Clean your ATO sensors!

[krak256]

This morning, my ATO sensors decided to not shut off and approx 3 additional gallons poured into my tank (34g solana). Approx 1 gallon or so spilled out of the tank and onto the floor. luckily, i had to wake up at 7am and heard the water spilling out or else the disaster could have been worse.

just for anyone who's wondering, I am using a JBJ ato, i believe on setting B. I unplugged it for now since I had to rush to work, but I will definitely give it a good scrub once I get back.

Hopefully the wooden floor won't turn up again... (as you can tell, this isn't the first time I've had to get the wooden floor tiles replaced :birthday. Anyone else ever have the issue of an ATO not shutting off?

 

[gatojebv]

I am plannig to buy an ATO and I am considering the ones that come with two switches. One that goes even higher above the water as a safety for this kind of problems. You should consider that as well. I think you are going to have that problem again. It is just a matter of time.

 

[2slo4me]

damn that sux... just last week i had my 30 gallon oceanic sump crack on me..... between that and the water that came out from the DT tank... had a flood of like 50 gallons come out. my hard wood floors are trash and the tenants on the 1st floor ceiling got messed up so i have to pay for that as well... good luck!!!

 

[Brian65901]

The top off holding tank that I have for my 120 is only 3.5 gallons and I manually top it off daily so I don't have to worry as 3.5 gallons too much will not cause a problem with my system. I have Tunze osmolator and its never messed up yet. Knock knock

 

[krak256]

I am plannig to buy an ATO and I am considering the ones that come with two switches. One that goes even higher above the water as a safety for this kind of problems. You should consider that as well. I think you are going to have that problem again. It is just a matter of time.

yea the jbj ato doesn't really do that. i might upgrade to the tunze osomlator in the future for that function.

 

[grknyer]

Do yourself a favor check your float switches when you get home and see if you notice any sort of discoloration by the wire leading into the float switch. My Jbj ato crapped out this way in February. Saltwater seeped inside causing the metal to rust away and eventually cause the float to fail. This also happened to a friend of mine.
I called Jbj to complain and they said they couldn't do anything and that this is the first time they ever heard of such a problem(liars!!) Out of curiosity I asked how much 2 new float switches would cost and they said 15$ each.I said thanks but no thanks and hung up.
I ordered a Diy ato and haven't had a problem since.As a matter of fact I ordered 2 extra float switches for 5$ with the same order and connected them to the Jbj which I have as a back up

 

[krak256]

Do yourself a favor check your float switches when you get home and see if you notice any sort of discoloration by the wire leading into the float switch. My Jbj ato crapped out this way in February. Saltwater seeped inside causing the metal to rust away and eventually cause the float to fail. This also happened to a friend of mine.
I called Jbj to complain and they said they couldn't do anything and that this is the first time they ever heard of such a problem(liars!!) Out of curiosity I asked how much 2 new float switches would cost and they said 15$ each.I said thanks but no thanks and hung up.
I ordered a Diy ato and haven't had a problem since.As a matter of fact I ordered 2 extra float switches for 5$ with the same order and connected them to the Jbj which I have as a back up

got it. i will do that, thanks for the tip. does the diy ato have a second sensor that will serve as a second check to prevent flooding?

 

[dagreatbadfinger]

wow what are the odds - thankfully it was the opposite for me. My sensor was stuck up so no water was going into it when it needed it. I noticed it early this morning as well.

I plan on cleaning mine once i get home tonight

 

[masterswimmer]

I have a backup for my ATO that I recommend to anyone running an ATO (whatever brand you have this will work).

I plug my ATO into a digital timer. Same type that people use for lighting. What I do is set the timer to come on for one minute. I do set this up to come on for one minute every six hours (four times a day). This is plenty of time for the topoff to do its job. This is enough frequency (four times a day) to allow the specific gravity to remain stable. This is a short enough time to prevent the float switch from failing in the 'ON' position, emptying my freshwater topoff container into my sump.

I mention that the timer MUST be DIGITAL because you can't set the timer to the 'ON' position for only one minute with a manual timer, only digital.

BTW, this is also in addition to any other redundancy you can think of.

Been working like this for me for eight years, flawlessly.

Russ

 

[grknyer]

got it. i will do that, thanks for the tip. does the diy ato have a second sensor that will serve as a second check to prevent flooding?

Yes it does.You can even order two slosh/snail guards for the switches.

 

[eastonreef]

i use the tsunami ato ... havent had a problem ... but i'll be cleaning it tonight just in case

 

[bruce922]

I need to clean my sensors ASAP. I have had my tank set up for a little over a year and have not cleaned them yet. I will be doing this today!


Bruce