I have a Ghetto little 17 gallon setup that I built back in April. I really wanted to go with the K.I.S.S. philosophy wherever I could.
It's a 17g Display with a 10g DIY sump/fuge. I have a Eshopps Skimmer, a macro chamber with LS and biomedia, a "grow light" and a jebao 500-1,500 GPH power head. I may add a little reactor in the coming months, but am in no hurry.
Power outages, not having a fancy controller, and tank heaters scare me. Years ago I had a heater go bad and fry a tank @ 90 degrees. This past June, a power outage cost me a really nice SPS frag as well as stressing out everything in my tank with a drop to about 74-75 degrees.
I can't really spend $250 on a controller w/o the wifey blowing her top. But a couple little $30-$40 purchases here and there can stay under her radar.
So first, my InkBird Temp Controller.
A basic dual stage temp controller. I keep my heater set at 78, and this controller set to turn the heater off, and a little fan on, if the tank temp ever reaches 80. Plus it has a nice big digital display that's easy to read from across the room, or from the little wifi camera I have spying on my tank when I am not home.
Second, a UPS/Surge Protector.
An uninterrupted power supply is a nice little peace of mind implement for me. I have my Temp controller and return pump in the battery backup spots. If the power went completely out I would have about 45minutes to an hour on the backup. Time enough if need be to bring my spare truck battery ad power-converter inside if need be.
Then finially, my WIFI Powerstrip
This is just a fun little toy. It has 4 outlets that can be programmed on individual timers via an app on my phone. The app also lets me turn stuff on and off anywhere I am with cell reception. I can control my fuge light, skimmer, ATO and my return pump running on it.
All 3 devices were a total cost of $110 off Amazon Prime. It's not an Apex or like reef controller, but really just an emergency fallback system that will hopefully give me enough time to fix an issue before anything dies.
Another thing to consider, is that I have my Wifi router, and camera plugged into an additional UPS. If you lose power without it, Controllers and the like are all for not.
I hope this helps some people and solves issues for others.
It's a 17g Display with a 10g DIY sump/fuge. I have a Eshopps Skimmer, a macro chamber with LS and biomedia, a "grow light" and a jebao 500-1,500 GPH power head. I may add a little reactor in the coming months, but am in no hurry.
Power outages, not having a fancy controller, and tank heaters scare me. Years ago I had a heater go bad and fry a tank @ 90 degrees. This past June, a power outage cost me a really nice SPS frag as well as stressing out everything in my tank with a drop to about 74-75 degrees.
I can't really spend $250 on a controller w/o the wifey blowing her top. But a couple little $30-$40 purchases here and there can stay under her radar.
So first, my InkBird Temp Controller.
A basic dual stage temp controller. I keep my heater set at 78, and this controller set to turn the heater off, and a little fan on, if the tank temp ever reaches 80. Plus it has a nice big digital display that's easy to read from across the room, or from the little wifi camera I have spying on my tank when I am not home.
Second, a UPS/Surge Protector.
An uninterrupted power supply is a nice little peace of mind implement for me. I have my Temp controller and return pump in the battery backup spots. If the power went completely out I would have about 45minutes to an hour on the backup. Time enough if need be to bring my spare truck battery ad power-converter inside if need be.
Then finially, my WIFI Powerstrip
This is just a fun little toy. It has 4 outlets that can be programmed on individual timers via an app on my phone. The app also lets me turn stuff on and off anywhere I am with cell reception. I can control my fuge light, skimmer, ATO and my return pump running on it.
All 3 devices were a total cost of $110 off Amazon Prime. It's not an Apex or like reef controller, but really just an emergency fallback system that will hopefully give me enough time to fix an issue before anything dies.
Another thing to consider, is that I have my Wifi router, and camera plugged into an additional UPS. If you lose power without it, Controllers and the like are all for not.
I hope this helps some people and solves issues for others.
