AC III or Reef Keeper Elite

[Sikryd]

I just upgraded to a new tank after I thought I was going to have to get out of the hobby and sold my ACIII.

 

I have been looking at the ReefKeeper Elite and it seems to be a nicer unit and does all the same things as the ACIII as far as I can tell for the same price.

Does anyone have any information on Reefkeepers and if it is just as nice as the ACIII or better?

I hear a lot about ACIII's, but not too much on the Reefkeeper stuff.

 

Thanks

[jason the filter freak]

i'd be a little worried based on the current state of the RK elite production run and the reviews its getting. Good luck though, glad you worked things out and stuck around

[Brian Ward]

I just upgraded to a new tank after I thought I was going to have to get out of the hobby and sold my ACIII.

 

I have been looking at the ReefKeeper Elite and it seems to be a nicer unit and does all the same things as the ACIII as far as I can tell for the same price.

Does anyone have any information on Reefkeepers and if it is just as nice as the ACIII or better?

I hear a lot about ACIII's, but not too much on the Reefkeeper stuff.

 

Thanks

 

 

I don't have any direct experience with the reefkeeper elite, but I had the step down. From what I've read, the elite is roughly the same, just controls more things. The Reefkeeper series is easier to program if you don't know what you're doing. The ACIII is much more flexible. Price is a wash. Since so many people in the club are so well versed in ACIII, I wouldn't worry about setup. Worst case, I'm sure someone would come over and program it for you. I personally like the scalability and flexibility of the ACIII so I would go with that (and I did).

[rioreef]

I don't have either, but here are some bits of info on the RKE.

 

It sounds like the Intellastrip technology is pre-defined on its overload protection. The ACIII may be able to perform similar functions through programming, not sure even if it has abililty to monitor plug overloading.

 

Paraphrased info from Digital Aquatics on their Intellastrip Technology (4 head plug unit - two of these come with the RKE): IntellaStrip technology enables the PC4 to monitor the total current that the module is supplying to the devices connected to it and make decisions based on that information. Each PC4 has a total limit of 15 amps (1800W). Channels 1 and 4 are mechanical relays and have a limit of 8 amps; while channels 2 and 3 are a solid state switch with a limit of 3 amps.

 

The PC4 powers the entire system; IntellaStrip technology will help prevent a system wide failure if the breaker were to trip do to a single failed device. This helps ensure uninterrupted power to the rest of the system. Because there are different limits for the two types of channels, (CH 1 & 4 have a 8 amp limit each, while 2 & 3 have a 3 amp limit each,) IntellaStrip will attempt to ensure these limits are not exceeded. By monitoring the differential in current when a channel is turned on or off , the PC4 can determine if a single channel is exceeding its limit. In that case the PC4 will go into an override state and report a fault.

 

The PC4 has capability to manually control each plug on/off individually on the unit itself, not just through programming.

 

 

Also, the NET module provides:

 

Current system data and channel status over the internet with alerts to your email, cell phone, or PDA. You can get on going status on your system from the RSS feed from the NET module too. A USB interface for additional hardware (not sold by Digital Aquatics) for wireless communications to your computer and monitoring (not controlling devices).

 

 

I am sure there are other differences, but these stand out to me. Always a toss up.

[Sikryd]

I am a computer guy of sorts, so the programming isn't an issue. I just thought the Elite's physical interface looked pretty slick and the wife might learn to use it. The ACIII is more of a "mainframe" to her, it doesn't look as slick so it scares her off I think.

 

Thanks for the help. I am going to do some more research and see what I come up with.