Hi All,

Open question, non judgemental I guess, I’ve never hidden the fact I keep 2x basic entry level tanks.. very much plug and play stuff.. everything is either second hand or entry level, with the exception of my Fluval 3.0 Marine light bar which I brought new! Only because I couldn’t find a decent second hand one.

Recently I’ve seen people selling wave makers in excess of £200-£300 lights going for £500.00+ second hand!! granted I only keep softies… but does this ultra expensive stuff do much more than my entry level equipment..

Example my wavemaker cost me £12, I think probably 4/5 years ago.. still works as it did when new! Heater similar price.. still works.

Am I missing out here? Do I really need Bluetooth connectivity with my wavemaker when I could either turn it off at feeding time or put it on a timer? I’m not critical of anyone that invests high sums into their tank in any form just wonder if the prices justify the equipment, what’s are the pros that come with these high end products?

Is this high end equipment a necessity when keeping a high end tank?

Opinions welcomed..


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Well I think that is the million dollar question right there and a million dollar answer,
Without going over what you already know about my system setup ,
I do agree with both sides of the question, we all have the option of what route we decide to go down regarding our tanks , yes you can get some real bargains second hand and they will do the job adequately fine , in fact some of the old style setups (although some can look untidy ) actually work just as good now as some of the new stuff that’s available.
A lot comes down to what you want to keep successfully, and all the Bluetooth/wireless connectivity stuff basically is designed so you can make fine tweaks here and there , auto feeders when you’re on holiday . Etc .
We all get told by lfs oh you need this or that and this will keep you’re water clarity spotless and perfect ,
Yeah maybe so but remember the oceans aren’t spotless clean ,
If you do regular water changes , have enough live rock , a heater and filter ,regular maintenance, a blue and white light bingo , that’s how we used to do it years ago and we had success, I can even remember when I had one bucket of water , some marine salt a floating hydrometer and me mums large plastic mixing spoon and you add and stir until you reached 1020 😂
Think some of it also comes down to look what I’ve got , the new , latest gadget that cleans me water , makes me a cuppa in the morning , feeds me fish and does me a cooked breakfast in the morning when I set the alarm on it to wake me up and wipe me arse , ( oh story that’s me wife 😂 😂 😂 😂)
That’s a joke before people start having a go at me .
To end this essay I’ve written ,
Basically .
You don’t need to spend thousands on stuff when you can get similar results in other cheaper ways ,
So for tomorrow’s exercise I want you all to turn to page 4 in your textbooks and learn that section for a mock exam next week .
😂 😂 😂 😂 😂
Dave
 

Thanks to you both for your responses, it makes an interesting read..

The point re what you invest in your tank livestock/corals in comparison to the investment in equipment is interesting..

Going back to the wavemaker specifically what can a £250 one do what a £15 one can’t other than let’s say bluetooth connectivity to pause it at feeding time? Is it scientifically proven that being able to maybe adjust the rhythm of the maker (just assuming this is an option) beneficial to tank occupants?


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As someone who recently bought a wifi enabled wavemaker and normally buys very cheap stuff too, I can’t firmly say that the WiFi feature was a royal pain in the rear to set up and get working so I could actually use it, now it’s set up it seems more faffy to use than the old manual controller - it’s app also has its issue in that it doesn’t send a notification to the phone when the pump fails - just ones that’s only visible when you open the app. That said the ability to schedule automatically different wave patterns I do like, and it’s a fairly cool gimmick BUT I wouldn’t go out of my way to get WiFi enabled kit again - because of the faff of setting it up (hours of trial and error) and therefore the additional cost if not worth it in my opinion. I bought it because it was something like £5 more by the way on a £60 wavemaker (just to set the scale of my extravagance!)

What I will add to the debate though is aesthetics - this is something I value highly coming from an aquascaping background. I feel this is one reason who some people will spend lots of cash’ - for a “cleaner” look to their tank. I bought the wavemaker I mentioned above because it was particularly small and unobtrusive to the tank aesthetic vs other more bulky models. I have a titanium heater - simply because it looks nicer - they are the only two pieces of kit on my tank and visible in the display and so getting something “small and plain” was important so as not to distract from the scape. My ATO is a bit of an extravagance and I wouldn’t have it unless it had been for another open top setup I was struggling with - it was however a knock off version of a much more expensive branded version (as is the wavemaker actually now I come to think of it).

I have “stolen” a baby monitor for that purpose - a Netvue camera

The wavemaker I use if the Jebao ALW

Just FYI 

Jebao is always a risk, sometimes they're great, other times, crap.

For an example of how app control should be done properly, the current version of Mobious controls AI Nero wavemakers and Ecotech devices (incl lights) and works pretty well.  And importantly, you can report bugs and they actually fix them! 

The app for my D-D P4 Pro Doser however is poo. E.g. it only sends alerts that your dosing container is empty if you happen to open the app! 
I also live in fear of them switching of the server randomly one day and killing my £350 doser in the process. 

In answer to the original question, yes, for example an AI Nero is much better than Jebao clone. However it's probably not as much better as you'd expect for the price being (more than) doubled.

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