ATO question

[fishtank]

so the father in law is a plumber which to date has been very handy

Anywho he is helping me install a utility sink in the garage which is where my mixing station, and RO/DI unit will be and I am thinking of putting my ATO reservoir out there and run a hard line to my sump.

So questions,

Would you run 1 line mainly for ATO and then disconnect reconnect etc for water changes?
Should I run 2 lines, 1 permanent for ATO and then the other hooked up to a T and ball valve for water changes, ie turn the valve and flush the water straight down the drain then connect up to my pump and put in new water.

For the ATO if it is a 25' run with 2 foot rise right at the end I presume gravity will stop whatever water that is in the pipe from continuing to come out and over flow the sump?

Lastly if it is just doing top offs all the time and it's going into the sump is it important to keep the reservoir at tank temp?

Thanks for you help!

 

[hnguyen]

Depending on what size line or hose you plan to run your water change line with, I'm not sure if it will also work with your ATO. I'm not sure what ATO your using or what pump with it so it's hard to answer that question. I run two lines, a 1" pvc line for my water change coming from my mixing station pump. I'm using the tunze ATO so it comes with 1/4" flex lines which runs off it's own pump. If your planning on running small pipes (1/2" or less) then I would just go with two lines and save yourself the trouble of having to disconnect and reconnect everytime. Also, that will help you avoid spills in the event you forget to reconnect your ATO line when it decides to turn on.

As for ATO water temps. It doesn't need to be the same temp as your tank as so little of it is being put in your system to affect system temp. I've never put a heater in my ATO tank before and to be honest, it never even crossed my mind until you brought it up.

 

[fishtank]

Im thinking of running 2 x 1/2" lines, the JBJ ATO I was thinking of using will drive a Mag 7 pump but I have not thought about the sensor cable so there could be issues there. Anyone know if you can run mode A without reservoir sensor plugged in? Either that or could just put both sensors in the sump and make sure I always keep the reservoir filled.

 

[hnguyen]

If I remember correctly you can use the sensors however you want. I've heard of people using both sensors in the sump with one flipped upside down to act as a fail safe. I believe that's ran on mode a so when the upside down sensor is tripped, the ato thinks your top off container is empty and will shut off the pump in the event your main sensor fails and feta stuck on. That prevents your ato from dumping all that top off water into the sump. Its been years since I've used a jbj so you might want to look that up.


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