Apex Controller

[SanmanReefer]

Hey guys, I finally decided on a 110 reef ready tank that I got for a very good deal. Its an Aqua Vim bowfront (picking it up Friday) Its a brand new tank with stand and canopy. Sump is on the way along with the skimmer. Ive been thinking about an Aqua Controller and im inclined to go with the Apex. Id like the option to control lights, ATO, check PH, temperature, etc.. Anyone here has one, and what kind of poweheads can I use besides Vortech? Its gonna be a FOWLR tank and I can justify the cost of the Vortechs. I heard that the Koralias or Tunze work with the Apex, any thoughts? Thanks

 

[thirty5]

Any powerhead will work, to actually control the Vortechs you need a special controller add-on. For the others if you want to make it a wavemaker the controller will do it all for you. But Anything that you plug into it will work. For light to actually control them and not just on and off you need an add-on.

 

[ming]

When thirty5 says "control" the vortech or lights, he means to control the speed of the vortech and the dimming capabilities of LED or any dimming light. Otherwise, the simple on and off function will work with any powerhead/light, including vortech/LED.

 

[SanmanReefer]

Thats great. Which powerheads would you reccomend? And as far as the lighting, Ill probably will need just on and off to simulate dusk and dawn. Thanks again thirty5

 

[SanmanReefer]

Ok thats what I was thinking. But will I achieve the same result lets say with Koralias or Tunze powerheads? Im not just looking for powerheads to be turned on and off every few minutes. Just wondering if I would be able to dial them down at will and at night (simlar to the night sleep mode on the Vortech. Thanks

 

[thirty5]

Ok thats what I was thinking. But will I achieve the same result lets say with Koralias or Tunze powerheads? Im not just looking for powerheads to be turned on and off every few minutes. Just wondering if I would be able to dial them down at will and at night (simlar to the night sleep mode on the Vortech. Thanks

No you cannot control them like that with the apex, unless there is something special about the Apex that I am unaware of.

The apex is merely complex timers for ease of explanation and will either turn power on or off to switches.

For control of dimming or dialing down pumps you need special controls. Not sure if you can even do that with the koralias.

 

[Jarrett]

i run 4 koralias in my tank and i have 2 pumps alternate and switch on and off every 5 minutes through my RKL, works just as good as vortechs in my eyes, i have all sps and the flow is great. so for a fowlr i think this is all you would need. besides 4 of my pumps doesn't even equal the cost of one vortech. its a no brainer.

 

[thirty5]

If you are trying to keep it in expensive then you can go with the koralias, but if you want the option of being able to dial down the powerhead then going with the Vortech is the answer.

IMO for a fish only system or even fowlr the Koralias are fine, but they do not compare to a Vortech.

I also went with the Vortech because they take up less room in the tank, and I also have a Rimless and I do not want any wires going over the top fo the glass. If you don't mind the wires, then go with the koralias.

 

[SanmanReefer]

If you are trying to keep it in expensive then you can go with the koralias, but if you want the option of being able to dial down the powerhead then going with the Vortech is the answer.

IMO for a fish only system or even fowlr the Koralias are fine, but they do not compare to a Vortech.

I also went with the Vortech because they take up less room in the tank, and I also have a Rimless and I do not want any wires going over the top fo the glass. If you don't mind the wires, then go with the koralias.

Great, thanks for the info. Which model Koralias should I get? Tank is 48 by 22 by 25 I believe.

 

[thirty5]

I really do not know which you should get. I have an MP40 in my tank, never used the Koralias. Maybe someone else will chime in who use them and can give you some more info.

 

[fishman1069]

For a FOWLR set up of that size, you should be good with 2 koralia 1450s, one on each side of the tank

 

[SanmanReefer]

I really do not know which you should get. I have an MP40 in my tank, never used the Koralias. Maybe someone else will chime in who use them and can give you some more info.

Ok thanks. I had 2 MP10's in my 46 bow and they were awesome. Maybe I'll go with one MP40 for now. I like all the options they have, it's just so expensive man!! I'll see, im buying a controller so might as well go all out. Better to do it right from the beginning.

 

[SanmanReefer]

For a FOWLR set up of that size, you should be good with 2 koralia 1450s, one on each side of the tank

Ok thanks, oh boy you guys are not making it any easier for me. LOL. Decisions, decisions, let's see!

 

[solo]

Hydor the makers of the Korallias make they're own moderately price decent controller for power heads. About 70 bucks check it out.

 

[SanmanReefer]

Hydor the makers of the Korallias make they're own moderately price decent controller for power heads. About 70 bucks check it out.

Im thinking about getting an Apex controller, wouldnt that be redundant? I can use the Koralias with the Apex, right?

 

[thirty5]

He may mean a controller like the vortech where you can dial it up or down. You will still be able to turn them on and off with the apex. Which I would recommend anyway since with a feed cycle you may want them off and turn on at different times.

Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk 2

 

[SanmanReefer]

He may mean a controller like the vortech where you can dial it up or down. You will still be able to turn them on and off with the apex. Which I would recommend anyway since with a feed cycle you may want them off and turn on at different times.

Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk 2

I see. I guess I can turn them off manually during feeding or set up a timer for feeding time if I do it at the same time, does that make sense? Also I like the night mode on the Vortech. How can I simulate that with the Koralias? Turn them off/on for awhile? I guess Vortech is looking pretty good at this point, and If I have the Apex I dont need the wireless models, right?

 

[ecvernon]

I'm not trying to make your decision more difficult but if you are considering purchasing an apex and vortech, don't forget to look into tunzes such as 6055, 6095. They are models that are fully controllable by the apex. All you would need it to purchase a cable that is able to connect to the apex ports. I am currently using to 6095s and I am able to create random flows and use the feed mode functions to stop or slow pumps at specific time periods. I love them I switched from an mp40 and mp10 and the tunzes are dead silent in comparison

 

[ecvernon]

And if you go with apex and vortech you have to purchase the wireless versions of vortechs. Also you have to purchase the apex add on module the wmx to control the vortechs with apex

 

[SanmanReefer]

I'm not trying to make your decision more difficult but if you are considering purchasing an apex and vortech, don't forget to look into tunzes such as 6055, 6095. They are models that are fully controllable by the apex. All you would need it to purchase a cable that is able to connect to the apex ports. I am currently using to 6095s and I am able to create random flows and use the feed mode functions to stop or slow pumps at specific time periods. I love them I switched from an mp40 and mp10 and the tunzes are dead silent in comparison

Thanks, Ill look into those as well. They're probably cheaper as well. Will I still need the cable if I buy the higher end Apex model?