Faulty Marineland Power Equipment?

[Bonsai]

Hi everyone,

 

A quick story. I've ran a couple saltwater tanks at home for about a year now ... everything in those tanks have been great. Healthy, bright, growing etc.

 

About 6 months ago, I set up a Picotope in my office at work. I had major problems with the Picotope and algae, corals not doing well (zoanthids rarely ever opening, losing color, etc). After months of beating my head against the desk trying to figure out what was going on (water parameters always tested great), I finally gave up the Picotope.

 

In it's place, in my office, I set up a BioCube 8G. Now, about 2.5 months into it, I'm seeing similar patterns ... corals losing colors (zoas, ricordea, lps) ... which is crazy! These corals are under the stock 36W of stock PC lighting. How can they possibly be losing color?

 

A couple nights ago, I came into my office to grab something about 9 PM. When I got here, my aquarium lights were on ... which was odd, because they're on a timer. I popped under my desk to take a look, and the timer was set correctly, but the lights were still on.

 

I looked at the top of the timer, and saw a "Timer" vs. "Bypass" switch, which was correctly set to the "Timer" mode ...

 

"Timer" Setting

 

"Bypass" Setting

 

As I toggled the switch, I found out that The timer is wired in REVERSE - and that my lights on my BioCube 8 have most likely been running for 2+ months straight! In order for the Timer to work, I have to set it to the "Bypass" setting.

 

Needless to say, this is the same timer I used for my Picotope lighting ... and yeah, I guess I ran those lights for several months straight without knowing it.

 

If you own a MARINELAND Aquarium Light Timer - Beware!

[Ryan_H]

my buddy got one that was on a 48 hour cycle. his lights would stay on for 24 hours, then off for 24.

[jeremai]

I use the $3 timers from Wal-Mart, no issues at all. Except they tend to lose an hour or so every couple weeks.

[disaster999]

i wouldnt instantly say marineland sucks. a lot of people are using their pumps and heaters on this board with no problems at all.

 

also i think you are the one that probably got the switch backwards. with the switch coving the bypass icon is actually the bypass, and the switch covering the timer icon is the timer function. not the other way around. i had the same timing, worked great

[Militant Jurist]

Now I know this is an odd comparison (to some) but on a firearm, when you have the S exposed, that means that the gun is on Safe. When the S is covered (and the F is exposed), that means it's ready to Fire. Same logic applied here would say that the OP had it right.

 

That or it's one ass-backwards design made by the lowest bidder.

[Ryan_H]

i wouldnt instantly say marineland sucks. a lot of people are using their pumps and heaters on this board with no problems at all.

 

also i think you are the one that probably got the switch backwards. with the switch coving the bypass icon is actually the bypass, and the switch covering the timer icon is the timer function. not the other way around. i had the same timing, worked great

 

actually this is correct. now that i think about it there is nothing wrong with that particular timer. you just have to read the instructions

[disaster999]

*shrugs* maybe marineland has a different logic. i would find the manual and see what it actually saids

[Needreefunds]

Now I know this is an odd comparison (to some) but on a firearm, when you have the S exposed, that means that the gun is on Safe. When the S is covered (and the F is exposed), that means it's ready to Fire. Same logic applied here would say that the OP had it right.

 

That or it's one ass-backwards design made by the lowest bidder.

Meh, dunno for sure, but some things I deal with at work are of the "cover what you want" type ( heater valves, switches etc ).

 

but MJ...perhaps Plaxico could have used that info....

[Militant Jurist]

Haha yeah, true story. Same with an Ohio Police Officer (or Chief) who had an ND that hit him while he was trying to teach a family member about gun safety. Oh the irony...

[Bonsai]

actually this is correct. now that i think about it there is nothing wrong with that particular timer. you just have to read the instructions

 

Yeah, except the instructions say:

 

"Programming is a simple three-step process. Set the current time by rotating the numbered dial until the selection arrow points to the proper number. Set the working time by pressing a grey dial clip for each hour desired for operation -- each clip represents 15 minutes. Then, just set the TIMER ON, plug the light into the timer, and the timer into an electrical outlet."

 

So, they leave "TIMER ON" to be interpreted by the user ... and maybe I did interpret it wrong, but to me, logic says that when you see a photo of a timer, the timer should be activated.

 

Regardless, I called MARINELAND's customer service line and explained the situation, they were going to report it to their engineering team and send out another unit ... so when the new one arrives, I'll test it out and see if this one is indeed wired backward, or if I'm just interpreting it wrong.

 

But for now, I'm just happy that I know what was wrong with my office tanks 24Hrs of light is NOT recommended for a reef.

[disaster999]

ive dealt with the marineland CS and i gotta say they are top notch. ive heard that i cant get a refund on my 50W heater that just assploded for no reason. they would most probably blame it on user error, but i called anyways to try my luck. just chatting with them for 5 mins i was granted a replacement unit. i even requested a stealth heater (i had the deluxe before) and they had no problem with it.