LFS owner. I give him keys to the house and password to the alarm system. He is bonded, he is reliable, he is knowledgeable, and his son and my son play soccer together :D.

[DopeCantWin]

I use to be about as automated as you can get, right now I'm still pretty close. The RO/DI source is hooked up to the tank going though a Kalk Reactor. I recharge the Kalk Reactor once a week, so Ca and dKH is consistently dosed. Food is provided by a feeder, which I don't have connected right now. Skimmer is going to an external 1 gallon jug. It has a float valve to turn off the skimmer when full. I empty it once every 1-2 weeks. I've gone away on vacations over a week without much worry. Someone will come to the house to check that there are no emergencies. But sometimes I would go a week without touching the tank even when I'm around.

I don't have any snail, so no worry of that plugging up the Skimmer. Although if a large piece of Chaeto tears off it could plug up the tank return pump. It would have to be a very large piece, that pump is 3000 gph. I'll probably throw a piece of egg crate in before it so that doesn't happen before I leave for vacation next time.

I forgot to mention, the Skimmer uses a swabbie and I never clean it anyway.

[slief]

I forgot to mention, the Skimmer uses a swabbie and I never clean it anyway.

I too have a SCH on my skimmer which runs for 15 or 20 seconds every day. As a result, I never clean my skimmer either other than every 6 or so months when I give my skimmer pumps a vinegar bath. That is the only time I remove my collection cup for cleaning. Those SCH's are a great thing and my skimmer runs like clock work as a result!!

[aandfsoccr04]

I'm surprised how out and about your firefish is with those barletts and that tang. That's awesome and your tank is beautiful by the way.

[higorc]

I'm surprised how out and about your firefish is with those barletts and that tang. That's awesome and your tank is beautiful by the way.

Thanks for the compliment. The Helfrich stays out all the time. He does ocasionaly get chased by the Alpha male Barlets, but he is too quick for him to catch him! :lol:

[dinwiddie90]

When I go out of town I have a friend that's local come check mine while I'm gone

[immokalee98]

Slief, which Apex do you have? Can they all check the Salinity?

[hogfanreefer]

I'm on vacation right now and my house sitter called last night because my lights were off. (AI Vegas) For some reason they have done that twice now, I think related to short term power surges/outages. Fortunately I was able to walk her through restarting them.

I used the Eheim auto feeder for my DT tank and one of my QT tanks. My nano and other QT were feed by the sitter. I used the weekly plastic medicine reminders with pellets in them so all she had to do was open the lid and dump the contents each day.

I also removed my filter socks, set my skimmer as dry as possible and put the drain for the skimmer into a 5 gallon bucket sitting in a large rubber made storage container. Probably safer to just let it overflow in to the sump but it's never overflowed enough to lower the salinity any.

[DopeCantWin]

I'm on vacation right now and my house sitter called last night because my lights were off. (AI Vegas) For some reason they have done that twice now, I think related to short term power surges/outages. Fortunately I was able to walk her through restarting them.

I used the Eheim auto feeder for my DT tank and one of my QT tanks. My nano and other QT were feed by the sitter. I used the weekly plastic medicine reminders with pellets in them so all she had to do was open the lid and dump the contents each day.

I also removed my filter socks, set my skimmer as dry as possible and put the drain for the skimmer into a 5 gallon bucket sitting in a large rubber made storage container. Probably safer to just let it overflow in to the sump but it's never overflowed enough to lower the salinity any.

I got a skinny container from BRS and installed a float swtich in there so once it's full, the controller turns off my Protein Skimmer.

[Lynxone]

Anything you fiddle with (like cleaning float switches), do it well in advance of your trip. That way you can monitor any changes for a couple days.

[dkeller_nc]

A thought - if you have an ATO with either a kalk reactor or you fill the reservoir with settled kalkwasser, I'd consider bypassing the kalk and running straight RODI through the ATO. It's true that calcium and alkalinity will suffer a bit while you're gone, but kalkwasser doesn't have all that much calc/alk in it anyway. You can easily recover the deficit when you return over a 3 to 4 day period by judiciously dosing 2-part.

It is unlikely that your corals will suffer substantially, particularly if you're not feeding much while you're gone.

[DopeCantWin]

A thought - if you have an ATO with either a kalk reactor or you fill the reservoir with settled kalkwasser, I'd consider bypassing the kalk and running straight RODI through the ATO. It's true that calcium and alkalinity will suffer a bit while you're gone, but kalkwasser doesn't have all that much calc/alk in it anyway. You can easily recover the deficit when you return over a 3 to 4 day period by judiciously dosing 2-part.

It is unlikely that your corals will suffer substantially, particularly if you're not feeding much while you're gone.

Eww. I refill my Kalk Reactor every 1-2 weeks and keep the water completely saturated so the amount of Ca/dKH dosed into the water doesn't change during that period. I monitor the saturation via a pH meter. I would just recharge it right before I left and not worry. Replumbing how water goes in my tank right before I left would be a big no no. Not to mention the pretty big drop in dKH, I dose 2.5 gallons of fully saturated water just to keep my dKH at 9. Now what you mention might work for some, but when you have a lot of SPS in a tank I don't think it's a good idea.

[insomniac2k2]

My normal is:

-Setup and check my auto-feeder 3 days in advance, to make sure it works the same as I left it.
- I never make changes in Reef controller programming before I head out. If it worked for months, It can wait 2 more weeks until I get back
- I cut back my skimmer to it's dryest settings
- Make sure my Auto RODI resevoir is still automatic
- I point my IP cam at my sump (MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF MIND THAT I'VE HAD SO FAR)
- Put Mesh lids on my open top tank
- Set AC to 75
- I tighten up my alarm thresholds and make sure that my text messaging alarms are working
- I put my internet connectivity on my UPS, so that my APEX stays up during possible power outages. (started doing this after I lost power for a day while i was in week 1 of my 2 week vacation!)

[LoJack]

I have my tank set up to handle a 14 day vacation as far as reservoir sizes go (Water, two part and skimmer waste). I like the Eheim auto-feeder, I made a holder that has a feeding tube that extends down a couple of inches below the waterline so the food doesn't get sucked into the overflow. When we are gone of over a week I have my brother-in-law come by every 3-4 days to check things out, he has been trained to take care of the more common issues. An alternative to the auto feeder would be to zip lock bag all your daily food requirements, marking them with the dates to use each bag. Here is a picture of the auto feeder:
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)

That is the greatest thing I have ever seen. I have the same auto feeder but don't set it up because I figure all the food will just skim right off the overflow when I'm out of town. I'm gonna have to try and design something like that.

I have a canopy so I can't do it the exact way you have yours ... but its ingenious, and so simple lol. Thanks for the grande idea!

[NTP66]

I'm going away for two weeks next year and, outside of turning on my Eheim auto feeder, plan on doing nothing else other than running a tube from skimmer's collection cup to a larger container so that I don't have to mess with anything. I could just leave it be, and not worry about it overflowing into my sump, but an old gallon container will do just fine temporarily.

[higorc]

I'm going away for two weeks next year and, outside of turning on my Eheim auto feeder, plan on doing nothing else other than running a tube from skimmer's collection cup to a larger container so that I don't have to mess with anything. I could just leave it be, and not worry about it overflowing into my sump, but an old gallon container will do just fine temporarily.

What about top off water?

[NTP66]

I knew I was missing something! ;)

I could have my parents stop by and fill my ATO, but I'll most likely roll my Brute that I store RO in (it's on wheels) next to the tank and have my AquaLifter pull water from that.

[Jamey1010]

lol what did we do before auto tops off, auto feeders, water change systems, apex controllers and networked web cams on the tank....

Truthfully I think we stressed less in those days, not so much other things to worry about, I'd call a neighbor beforehand tell him pour water in daily to the line on the sump add a pinch of food and thanks

I just use a 5 gallon bucket for top off so that gets me about 3 days any more and I roll out a brute too

[greg1786]

I just went away for 5 days and I wrote very detailed explanations of maintenance, feedings, and what to look for in case of... For every day i was gone. I had my parents over and we went through the whole list and did a dry run. I had them call once a day to check with me on how all was going. I returned to a perfectly healthy clean tank as if id been there the whole time.

[hogfanreefer]

I have my tank set up to handle a 14 day vacation as far as reservoir sizes go (Water, two part and skimmer waste). I like the Eheim auto-feeder, I made a holder that has a feeding tube that extends down a couple of inches below the waterline so the food doesn't get sucked into the overflow. When we are gone of over a week I have my brother-in-law come by every 3-4 days to check things out, he has been trained to take care of the more common issues. An alternative to the auto feeder would be to zip lock bag all your daily food requirements, marking them with the dates to use each bag. Here is a picture of the auto feeder:
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)

You should manufacture and sell those things. Really cool invention.

I made a feeding ring for my Eheim with a suction cup and a plastic deli container with the bottom cut out. It works but not nearly as elegantly as yours does!

[higorc]

I knew I was missing something! ;)

I could have my parents stop by and fill my ATO, but I'll most likely roll my Brute that I store RO in (it's on wheels) next to the tank and have my AquaLifter pull water from that.

lol what did we do before auto tops off, auto feeders, water change systems, apex controllers and networked web cams on the tank....

Truthfully I think we stressed less in those days, not so much other things to worry about, I'd call a neighbor beforehand tell him pour water in daily to the line on the sump add a pinch of food and thanks

I just use a 5 gallon bucket for top off so that gets me about 3 days any more and I roll out a brute too


Talking about ATO systems...

So before I left, I replaced my 7G RODI w/Kalkwasser for a 30G Brute barrel thinking it should enough water for the 10 days I would be away.

I decided to give it a quick test before I left the house, so I took just enough water from the sump so the ATO would kick-on... Guess what? Good thing I checked because the water created a Siphon and kept going even after the ATO shut the pump off! :headwallblue:

I got chills and stopped the siphoning... It hurts even thinking of the consequences of dumping almost 30G of Kalk fresh water into my 150G (~ total water volume) system!

Needless to say, I put the ATO pump back into the smaller reservoir and set the 35G barrel next to it with a MJ12 and gave instructions to my parents to turn the pump on long enough to fill the smaller reservoir when they came over to check on the tank and feed...

I can honestly say I dodged a "bullet" here... So lesson learned- 35G barrel at the same level as a 40G breeder sump = Siphoning! :debi:

Higor

[NTP66]

Talking about ATO systems...

So before I left, I replaced my 7G RODI w/Kalkwasser for a 30G Brute barrel thinking it should enough water for the 10 days I would be away.

I decided to give it a quick test before I left the house, so I took just enough water from the sump so the ATO would kick-on... Guess what? Good thing I checked because the water created a Siphon and kept going even after the ATO shut the pump off! :headwallblue:

I got chills and stopped the siphoning... It hurts even thinking of the consequences of dumping almost 30G of Kalk fresh water into my 150G (~ total water volume) system!

Needless to say, I put the ATO pump back into the smaller reservoir and set the 35G barrel next to it with a MJ12 and gave instructions to my parents to turn the pump on long enough to fill the smaller reservoir when they came over to check on the tank and feed...

I can honestly say I dodged a "bullet" here... So lesson learned- 35G barrel at the same level as a 40G breeder sump = Siphoning! :debi:

Higor

I thought about leaving just enough RO water in the Brute to fill the ATO, running an MJ1200 from it to the ATO, and just having my dad turn on the pump to refill it, but I think it might be safer to simply let the AquaLifter take care of it. I do plan on T'ing the pump's output and running 36" of line to prevent any siphoning, and of course, testing this out beforehand.

[Esage]

One thing you missed that is often overlooked until it happens is cleaning (vinegar) your ATO float switch. If it sticks on or off that can be an issue. Mine stuck off once early in the morning and when I got home from work the return pump was almost sucking air. If I had been gone for 2+ days the return pump could have died and who knows what else. Sticking OFF is not something ppl generally think about.

I recently had this happen to me.

[higorc]

Hello all!!!

Just got back from a 10 day vacation and am happy to say the tank survived!!! WOOHOO!!! :fun2:

Thanks for all the "heads up". I would probably have forgotten somthing if it wasn't for you guys...

One think that almost got me was wanting to leave 30G of ATO w/ Kalkwasser as a bigger reservoir... 30G reservoir + 40G breeder sump (
at same floor level) = Siphoning!!!!

It's awesome how much the corals grow when u don't see it for 10 days! :hmm5:


Just a couple of pics to celebrate- Don't mind the little Cyano on the sand I have been fighting since the upgrade a month and half ago... :hmm4:

<a href="http://s87.photobucket.com/user/higorc/media/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo4_zpse9547932.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k141/higorc/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo4_zpse9547932.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo photo4_zpse9547932.jpg"/></a>


http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k141/higorc/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo3_zpse387981e.jpg (http://s87.photobucket.com/user/higorc/media/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo3_zpse387981e.jpg.html)



http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k141/higorc/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo2_zps545d0e10.jpg (http://s87.photobucket.com/user/higorc/media/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo2_zps545d0e10.jpg.html)


http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k141/higorc/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo1_zps33118844.jpg (http://s87.photobucket.com/user/higorc/media/120G%20Mixed%20Reef%20Journal/photo1_zps33118844.jpg.html)


Higor

[dkeller_nc]

By the way - it's possible to set up an ATO reservoir so that it can't siphon, no matter how large it is or what the water level in the container. There are two requirements - the feed tube to the sump must be above the highest water level (so there's an "air break" where the water enters the sump), and the highest water level in the ATO reservoir must either be below the height of the air break in the sump (such as if the ATO is in the basement), or you must install a gravity-drain feed to sump such that there's a t-fitting with an air break above the highest level of the ATO reservoir.

Both of these installation configurations will ensure that a siphon can't start regardless, and will work if your ATO is a simple float switch that controls power to an ATO pump. Another way to do it, though, is to have the ATO float switch control both the ATO pump and a normally-closed electric valve in the ATO line. So long as the valve seals properly, it will prevent auto-siphoning of the contents of the ATO reservoir into the sump, regardless of where that ATO reservoir is placed.

[higorc]

duplicate...

[higorc]

I tried a couple of different ways. But no matter what I did, if the water in the reservoir was higher than the water level in the sump (and both were on ground level) it would siphon.

I even had the ATO feed tube looping almost 2 feet above the sump and it would still siphon until both the reservoir and sump water level were the same.

I will play with it a little more, but I really don’t trust any kind of “check valves”. I have heard too many stories of them falling. I wouldn’t even put them on my return lines and depend on them to keep the sump from overflowing when the return pump is shut off…

Thanks for the tips though, I will be sure to try the out :fun4:

Higor