Titus Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 I received my AutoAqua Smart ATO 3 days ago. I have posted my review on a few sites, but just realized it really belongs here, as it is a very attractive option for Nano tanks. First things first, I opened it up to take a look at it (Quarter added for size reference). It took me about 30 seconds to test assemble it without ever looking at the included instruction book (once again, Quarter added for size reference). About 60 seconds after that, I had it the pump dropped in to a 5 gallon water jug, the fill line clamped to the edge of the tank, sensor in place, and plugged it all in. I was quickly greeted by flashing lights and load continues beeps. After about 10 minutes of messing with it and reading the directions, I realized the sensor needs to go through clear glass and the back of my JBJ RL30 has black vinyl applied to it. DOH! I cut a section of the vinyl away and it started working perfectly. What I like: Super simple to set up. Would have gone from box to running in under 2 minutes if I hadn't have forgotten about cutting out the vinyl on the back of the tank. Pump size- The little pump fits easily in the neck of a water jug. No wires running into the tank. Everything needed is included. Smart technology- The micorprocessor stores info for "pump on period" for the last 3 fills and time since last fill. It uses this info to trigger alarms and shutoffs if it thinks it has been pumping for too long (because of a failed sensor, failed pump, or empty reservoir), or it has been too long since it last triggered (because of failed sensor). What I don't like: During initialization, the sensor needs to be above the water line. This means that when the power goes out and back on, it will fail to initialize on restart and will beep until evaporation drops the water level low enough for the initialization to complete. Not a big deal, but it means I will be woken by its error beeping if the power pops off and back on in the middle of the night. Water pump rate- it pumps water a little faster than my Tunze ATO, and a lot faster than the aqua-lifter I have used on another tank. I don't know for sure but think that the high pump rate would be a little too much on a small Pico tank where this system otherwise has the opportunity to really shine. I would set it up on my Fluval Spec V to test, but I don't think the sensor will work on the frosted class. Final Thought- So far I love it... I will try and come back with follow-up opinions after it has been in use for a while. Link to comment
ner'T' Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 Cool, thanks for review. My Tunze pumps way too fast also, try restricting the tubing to slow it down. Link to comment
Sunar357 Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 Nice review! It looks cool. Link to comment
Titus Posted December 5, 2013 Author Share Posted December 5, 2013 Cool, thanks for review. My Tunze pumps way too fast also, try restricting the tubing to slow it down. Thanks... And I am starting to think that it might be just fine for a a pico. It seems that the pump has the ability to stay on for a shorter interval than the Tunze. I know from experience that the my RL30 evaporates at a rate of 36-48 oz (3-4 SOLO cups) every 24 hrs. I have noticed that the Autoaqua is coming on about once an hour. So that means it is adding no more than 2 oz at a time. Link to comment
appak Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 awesome, was looking at this... thanks for the write up! Link to comment
Rollermonkey Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 Very interesting... Is the sensor is mounted outside the tank, or is it inside and held in place by magnetic force like an MP10? Link to comment
Eisernes Posted December 6, 2013 Share Posted December 6, 2013 How long is the cord going from the sensor to the pump? Link to comment
Titus Posted December 6, 2013 Author Share Posted December 6, 2013 Very interesting... Is the sensor is mounted outside the tank, or is it inside and held in place by magnetic force like an MP10? It is like the Vortech in that the sensor has a dry side and a wet side. The Dry side contains the sensor, brain, connectors, and indicator lights. The wet side is a donuts shaped magnet with a piece of glass in the middle that the sensor points to. How long is the cord going from the sensor to the pump? Both the cord from the sensor to the pump and the water hose are about 6 feet long. Link to comment
Titus Posted December 8, 2013 Author Share Posted December 8, 2013 I accidentally triggered one of the systems fail safe errors today. My jug of RODI water was getting low, so I removed the pump from the jug and took the jug into the other room to refill. When I got back, the alarm was sounding. It appears that the AutoAqua tried to top off my tank in the 5 minutes I was out of the room. It recognized that it was taking too long to top off, so it turned off the pump and sounded the alarm. Based on the long fill time, the AutoAqua knew that one of several things happened: 1) I was out of water, 2) the pump had failed, or 3) the sensor was not recognizing that the water level had risen. It doesn't know which specific condition happened, but it doesn't really matter. It shut the pump off so it won't burn out (if it is running dry), which also stops it from adding water so it won't over-fill (in case the sensor failed), and regardless, the alarm gets my attention so I can address the issue. Link to comment
appak Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 how close to the top of the tank does the sensor let you get? ideally i keep mine filled to just over the bottom of the rim, i guess that won't be possible without some creative cutting though. how far down the sensor is the "water line", and what's the diameter of the sensor side of the unit? Link to comment
Titus Posted December 12, 2013 Author Share Posted December 12, 2013 how close to the top of the tank does the sensor let you get? ideally i keep mine filled to just over the bottom of the rim, i guess that won't be possible without some creative cutting though. how far down the sensor is the "water line", and what's the diameter of the sensor side of the unit? Sorry appak... been out of town so was unable to measure until this morning. The sensor is about 1 1/2 inches around, and it keeps the the water line pretty much in the middle of the sensor. That would mean the highest you could make your water line will be about 3/4" below the any rim/trim that stops the sensor from sitting any higher. Link to comment
Ruester007 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Thanks for posting. I have been eyeing this ATO. Link to comment
broodc2 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Do you think there would be a need to remove the wet side to clean it? Is it possible for algae to build up and prohibit the sensor from getting through the glass/acrylic? Or is the magnet and seal strong enough that nothing should get in there? Link to comment
Titus Posted December 12, 2013 Author Share Posted December 12, 2013 Do you think there would be a need to remove the wet side to clean it? Is it possible for algae to build up and prohibit the sensor from getting through the glass/acrylic? Or is the magnet and seal strong enough that nothing should get in there? The instructions recommend removing and cleaning the sensor every 6 months. I don't think any algae will grow between the sensor pieces. Link to comment
appak Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Sorry appak... been out of town so was unable to measure until this morning. The sensor is about 1 1/2 inches around, and it keeps the the water line pretty much in the middle of the sensor. That would mean the highest you could make your water line will be about 3/4" below the any rim/trim that stops the sensor from sitting any higher. thanks, that is good to know! time to measure stuff and prepare some implements of destruction... Link to comment
Snowgrrl83 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 This is on my list of things to buy Thanks for the review! Link to comment
Mr. Microscope Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Thank you for the review. This thing has been on my mind for a while now. Link to comment
chicagoreef Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Thanks for the review! Why did you pick this one vs other options? I think you mentioned you also use a tunze ato Link to comment
Titus Posted December 12, 2013 Author Share Posted December 12, 2013 Thanks for the review! Why did you pick this one vs other options? I think you mentioned you also use a tunze ato I have an 8' in wall tank that I run the Tunze Osmolator on and I had a 20g tank w/sump that I ran an Aquahub DIY ATO with an aqualifter. The AutoAqua Smart ATO is for my JBJ RL30. I love the tank, but I hate the look of the stuff sticking out of the back area and all the wires going in to the tank. For that reason I was not interested in going with something like the Aquahub that would have an ugly sensor stick hanging off the back rim. I considered the Tunze Nano, but didn't like that it had no fail-safe functionality built in. I considered the Tunze Osmolator, but while I have been pretty happy with the one I have, it has never seemed worth the money to me. I settled on the Smart in the end because it was a bit cheaper than the Tunze and some of the other top of the line ones I considered, it has fail-safe functionality, it doesn't have an ugly sensor hanger, and there is no wire going into the tank. So far after 10 days of use, I am happy with my decision and like it more that the Tunze and the Aquahub. Link to comment
chicagoreef Posted December 13, 2013 Share Posted December 13, 2013 Thanks! I will strongly consider this ato based on your review. Link to comment
Titus Posted December 13, 2013 Author Share Posted December 13, 2013 I am really glad everyone is appreciating my review. I know it is always frustrating when you can't find any first hand experiences of a product you are considering, so given how new this product is, I wanted to share my experience with as many as i can. Link to comment
appak Posted December 17, 2013 Share Posted December 17, 2013 ordered one from BRS... now I wait for them to ship. goooo Canada! thanks again for doing the write-up! Link to comment
Titus Posted December 17, 2013 Author Share Posted December 17, 2013 ordered one from BRS... now I wait for them to ship. goooo Canada! thanks again for doing the write-up! YW.. I hope you like yours as much as I do. Link to comment
broodc2 Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I've had my Smart ATO running now for about 2 weeks. So far I love it. Everyone else has covered the great things about it. Small footprint, easy to setup, comes with everything you need, no moving parts to break, etc. But in the last two weeks there have been two incidents that have occurred that are making me rethink my purchase. On two occasions, a dwarf cerith has found its way onto/into the wet side lense and stayed there which made the sensor think the water level was still OK. On one occasion I was away from home and had to explain to our house sitter what to do. The second time I discovered the snail in the sensor when the water level dropped a good inch below the sensor. So I either need to find a way to take out all the dwarf ceriths, or come up with a different solution. I have an AIO and it's practically impossible to keep all of those little guys from making it to the back chambers. Two times in two weeks makes me nervous. I love the top off system and I guess there really isn't anything wrong with the unit itself. But this ATO will be popular with folks running small tanks. And it's these tanks (I think) that you'll find dwarf ceriths as part if the CUC. I'd love to keep running this thing but the snail issue is really concerning. There would be no way for the sensor to realize the water level is too low if a little guy decides to stay there for a day. Has this happened to anyone else? Anyone have suggestions to snail proof the wet side? Link to comment
appak Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 well, i got mine. so far i love it. my only gripe is that the black plastic clamp thing is a piece of crap, I broke it in about 7 seconds flat. zip ties to the rescue! as to the snails: maybe something they can't/won't slime over? spike strips? sandpaper? :/ Link to comment
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