Avast ATO Question

[howaboutme]

I started to tinker w/ the new ATO tonight and have a few questions.

 

I am placing this at the very top of the tank, just underneath the black rim of my tank (DT).

 

1) I assume that submerging part of the magnet mount is okay? I see from Justin's example in this post that he's done the same. I hope this won't affect the performance of the sensor.

 

2) I tested the sensor 2 ways. First, I just submerged it in water separate from the mount to see where the sweat spot is for when the green light turns off (indicating the ATO is off). Then I slowly raised the sensor to see how sensitive it is to movement to see when the ATO light turns on (indicating the ATO is on). When I did this by itself and then in the mount, the sensitivity seems different. It's more sensitive (meaning I didn't have to raise it much for the light to turn on) by itself compared to in the mount. It may not be much since I'm just going by feel and didn't take any concrete measurements. Does this sound right? Could the fact that the contact point between the sensor and the mounting ring is right at the water line make it less sensitive? (The new mount is substantially more material then the one Justin is using in the photo.) If so, this may not work so well....

 

I haven't attached a pump yet as I wanted to first get the hang of how the ATO sensor works and where to mount the bracket.

 

Should I be concerned about anything or does all this sound status quo?

 

Thanks in advance.

[Origami]

It can be underwater.

 

The sensitivity should be the same. Maybe your hand wasn't as steady?

 

Sounds normal.

(Sent from my phone)

 

[howaboutme]

Ok. So in theory, the imaginary line on the sensor that marks when it will turn on and when it will turn off (2 lines) should not be affected by the mount whatsoever?

 

If all sounds correct, I'll continue the installation. Thank you.

[Origami]

That's right.

 

(Sent from my phone)

 

 

[howaboutme]

Thanks Tom!

 

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[Orion]

That pressure tube works like a champ.  Have had this ATO for a few months now.

[rtsusc83]

My magnet is submerged so no problem.  I have had mine for 6 months and works like a champ. Did you get the backup float valve?

[howaboutme]

Thanks guys for the added confidence in this ATO.

 

I did not get the back up float valve. My 2nd fail safe is based on using a small RODI container (say 2G max) and an aqualifter pump. If the ATO fails in the on position, the tank should hold the added water w/o overfilling and not put the SG too out of wack and if the pump goes bad from drying out, I'll buy another.

 

Now..if the ATO fails in the off position..Well....hopefully I'm not gone for too long.

 

Will test it tomorrow when I'm able to be near the tank if something goes wrong.

[howaboutme]

I just hooked everything up and made sure the ATO itself and the pump works. No problem. Now I guess I'll have to just keep watch at it to see how sensitive the sensor is. When I play w/ it by hand when in the magnet mount, it still seems like there is a larger than necessary distance between when the ATO comes on versus when it goes off. This makes it hard to make the initial placement of the sensor tube and if the distance is in fact this great, the water would have to evaporate a great amount before the ATO comes on.

 

Of course all of this could be exactly how ATO's work since I have nothing to compare it to since this is my first experience dealing with these devices.

 

Any thoughts or suggestions, please let me know. Thanks.

[jimlin]

Thanks guys for the added confidence in this ATO.

 

I did not get the back up float valve. My 2nd fail safe is based on using a small RODI container (say 2G max) and an aqualifter pump. If the ATO fails in the on position, the tank should hold the added water w/o overfilling and not put the SG too out of wack and if the pump goes bad from drying out, I'll buy another.

 

Now..if the ATO fails in the off position..Well....hopefully I'm not gone for too long.

 

Will test it tomorrow when I'm able to be near the tank if something goes wrong.

i used an aqualifter pump in the beginning as well, but it started failing. within a years time i had 2 out of 3 fail.

[Origami]

i used an aqualifter pump in the beginning as well, but it started failing. within a years time i had 2 out of 3 fail.

This is the reason I stopped using aqualifters. They're ok, but keep a rebuild kit handy for when the valves fail.

 

(Sent from my phone)

 

 

[howaboutme]

i used an aqualifter pump in the beginning as well, but it started failing. within a years time i had 2 out of 3 fail.

 

 

This is the reason I stopped using aqualifters. They're ok, but keep a rebuild kit handy for when the valves fail.

 

(Sent from my phone)

 

Well, I definitely know what I got based on cost so I won't be too shocked if the pump goes bad sooner rather than later. It is super quiet though, a big plus.

 

Now..hoping to get more evaporation so the ATO can turn on!

[Origami]

Well, I definitely know what I got based on cost so I won't be too shocked if the pump goes bad sooner rather than later. It is super quiet though, a big plus.

 

Now..hoping to get more evaporation so the ATO can turn on!

Not saying they're junk. I just watched how I used them to make sure that, when the valve failed. It couldn't back siphon. Always kept a spare on hand, and later a rebuild kit. They last longer when dealing with filtered fresh water. I still use the ones that I have (in conjunction with an airline valve to make a drip assembly) and sometimes when acclimating new livestock.

 

(Sent from my phone)

 

 

[howaboutme]

Not saying they're junk. I just watched how I used them to make sure that, when the valve failed. It couldn't back siphon. Always kept a spare on hand, and later a rebuild kit. They last longer when dealing with filtered fresh water. I still use the ones that I have (in conjunction with an airline valve to make a drip assembly) and sometimes when acclimating new livestock.

 

(Sent from my phone)

 

Re: Back siphon.

 

Wouldn't the fact that I do not have the outlet tube submerged prevent any back siphoning? I have it high enough that the tank would have to spill over for the tube to be submerged.

[armydoc]

...it still seems like there is a larger than necessary distance between when the ATO comes on versus when it goes off. This makes it hard to make the initial placement of the sensor tube and if the distance is in fact this great, the water would have to evaporate a great amount before the ATO comes on.

 

Of course all of this could be exactly how ATO's work since I have nothing to compare it to since this is my first experience dealing with these devices.

 

Any thoughts or suggestions, please let me know. Thanks.

[armydoc]

Sorry for the flubbed post. Don't sweat the difference in on/off pressures. There is some built in hysteresis in the pressure switch. I have alway set mine up from the top down. That is lower the tube into the water until you hear the click then back it off a smidge. I have four running in my system and they have all worked fine.

[howaboutme]

Sorry for the flubbed post. Don't sweat the difference in on/off pressures. There is some built in hysteresis in the pressure switch. I have alway set mine up from the top down. That is lower the tube into the water until you hear the click then back it off a smidge. I have four running in my system and they have all worked fine.

 

Very helpful. Thank you!

[howaboutme]

So I've had the ATO running for about 2 weeks now and am still tinkering w/ the sensor height to find the sweet spot. One thing that I've noticed, and this annoys me a bit, is that my water has to evaporate a good amount for the thing to kick on. I think it's close to 1/2" of water spread out over a standard 29G tank. That seems like a lot of water evaporating before the ATO kicks on to me.

 

Does this sound normal? I know most have it in the sump and may not even see what I am seeing but 1/2" does affect the salinity a bit, though nothing that I should be concerned about just yet.

 

Thoughts?

[Origami]

Jack, that sounds about right. A half-inch in a 29 gallon tank is about 3/4 gallon, or about 2.7% of the capacity if the main tank is where you're taking the measurement. (In a system with a sump, it's the sump chamber's volume that will dictate how much volume this 1/2" of water occupies.) Thus, you'll see a corresponding increase/decrease in the salinity during the evaporation/topping-off process. Compare this for a 90-gallon tank where they same 1/2" corresponds to about 2% of the overall capacity and you'll see it's about the same.

[howaboutme]

Thanks, Tom. It's good to know that it's working properly. I guess I just needed some reassurance. Since these toys are all new to me, I have no point of reference. I will try to not mess with it anymore.

 

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