aquamedic temperature controller?

whatcaneyedo · 02/24/2007, 12:36 AM

I did a few searchs of this site to see if anyone had posted some information on the Aquamedic Biotherm Controller & Heater and couldnt really find anything.

So I thought I'd ask. Most people seem to agree that plain heaters are not reliable enough on their own and recommend running a controller with them. Aquamedic makes such a controller and offers a heater to go with it all for a very reasonable price. The controller looks like it functions like any other and the heater is made with a titanium sleeve rather than glass or cheep plastic so it looks nice and sturdy (I've shattered 2 glass heaters).

Has anyone had any experiance with this (these) products? I'm thinking about buying one but I'd like to get a few other opinions first.

just dave · 02/28/2007, 03:06 AM

I have a number of them in use and so far they have been fine BUT it seems they have changed the controller and the change is not for the better. The controllers do not have a built in battery so should you have a power outage the unit will revert back to the factory preset. This was OK as the preset was 78 degrees F but the newer controllers have a preset of 89 degrees so should you have a power interruption the unit will reset itself to 89 and that's not acceptable.

ColinPopcorn · 02/28/2007, 05:37 AM

I came home one day to find that my Aquamedic Controller had magically reset itself to 115F. Luckilly, the heaters were set @ 82, and that's as high as the temp got.

It was a nasty surprise, but with one of the two levels of protection working properly, the tank was fine.

just dave · 02/28/2007, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by ColinPopcorn
I came home one day to find that my Aquamedic Controller had magically reset itself to 115F. Luckilly, the heaters were set @ 82, and that's as high as the temp got.

It was a nasty surprise, but with one of the two levels of protection working properly, the tank was fine.

They are susceptible to interference from electronic ballasts.

ColinPopcorn · 02/28/2007, 10:37 AM

That's pretty interesting. The controller is within a few meters of 3 electronic ballasts.

pjf · 03/02/2007, 06:56 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by just dave
They are susceptible to interference from electronic ballasts.

Just Dave,

How did you find out that they are susceptible to interference from electronic ballasts?

Thanks!

just dave · 03/02/2007, 08:26 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by pjf
Just Dave,

How did you find out that they are susceptible to interference from electronic ballasts?

Thanks!

I have nine of them in use and two of them were on systems that employed electronic MH ballasts. The others where on systems that used a variety of other types of lights including MH with magnetic ballasts. The two systems with the electronic ballasts kept experiencing random resets on the temp. control units.

02/24/2007, 12:36 AM	#1
whatcaneyedo Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Prince George, BC, Canada Posts: 729	aquamedic temperature controller? I did a few searchs of this site to see if anyone had posted some information on the Aquamedic Biotherm Controller & Heater and couldnt really find anything. So I thought I'd ask. Most people seem to agree that plain heaters are not reliable enough on their own and recommend running a controller with them. Aquamedic makes such a controller and offers a heater to go with it all for a very reasonable price. The controller looks like it functions like any other and the heater is made with a titanium sleeve rather than glass or cheep plastic so it looks nice and sturdy (I've shattered 2 glass heaters). Has anyone had any experiance with this (these) products? I'm thinking about buying one but I'd like to get a few other opinions first. __________________ 5'x3'x2' custom in-wall, LumenMax MH lighting, closed loop OM 4-Way, PM Bullet 3, PM 622 Ca Reactor, Apex, Tunzes, Reeflo Dart and Hammerhead. Current Tank Info: 225gal mixed predatory reef

02/28/2007, 05:37 AM	#3
ColinPopcorn Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Nova Scotia, Canada Posts: 152	I came home one day to find that my Aquamedic Controller had magically reset itself to 115F. Luckilly, the heaters were set @ 82, and that's as high as the temp got. It was a nasty surprise, but with one of the two levels of protection working properly, the tank was fine. __________________ Did I say that, or just think ? Current Tank Info: 24g JBJ Nano Cube

02/28/2007, 10:37 AM	#5
ColinPopcorn Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Nova Scotia, Canada Posts: 152	That's pretty interesting. The controller is within a few meters of 3 electronic ballasts. __________________ Did I say that, or just think ? Current Tank Info: 24g JBJ Nano Cube

02/28/2007, 03:06 AM	#2
just dave 11th in '11 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Cordova, TN Posts: 4,394	I have a number of them in use and so far they have been fine BUT it seems they have changed the controller and the change is not for the better. The controllers do not have a built in battery so should you have a power outage the unit will revert back to the factory preset. This was OK as the preset was 78 degrees F but the newer controllers have a preset of 89 degrees so should you have a power interruption the unit will reset itself to 89 and that's not acceptable.