Innovative Marine Nuvo-Int 50 build

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

What is a collective?
In order for a temperature sensor(Input) on one Control to operate a heater(Output) on a different Control, both devices need to be a member of the same collective. All shared Inputs, Outputs and associated Schedules are configured and managed from a common user interface. A collective may start small--possibly even as a single Control or Wave Engine--and scale to include multiple devices as tank automation needs and wants grow. In addition to sharing resources between Controls, other advantages of a collective include redundant brains and, potentially, redundant power.

Collective requirements
Before attempting to create a collective, review basic requirements:
• You must have command bus cables to connect devices. Typical command bus cables are sold in various lengths up to 15'. If Controls are further apart a data only command bus cable must be used.
• A minimum of one command bus terminator is required. For collectives which will include a XP8 and/or Wave Engine, two are recommended. If purchased as a Pro Pack, two command bus terminators are included.
• Collective members should be powered off while connecting command bus cables and terminators to avoid potential of electrostatic discharge damage.
• If collective includes XP8 and/or Wave Engine, power supply for each XP8/Wave Engine must be plugged in. If not, device will appear to function but outlets and direct drive pump ports will not operate.
• Collectives that do not include XP8 and/or Wave Engine should have only one power adapter plugged in powering all members.
• The ONLY exception to above is IF data only command bus is used. A single Control on each leg of the data only cable must have a power adapter.
• Controls/Wave Engines should be upgraded to current firmware prior to joining the collective.
• Wave Engine V1 and Wave Engine LE can not be the first member joined to the collective.
• Configuration of the first collective member, if exists, will be imported. Subsiquent additions will be wiped.

Creating the collective
From within the Hydros app, click on the three bars in the upper left corner then the + symbol in the top center to show all Controls/Wave Engines.

Click Create New Collective to proceed. Acknowledge minimum collective requirements and continue.

Specify the name of the collective and press Return. Upload Changes to complete.

Click the three bars in the upper left and select DEVICES to join additional members to the collective.

Click the + symbol in the bottom right to add members to the collective. Select the next collective member from the Hydros Device dropdown. Only devices which are not already members of a collective will appear in the dropdown. Wifi Master Priority should be set as Never for Wave Engine V1 and Wave Engine LE. All other devices may use Normal default. If one particular Control/Wave Engine is positioned closer to wifi auto feeders, plugs or strips then it may be configured as Wifi Priority Preferred. Only the Wifi Master will communicate with these devices. Upload Changes to continue.

Repeat device add for all remaining Controls/Wave Engines.

Up Next: MODES and basic collective OPTIONS.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

What are Modes?
A Mode allows you to define preset state of several outputs during an activity rather then having to manually change each when performing that activity. For instance, if you wanted to turn off return pumps, flow pumps and heaters during a water change then you would exclude these outputs from being active in Water Change mode. Hydros includes three pre-configured modes. Normal, Feeding and Water Change. Upon exiting any mode it returns to Normal mode. Normal mode is the only one which can't be renamed or deleted.

Creating a Mode
I'll be using an Icecap battery backup attached to the Wave Engine and a Low Power mode to provide movement and oxygenation of water during power outages. Once Low Power mode is created and defined below collective OPTIONS it is automatically activated if the Wave Engine senses voltage drop from 24v DC line power to 12v battery power. Here I will create the mode. It will be defined below OPTIONS, Flow Pumps will be added and associated with a Schedule later.

Click the three bars in the upper left to expose the dropdown menu and select MODES. The three pre-configured modes are shown. By clicking on any mode, I can edit mode parameters or select which outputs are active during that mode. Basic mode parameters include Input Voltage which is the control voltage sent from another controller or button box to activate the mode, Mode Timeout which is the duration of time the mode will remain active and Exit Delay which specifies how long a mode will be active if triggered by the Mode Control Input defined below collective OPTIONS (explained in next post). Or click the + symbol in the lower right corner to add Low Power mode.

Enter the name of the new mode.

Configure mode parameters. Input Voltage, Mode Timeout and Exit Delay are typically unused with the Icecap batteries and left as default. If any outputs were configured yet there would be a list where I could select which are active in this mode. To preserve battery life, Low Power active outputs should be kept to a minimum pump schedule only.

UPLOAD CHANGES to save. Don't forget to goto the OPTIONS screen and associate the Low Power mode.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Basic collective OPTIONS
Click the three bars in the upper left to expose a dropdown menu and select OPTIONS to configure global collective parameters. Default units of measurement are metric. So these typically need to be changed in addition to setting the correct timezone. Other options frequently modified include Mode Control Input if using a button box from Harry's Aquatics or JB Aquatics LLC, Low Power Mode, Enable Ecotech Pumps and Notification Levels. The Ecotech feature should only be enabled if using non-Mobius Vortech pumps and if the Ecotech RF chip is installed in a collective member Wave Engine. I'll associate my button box to an Input and define the Low Power mode I just created providing additional configuration examples for each later. And my personal preference is to receive push notifications rather than email so I modify the defaults. Review other OPTIONS and set each as desired.

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

On Deck: Inputs, Outputs and Schedules

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Inputs, Outputs and Schedules
Simply put, an Input is something that is measured and can be used to determine the desired state of an Output. An Output is something that is being controlled. There are several built-in recipes to manage various Output device types. These recipes handle most use cases and appeal to the majority of users. If you're doing something advanced that isn't addressed by the built-in recipe, there are Generic and Combiner outputs that may be used. Lastly a Schedule determines when and how an Output, primarily Automatic Water Change, Dosing Pump, Flow Pump or Light operates.

Next Up: Managing the tank. Adding various Inputs, Outputs and Schedules to automate tank functions. The real meat and potatoes!

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Managing the tank: ATO
Automatic Top Off is one of many built-in recipes. It requires a sense port for a water level sensor and--depending on what you're using to top off--a drive port or XP8 managed 110v outlet. The Hydros ATO kit comes with the sensor, pump, tubing and clip. Alternatively a sensor and any small pump can be used. IF using an existing Auto Aqua, Tunze or other ATO with its own sensor and pump then configure as a Constant output. For asthetics, the default Constant icon can be changed to an ATO icon.

Adding Level Input
Click the three bars in the upper left to view the dropdown menu and select INPUTS. All existing Inputs will be listed. Click on the Input to modify existing configuration. Since none exist yet, just click the + symbol in the bottom right to add.

Enter the name of the Input and press return.

Select the Type, Mode and Port. This reflects a typical configuration used with the Hydros ATO kit. Notification is None. I don't need to know when my ATO sensor changes state. Only when there is an actual problem with the tank. I often see people enabling notifications for EVERYTHING and setting an ELEVATED notification level. This is simply not necessary!

Adding Pump Output
Click the three bars in the upper left again to view the dropdown menu and select OUTPUTS. All existing Inputs will be listed. Click on the Output to modify existing configuration. Since none exist yet, just click the + symbol in the bottom right to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

Select the Type, Level Input and Output Device at a minimum. Active In Modes and Advanced Settings are also often modified. Advanced Settings are used to prevent the pump from short cycling on and off frequently and, more importantly, prevent it from running too long if there is a problem. Advanced settings are relative to your tank and may require some tweaking to get correct. Check out [Cvtv] LIVE Product Workshop - Auto Top Off (ATO) Systems 2.0 for some tips and tricks. This reflects a typical configuration used with the Hydros ATO kit.

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Managing the tank: Heater
Heater is another of several built-in recipes. It requires a sense port for a temperature sensor, an optional sense port for a secondary temperature sensor and managed 110v outlet. A XP8 is recommended but wifi plug or strip may also be used. The risk of a heater remaining on during a wifi disconnect exists when using wifi plugs or strips. The risk can be mitigated by using an Inkbird, Ranco or heater with built-in thermostat. It is generally a good idea to use these backups regardless of XP8, wifi plug or wifi strip. IF using ONLY an Inkbird, Ranco or heater with built-in thermostat WITHOUT a Hydros temperature sensor, configure as a Constant output. For asthetics, the default Constant icon can be changed to a Heater icon.

Adding Temperature Input
Click the three bars in the upper left to view the dropdown and select INPUTS. Click the + symbol on the bottom to add a new Input. Enter the name of the Input and press return.

Select the Type, Mode and Port at a minimum. Safe Range, Graph Limit and Notification Level are recommended. Safe Range should be slightly above and below desired tank temperatures. If outside this range, the tile will display as red and email, push or audible alarm sent based on Notification Level. Offset may be configured to calibrate multiple sensors or Inkbirds/Rancos to the same temperature.

Adding Heater Output
Click the three bars in the upper left again to view the dropdown menu and select OUTPUTS. All existing Inputs will be listed. Click the + symbol in the bottom right to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

Select the Type, Turn On, Turn Off, Input 1 and Output Device at a minimum. Users moving from a different brand controller may find Turn On and Turn Off operate slightly different than they are used to. It is perfectly normal for the output to be on or off if between the range depending on if temperature is rising or falling. The output will activate when temperature is below Turn On, remain on until temperature exceeds Turn Off, remain off until temperature drops below Turn On again and repeat.

Input 2, Power Safe Range, If Input Unavailable, Active In Modes and Advanced Settings are also often modified. Input 2 is a backup temperature sensor. Hydros will power the heater based on the higher temperature reading AND alert if sensor deltas vary by too much. Power Safe Range will cause the tile to display as red if outside the range and email or push sent based on Notification Level. This will only appear if the Output Device supports power monitoring. Input Unavailable should ONLY be on if a secondary Inkbird, Ranco or other backup thermostat is available. Advanced Settings prevent the heater from turning on and off frequently and, more importantly, prevent it from running too long if there is a problem. Advanced settings are relative to your tank and may require some tweaking to get correct. Check out [Cvtv] LIVE Product Workshop - Heaters & Hydros for more tips and tricks.

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Managing the tank: Return Pump
There's a built-in recipe for Return Pump too. Simply go back to the Outputs screen and click the + symbol in the bottom left to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

At a minimum Type and Output Device are required. Leak Input and Active In Modes are also frequently modified. If using a leak input, it must first be added before configuring the pump. [CVtv] LIVE Product Workshop -- Return Pumps & Hydros.

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

Managing the tank: Return Pump (Advanced)
Sometimes the built-in recipes may not meet advanced user needs. For instance, if you want to use both a leak sensor to shutoff the return in an emergency AND a low level water sensor to prevent the pump from running dry. This is a perfect use case for Generic outputs. To create, goto the Outputs screen and click the + symbol in the bottom left to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

Select the Type, Input Count, Inputs, Combiner Mode and Output Device at a minimum. Be careful not to leave an Input as Unused as that will be interpreted as always on. Active In Modes and Advanced Settings are also often modified. The Minimum Off Time below Advanced Settings prevents the pump from frequently going off and on and gives an opportunity to correct sump level.

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

Managing the tank: Return Pump (Advanced Flow Pump Type)
I'm going off-script with a bit of an unusual configuration because I have a Reef Octo VarioS 4 return pump AND available direct drive port on the Wave Engine. The Wave Engine powers and controls the pump eliminating the native controller and power supply. It's not a typical use of the Wave Engine but I have the available Wave Engine port and taking advantage of it. The Wave Engine is more frequently used with Icecap, Maxspect or Reef Octo to run various different patterns throughout the day or in different modes.

Here's a screenshot of my return pump. This alone is not sufficient to run the pump however. I also need to create a Schedule instructing the pump how and when to run.

Click the three bars in the upper left again and select SCHEDULES from the dropdown. All existing Schedules will be listed. Click on any Schedule to view and edit. Or since there are no Schedules presently configured, click the + symbol in the bottom right to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

This is a pretty vanilla schedule running the same Constant pattern all the time except in Low Power and Water Change mode. Multiple schedules could exist but not really applicable to return pumps.

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Managing the tank: Constants
When migrating to Hydros control, it often isn't done in a single action or even at all for a subset of devices. There are several quality manufacturers and products that are app controlled or may only require cursory controls or just a power outlet. These include Ecotech Marine lights and pumps, Focustronic or Kamoer testers, Red Sea fleece roller or lights, etc, etc. If connected to a XP8, wifi plug or wifi strip, these are typically defined as Constant outputs with the bulk of other actions performed from the app.

Go to the Outputs screen and click the + symbol in the bottom left to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

At a minimum, Type and Output Device need to be defined. Active In Modes is also often modified. The icon associated with the output can be changed by clicking on the pencil on the top left.

Here the output can be renamed and icon changed to reflect the actual function. Click on the existing symbol to change.

Select the new symbol and press OK. UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Managing the tank: Flow Pumps
Maintaining adaquate flow is important to caring for fish and coral. It facilitates feeding, waste/detritis removal, oxygenation of water among many other things. The Wave Engine allows Hydros to power an control several flow pumps in the CoralVue family eliminating both the native controller and power brick. These include Icecap Gyre, Maxspect Gyre, Reef Octo Octo Pulse and some Reef Octo VarioS pumps. By adding the Ecotech Marine RF chip, you can also control (though not power) non-Mobius Vortech pumps. And using either the Wave Engine (not LE) or X4 0-10v outputs many other brands of pumps may also be controlled. However anything controlled via 0-10v will still require its own power source either XP8, wifi plug, wifi strip or standalone power strip.

Adding Flow Pump Output
Click the three bars in the upper left to view the dropdown and select OUTPUTS. Click the + symbol on the bottom to add a new Output. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

At a minimum Type, Pump Model, Speed Limit and Output Device are required. Speed Limit is the master minimum and maximum allowed speeds of the pump. When configuring schedules later, the percentage defined in the schedule is relative to these percentages. 1% of schedule would equate to minimum here and 100% of schedule is maximum here. Some Icecap and Maxspect Gyres have been wired differently over time causing the motor functions to vary slightly and run reverse of expected so if you experience low flow later after creating schedules AND have confirmed proper blade alignment, come back and enable the Invert Rotation feature. Some Flow Pattern schedules are capable of running in reverse. If Reverse is desired, it must be enabled both below the Flow Pump and below the schedule. Any or all of the remaining options are often configured. Multiple pump outputs may be created and later associated with schedule(s).

Adding Flow Pattern Schedules
Simply creating the pump output is not sufficient to make the pump operate. The pump must also be associated with a schedule or multiple schedules. Multiple schedules are often used to vary flow throughout the day or reduce flow in different modes. If no schedules are active for a given mode then the pump defaults to off. Flow Patterns are subjective and vary by user desires, variety of corals being kept, rockscape and dimensions of the tank. A description of available patterns and what they do may be found here.

I'm planning on using four basic schedules:
• Normal WAVOSL: My regular flow pattern Ocean Swell which runs in Normal mode if nothing else is running.
• Hurricane WAVSIN: A CoralVue favorite. A high energy Sine (or Square) pattern repetatitively run for five minutes at the top of the hour. Timing is determined by Start Time, Run Time, Run Count and Run Interval below Advanced Settings.
• Feed WAVFED: Random pattern running at a significantly reduced speed active only in Feeding mode.
• Low Power WAVLOW: Constant pattern run by a single pump maintaining minimal flow to oxygenate the tank during power outages. Activated when Hydros recognizes prime power loss and enters Low Power mode previously configured in Creating a Mode

For each schedule, Type, Pattern, Speed and Pump Count must be configured at a minimum. Then for each pump a previously configured Flow Pump must be selected from the dropdown and Position need to be configured. Other parameters may be configured as desired. Flow Patterns vary by what is kept in the tank and personal preference. Try various patterns and find what you like better. Screenshots of each of my patterns are included below for reference. I'll create another post later depicting how to use virtual Generic and Combiner outputs to make pumps behave the same when activated by either changing to Feed mode or activating auto feeder.

Normal Pattern (WAVOSL)

Hurricane Pattern (WAVSIN)

Feed Pattern (WAVFED)

Low Power Pattern (WAVLOW)

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Modes: Revisiting Low Power mode
I previously created a Low Power mode to provide movement and oxygenation of water during power outages. During the Flow Pump configuration I made the first Output/Schedule association with this mode. A review of the Low Power mode shows which Outputs will be active. Notice only the WAVLOW schedule is active. The bare minimum Outputs to maintain life should be active in this mode to prolong battery life.

 

[thom_smith]

Hydros 101

Managing the tank: WiFi Fish Feeder
The Hydros feeder allows you to automatically feed flake or pellet foods per a schedule. It's one of the more popular Hydros starter accessories and maybe one of the more complex to configure because there are three configuration components. A constant power output, the wifi association and feeder outputs must be configured.

Adding Power Output
In order to connect to wifi and activate the feeder, you must first configure a Constant power output. The feeder includes an approximately 2M long USB power cable and USB power plug. These may be plugged directly into the USB ports on managed wifi power strips, a XP8 or a simple non-Hydros power strip using the included wifi power plug.

Go to the Outputs screen and click the + symbol in the bottom left to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

At a minimum, Type and Output Device need to be defined. Active In Modes is also often modified. Note: If using the USB ports on a Hydros wifi strip, all four ports are associated with port 5 (stripname-5).

Making the WiFi association
Before attempting the wifi association, please review previously mentioned wifi requirements. The wifi feeder, plugs and power strips communicate differently than do Controls/Wave Engines so extra attention must be paid to potential guest network and client isolation features. In order to associate and function, the wifi feeder must be allowed to communicate locally with other Hydros controls.

Click the three bars in the upper left to view the dropdown menu and select WIFI DEVICES.

All existing devices will be listed. Click on the device to modify existing configuration. Since none exist yet, just click the + symbol in the bottom right to add. Enter the name of the feeder wifi and press return. Click on the WiFi Feeder and follow the guided prompts to add the device.

Unplug the feeder for approximately 15 seconds, plug it back in and press Continue.

Press and hold the reset button on the top of the feeder until the led starts rapidly flashing blue then press Continue.

The Control/Wave Engine or collective master Control/Wave Engine, if multiple Controls are connected as a collective, will scan for and associate the new feeder. This may take up to two minutes to complete. Once discovered, the Control will share wifi credentials with the wifi feeder to complete configuration. When complete, press Continue to return to thr WIFI DEVICES page.

Adding Feeder Output
Click on the three bars in the upper left and select OUTPUTS from the dropdown. From the Outputs screen click the + symbol in the bottom left to add. Enter the name of the Output and press return.

At a minimum, Type and Output Device need to be defined. First Feeding, Feeding Interval, Number of Feedings, Rotations per Feeding anf Active In Modes is also often modified. The Feeding Interval is the duration of time between feedings IF Number of Feedings is greater than 1. My example feeds at 2:00pm and 7:00pm. The Active in Modes example allows the feeder to activate per schedule or manually in Feeding and Normal modes. Note: This DOES NOT activate Feeding mode when the feeder is activated. In my next post I will share virtual Output configurations which make return and flow pumps behave the same when Feeding mode is activated OR the auto feeder is activated (manually or per schedule).

UPLOAD CHANGES to push to cloud and collective members.

 

[thom_smith]

Tank Update & Second Water Change
Break from the Hydros tutorials for a bit. Tank has been up seven weeks with livestock for five weeks. Everything doing relatively well. Parameters tested 2x weekly. Ammonia and nitrites routinely zero. Nitrates 10-20 range. Gave them Hanna nitrite, nitrate and phisphate testers. Didn't use nitrite because reagent packets were expired. Nitrate came out 16.2ppm and first time phosphate test was 0.10ppm. These were pre water change. Changed 15 gallons of probably about 55 gallons total volume after factoring displacement of sand and rock. Didn't test afterwards because I was troubleshooting flakey pump, mounting starboard and installing equipment. Tank is looking pretty good. Sand bed hadn't been vacuumed since starting tank and was still near pristine. Rock is starting to enter ugly stage. Could have used a turkey baster to try to blow it off during water change but didn't have one. Some algae had formed on glass because they were away for a few days. Probably stemming off a lot of algae growth by having Ecotech light in acclimation mode. Just about time to start thinking about cleanup crew. A few tank shots. Actually the first decent shots we have got because we finaĺly picked up a filter.

 

[thom_smith]

Installation Progressing. Finally getting around to starboard and cleaning up stand.
Only con of the Innovative Marine APS stand I have noticed so far is flimsey frosted acrylic inserts on front and sides that prevents mounting equipment inside the stand. I was turned onto 3d printed mounts and starboard to @reefiniteasy. Fragtags @JosephRyan printed the mounts for me. Just had to order an extra set of tension cam locks from Innovative Marine. The cam locks insert right into the 3d printed mounts. Then starboard. Starboard in 1/2" thickness is a little pricey but significant advantage is that it won't get mildewy in the high humidity environment potential splash zone below the tank. And it cuts as easily as plywood. I'd encourage ordering correct custom size to minimize cost but had to trim one side myself because it was a tight fit between plumbing and fleece filter. Boards are all trimmed and installed. Didn't get to mounting controller as I was busy with other things today.

 

[thom_smith]

Have emailed Trigger Systems a couple times and engaged the retailer I purchased from regarding the motor. Somewhat disappointed with Trigger's slow response after having spent a small fortune on the Platinum sump.

Trigger Systems V2 motor going in
Trigger gave me a good break on the Platinum Motor Controller V2 because of the misunderstanding during the recent purchase. I hadn't used it yet until today but believe it will be a good improvement over the V1 because even in my short time of use I noticed the float switches gumming up and sticking a bit. The newer motor is reportedly more powerful too. And the motor stuck and fleece level 0-10v notifications to Hydros are nice to have too.

Since I had to virtually disassemble to fleece filter anway to get the starboard mounted on the left side of the stand I figured now was as good a time as any to install the new motor. Snapped a couple pictures before disassembling as a reminder. Worst part of disassembly was probably fleece chamber float switches. They had to be removed from the mount, unscrew a small cable guide and individually fished through a small opening on the opposite side. Took forever after to unpack the V2 motor as it was packaged well enough to survive armageddon. Then found the Trigger manual did an excellent job describing configuration and function of the upgraded motor but was a little lacking on the physical installation. Recalled seeing a podcast from Derrick Picker of the Reef & Reptile Automation Facebook group. Followed the video and worked my way through the configuration and installation. Plan on eventually controlling via Hydros similar to my own Klir but for the time being used the Trigger optical sensors. Ended up using all three sensors with fleece being on if sensor 1 or sensor 2 are wet and off if sensor 3 is wet. Sensor 1 and sensor 2 were placed inside the fleece chamber. Sensor 3 was placed elsewhere in the sump as a high level sensor to prevent fleece from advancing if sump is high. The only real tricks to the installation were keeping track of which sensors were which as they are not permanently connected to the motor and remembering to mount them with the sensor point facing upward. Note that they also are not your typical 3.5mm stereo connectors but rather something slightly smaller and shorter in length.

 

[thom_smith]

Skimmer going in
Final activity of the day was getting the skimmer installed. Ultimately devided on the Reef Octo Elite 150SSS. Skimmer chamber was a tight fit and was pretty much limited to Bubble Magnus Curve 5 Elite, Nyos Quantum 160 and Reef Octo Elite 150SSS with few other options. My experience with Reef Octo pumps and skimmer swayed me heavily in that direction. The Wave Engine played a role too. They're not the typical Wave Engine use cases but VarioS 2 and VarioS 4 pumps can be powered and controlled by the Wave Engine. So, by using the Wave Engine for my return, skimmer and powerheads I consolidated four native controllers and four power bricks into the Wave Engine with a single power brick and battery Icecap backup to boot. Skimmer is presently in, running with cup drain plug removed and instructions to clean the cup every few days. I'll go back in a week or ten days to properly tune the skimmer after break-in.

Wave Engine isn't the typical use for a skimmer. Also since the skimmer may be a bit oversized, I have good mechanical filtration and not a significant bio load yet I only plan on running for a few hours after feeding. Configuration is below. It is a bit of an advanced setup as I use virtual outputs to make flow pumps and skimmer behave the same whether feeding is triggered from auto feeder or mode. Then I use another virtual trigger timer to only run the skimmer for a few hours. Lastly, a schedule which tells the skimmer how and when to run has a dependency on th trigger timer. Eventually if there is sufficient bio load this triggee will be removed. The virtual outputs identifying various feedings will remain as they are also used to slow powerheads during feeding and then activate a hurricane mode to stir up any detritis and uneaten food. I'll eventually share the virtual outputs, powerhead setup and associated schedules. I have a number of virtual outputs to identify various feedings, run hurricane mode after a feeding and scheduled intervals throughout the day but no overlap scheduled hurricane with as-hoc feeding and a third flow pattern control. For the time being, only sharing those pertinant to the skimmer.



First create the flow pump. Speed Limit is master low and high pump speeds. Speeds setup in the Schedules soon to follow are relative to the master speeds. So in a Schedule 1% would equate to the Min here and 100% would equate to the Max here. Since my desired operation is Constant pattern I am setting a very tight Min and Max. If this were a powerhead the range would be significantly larger to vary flow.

Creathe the virtual outputs to identify various feed methods. Can be auto feeder or actually entering feed mode.

The first is recognizing feed mode. By not using any inputs and making it active only in Feeding mode the output will be active for the Mode Timeout duration specified when creating the mode.

The second recognizes the auto feeder. It is a Combiner type that uses the auto feeder as its sole input. This is a little bit tricky because the feeder only activates for a few seconds so I need to specify a Minimum On Time below Advanced Settings.

Lastly the feed trigger Comviner output ties both of the above together as is active as long as either are active.

The above outputs slow powerheads down during feeding and activate hurricane mode after feeding. However I don't want to do either for several hours after feeding so I create another virtual output to govern the skimmer. The skimmer will go on at feeding--auto feeder or mode--as long as the return pump (Input 2) is also running and remain on for 2h 30m as told by the Maximum On Time. Typically the Maximum On Time is used to prevent pumps and such from erroneously running too long and there is an associated Notification Level with these actions. Since this is a normal activity, I don't configure a Notification Level. As Max On Time is expired, the associated symbol in the Status page will appear read but can be ignored.

The last piece is the Schedule. A schedule (or possibly multiple schedules) tell a Flow Pump (or multiple flow pumps) how and when to run. This schedule drives a Constant flow pattern all hours of the day seeing as though it has both a Start Time and End Time of 00:00:00. Well AT LEAST IT WOULD IF NOT FOR the Depends On which references the virtual trigger above with a Dependency Mode Off if Off.

This configuration is advanced and a bit complex but completely dynamic. The skimmer operates the same regardless of how you feed and you don't need to concern yourself with feeding at any particular time to ensure you're within the proper window. The virtual outputs activate however and whenever you feed and can propagate outward to control behavior or return, skimmer, flow pumps or anything else you desire.

 

[thom_smith]

Things are going ok. We had an unexplained fish death we're still trying to chase down. Daughter is discouraged thinking as a first time saltwater she has done something wrong and we're trying not to let the kids down. Testing twice a day recently and no hints of water quality issues. Took a sample to LFS today and they confirmed our results trends with both manual API and Aquaspin testing.

Aquaspin scale is either true 0 or 0.1. No in between so at least a trace but don"t really believe it is 0.1 because manual tests don't look that high. Nor are nitrites or nitrates rising significantly. Alk and magnesium are a bit low but not worried until we start to think about coral. pH is lower but not bad considering late winter in northeast and windows are still closed up.




Some tank pictures..

Ugly stage is starting to kick in a bit. Introduced some snails and an emerald crab. Need to add some hermits and pods.




Continued progress on getting controller and equipment mounted inside the cabinet. Starboard appears to work like a champ. Used double stick gorilla tape to avoid having to drill or screw into starboard. The scrap piece of starboard we had to cut to fit the Trigger fleece filter in actually fits pwefectly over the refugium section as a safeguard in case the gorilla tape doesn't hold. Cleaned up all the cabling. Added a rope leak sensor, skimmer sensor, pH probe and Tunze refugium light. Only things presently outstanding are button box for mode activations, Icecap battery backup, 0-10v monitor inputs for Trigger Systems fleece motor and chaeto for refugium. Still getting skimmer properly tuned and routing rope leak sensor around perimeter of sump. Return flow sensor is plumbed but they're going to need to wait until I displace a Hydros control so they can connect it.

 

[thom_smith]

Minor setback with fish disease and ended up losing a couple fish. My daughter's favorite wrasse had a bad bout of parasites and was in poor shape but pulled through it and is improving. This was the confidence boost she needed to keep things up as she started getting down when experiening fish deaths. Still aggressively though carefully treathing with MetroPlex and Prazi Pro and a healthy dose of GarlicGuard infused foods. Will be more diligent and thorough with quarantine procedures going forward.

Have been carrying five gallon buckets of water over regularly for top off and water changes since tank was setup. Finally got the RODI installed. Got a booster pump and auto flush valve but may end up returning. Couldn't believe the pressure I was getting *without* the booster pump. Almost thought the gauge was faulty until we flushed the membranes and let it begin producing water. Mixing bucket is a 20 gallon lab pack barrel drum with all plastic lock band that I found on Amazon for a reasonable $52.

Very pleased with the relatively low TDS water coming in, 0 TDS output and fill rate. After letting the barrel fill and doing some quick math, I'd say we are getting all of 120gpd plus out of it. Will let this run for a while and check the output phosphate when we mix salt next week or grab a sample of their RODI when I send in my next ICP test. May end up having them add a Silica Buster stage if phosphates are creaping through.

 

[707Nick]

I'm a heavy Hydros user fully automating nearly all tank functions and actively participating in online groups and forums providing feedback and assistance to other users. Those unfamiliar or scoping out controllers for a new build often ask what's different about Hydros, what can I or can't I do, what's the interface look like, how do I configure various things, etc. Since I'm showing my daughter and grandchildren how to do this and already documenting for them, I'm going to turn this thread into a Hydros 101 tutorial for a bit to answer and document Hydros from a new user experience.

Hydros controllers were redeployed from my recently scaled back frag tank setup. They were unregistered from my account and factory reset to effectively emulate a Controller/Wave Engine that had been purchased from a retailer. They were unregistered, unconfigured and required firmware updates almost as though they were new out of the box.

Hydros 101

Initial wifi configuration, registration and certificate installation

Initial discovery, wifi configuration and registration of Hydros devices *must* be done from a mobile device with both bluetooth and wifi enabled. After the registration you may also use the web app. Aside from bluetooth discovery and initial wifi configuration, mobile and web apps provide like functionality.

Start by downloading the Hydros app from the Apple Store/Play Store and installing on your mobile device. Tap “I don’t have an account” at the bottom of the login screen. Complete the form and validate the new account via email. After validation, login to the Hydros mobile app. Next, power on, configure wifi (and wifi only!) and associate Controls/Wave Engines to your account. Don't be concerned with connecting or cabling them just yet.

From within the Hydros app, click on the three bars in the upper left corner. You'll be presented with a menu across the top bar and list of previously configured devices along the left side bar.

The larger symbol in the top left indicates how you are communicating with the Controls/Wave Engines--typically cloud. Smaller symbols across the top row permit you to change connection method to cloud, change to bluetooth (providing read only access during an internet or wifi outage) or *temporarily* enable bluetooth discovery with the + symbol. Click the + symbol to see a list of available Controls/Wave Engines.

Select a Control or Wave Engine to configure. Next you'll see a list of available wifi networks.

Select the desired network and you'll be prompted for the wifi password and device name.

*** Be mindful that Hydros only functions on 2.4ghz networks. Users who configure the same ssid for both 2.4ghz and 5.0ghz may experience connectivity issues and should seperate the networks using a different ssid for each. Mesh networks typically don't give this option however frequently the 5.0ghz radios/band steering feature can be turned off briefly allowing the clients to connect at 2.4ghz. Lastly, use caution connecting Hydros to guest networks. Often Controls and Wave Engines successfully connect but feeders, plugs and strips do not. This is due to a client isolation feature frequently enabled which prevents wireless clients from communicating with other clients. Wifi feeders, plugs and strips do not communicate to the cloud and must be permitted to communicate locally with Controls or Wave Engines. Consult documentation for your wifi router/access point for features and capabilities related to band steering and client isolation.

*** If no Device Name is specified, it will default to the serial number/mac address.

The Control/Wave Engine will be associated with your account with device certificates downloaded and installed.

As devices are completed, they will initialize and appear in the left column list. Press the + symbol to repeat discovery, wifi configuration and certificate installation for all remaining devices.

Hi can you tell me if there’s a way to disconnect a previous owners link to a hydros icecap Wi-Fi controller 2k? I bought it used and can’t get ahold of the original owner. Thanks in advance

 

[thom_smith]

Hi can you tell me if there’s a way to disconnect a previous owners link to a hydros icecap Wi-Fi controller 2k? I bought it used and can’t get ahold of the original owner. Thanks in advance

Contact CoralVue via [email protected] with the model and serial number. They'll attempt to reach out to the previous owner and get authorization to remove the registration. I've done it before myself and the seller communicated back to CoralVue.

 

[707Nick]

Contact CoralVue via [email protected] with the model and serial number. They'll attempt to reach out to the previous owner and get authorization to remove the registration. I've done it before myself and the seller communicated back to CoralVue.

Thank you