# Autodoser suggestions?



## MichaelJ (10 Feb 2022)

Hello,  I am thinking about taking the plunge into auto dosing for my bi-weekly (twice a week)  liquid trace blend and weekly liquid Fe Gluconate.

I just need something simple and  affordable with a small footprint for my two 151 L tanks  that takes care of itself. I find myself forgetting when I dosed my traces all the time.. The first dose the day after WC I usually remember, but the mid-week is a total hit and miss.... I also want to dose my traces outside the photoperiod, but thats even a bigger hassle to remember.  My macros and remineralizers for the week I always dose with my WC so that is always taken care of.

Any product ideas would be greatly appreciated!

cheers,
Michael


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## Courtneybst (10 Feb 2022)

The D-D P1 Doser is a good, simple option. It comes with an easy to setup and intuitive app for controlling and monitoring. You would need one unit per solution you're dosing.

There are cheaper options without apps but I just find them annoyingly complex. This one is pretty much plug and play.









						D-D H2Ocean P1 Dosing Pump
					

D-D H2Ocean P1 Dosing Pump These smart pumps have been jointly developed between D-D and Kamoer, a company with a strong reputation for the




					www.aquariumgardens.co.uk


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## ian_m (10 Feb 2022)

DIY Project - DIY dual peristaltic dosing pump with alternate switching.
 Or make your own so can control and dose as you see fit...


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## MichaelJ (10 Feb 2022)

Courtneybst said:


> The D-D P1 Doser is a good, simple option. It comes with an easy to setup and intuitive app for controlling and monitoring. You would need one unit per solution you're dosing.
> 
> There are cheaper options without apps but I just find them annoyingly complex. This one is pretty much plug and play.
> 
> ...


Thanks @Courtneybst  Excellent!  Yes, I definitely need easy    I would need 4 then - two for each tank.  I can get them for $60 each here in the US.  I might just buy one and familiarize myself with it before getting more.



ian_m said:


> DIY Project - DIY dual peristaltic dosing pump with alternate switching.
> Or make your own so can control and dose as you see fit...


Thanks @ian_m   I love that, but I think it would be too high a bar for me to try and build it myself.

Cheers,
Michael


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## Courtneybst (10 Feb 2022)

MichaelJ said:


> Thanks @Courtneybst Excellent! Yes, I definitely need easy  I would need 4 then - two for each tank. I can get them for $60 each here in the US. I might just buy one and familiarize myself with it before getting more


If your aquariums are very close by, you could even get the P4 model (4 dosing channels) which would save you a bit of money. Otherwise yeah, you will need 4. In my opinion though, dosing pumps automate one of the more tedious parts of the hobby so it's worth it to me.


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## MichaelJ (10 Feb 2022)

Courtneybst said:


> If your aquariums are very close by, you could even get the P4 model (4 dosing channels) which would save you a bit of money.


Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately my tanks sits too far apart (with a fireplace in-between), so the P4 would not be practical.



Courtneybst said:


> Otherwise yeah, you will need 4. In my opinion though


I will have to investigate if I potentially could mix in the Fe Gluconate with my liquid Plantex CSM+B micro blend.  It doesn't sound like a good idea though ... but if I can, I will be able to get away with just one D-D P1 Doser for each tank 



Courtneybst said:


> , dosing pumps automate one of the more tedious parts of the hobby so it's worth it to me.


Yes, I feel the same way - its one of those automations that you can do to make it more joyful.

Cheers,
Michael


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## X3NiTH (10 Feb 2022)

MichaelJ said:


> I potentially could mix in the Fe Gluconate with my liquid Plantex CSM+B micro blend



 As long as there’s no phosphate to interfere and the pH is low and you keep the resultant solution away from light sources then you should be able to mix them without much issue. I am assuming the FeGluconate is in the powder form so to fortify the Plantex take the liquid volume as the total volume and add the requisite amount of FeGluconate to reach your target Iron dose, you could test with a small sample first to check for precipitation. If there is trouble solving the Fe Gluconate into the Plantex then make a solution of FeGluconate and combine this volume with the Plantex, you’ll need to do some math to work out the new concentration from the added water to work out the volume to dose to a specific target ppm for the Iron and the rest of the micro.


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## X3NiTH (10 Feb 2022)

Forgot to say I have the P1 doser dosing Kalk on my Nano Marine Quarantine and appears to be doing the job of delivering 1ml a day so far, the motor is fairly speedy so the unit only operates for a second or so to dose that 1ml. You need to source thinner diameter tubing to correctly fit the dosing tubes, I’m winging it by using standard airline and slip fitting over the dosers silicon tubing.






I use Blood bags (Novelty type for filling with Juice/Alcohol for Vampire/Medic parties) to hold my dosing agents, for my micro I also light secure the solution using opaque light safe plastic film wrapped around, I also use opaque black plastic tubing for my micro so the remaining liquid in the tubes between doses doesn’t suffer photodegredation.


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## MichaelJ (10 Feb 2022)

X3NiTH said:


> As long as there’s no phosphate to interfere and the pH is low and you keep the resultant solution away from light sources then you should be able to mix them without much issue. I am assuming the FeGluconate is in the powder form so to fortify the Plantex take the liquid volume as the total volume and add the requisite amount of FeGluconate to reach your target Iron dose, you could test with a small sample first to check for precipitation. If there is trouble solving the Fe Gluconate into the Plantex then make a solution of FeGluconate and combine this volume with the Plantex, you’ll need to do some math to work out the new concentration from the added water to work out the volume to dose to a specific target ppm for the Iron and the rest of the micro.


Hi @X3NiTH   Brilliant!   So I will be mixing the ferrous-gluconate powder with my current Plantex CSM+B solution which currently is 24 g of plantex in 500 ml distilled water + 0.3g Ascorbic Acid and  0.3g Potassium Sorbate.  The dosing container that I use, after mixing in a clear bottle to make sure everything is dissolved,  is shielded so no light can penetrate.  I am only going to contribute 0.25 ppm/weekly of the Fe Gluconate  in addition to the 1ppm of Fe EDTA I get from the Plantex.  so I  would (only) need to mix in about 3.6 grams of the Fe Gluconate powder to reach the 0.25 ppm for the concentration I am currently dosing the Plantex solution.   I guess it all comes down to whether they mix or not. Or if mixing two different Iron chelates makes sense to begin with in terms of uptake by the plants?

Cheers,
Michael


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## X3NiTH (10 Feb 2022)

You are OK to go!

Mixing these two chelates is a non issue, I’ve done FeDTPA, FeEDTA and Fe Gluconate all together before without issue, dry and liquid concentrate.


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## MichaelJ (10 Feb 2022)

X3NiTH said:


> You are OK to go!
> 
> Mixing these two chelates is a non issue, I’ve done FeDTPA, FeEDTA and Fe Gluconate all together before without issue, dry and liquid concentrate.


Great! Thanks @X3NiTH !

Cheers,
Michael


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## MichaelJ (11 Feb 2022)

Hi @Courtneybst and @X3NiTH , Unfortunately it turns out I cant get the D-D P1 Doser here in the US, but this product (also made by Kameor) looks very much the same. What do you guys think?

Cheers,
Michael


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## Hanuman (11 Feb 2022)

MichaelJ said:


> Hi @Courtneybst and @X3NiTH , Unfortunately it turns out I cant get the D-D P1 Doser here in the US, but this product (also made by Kameor) looks very much the same. What do you guys think?
> 
> Cheers,
> Michael


That's the one I have and works great. I have 4 units. All work great. Even sold 4 more to some fellow hobbyist.
Technically it is slightly more advanced than the D-D P1 Doser, but for our use you will not see any difference. It also has a smaller profil which is good.

When I first got it. Calibration!



In action.


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## Hanuman (11 Feb 2022)

ian_m said:


> DIY Project - DIY dual peristaltic dosing pump with alternate switching.
> Or make your own so can control and dose as you see fit...


Hardcore pump porn.


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## Courtneybst (11 Feb 2022)

MichaelJ said:


> Hi @Courtneybst and @X3NiTH , Unfortunately it turns out I cant get the D-D P1 Doser here in the US, but this product (also made by Kameor) looks very much the same. What do you guys think?
> 
> Cheers,
> Michael


That'll work perfectly


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## X3NiTH (11 Feb 2022)

The D-D dosing pumps are rebranded Kamoer units, they actually use the Kamoer App software to run the units.





I should say I’m actually running the P1 at 0.3ml per day and not 1ml as I previously stated.


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## Hanuman (11 Feb 2022)

X3NiTH said:


> The D-D dosing pumps are rebranded Kamoer units


Indeed. Kamoer produces all sort of peristaltic pumps for many smaller companies and for all sort of industries.


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## MichaelJ (11 Feb 2022)

Hanuman said:


> That's the one I have and works great. I have 4 units. All work great. Even sold 4 more to some fellow hobbyist.
> Technically it is slightly more advanced than the D-D P1 Doser, but for our use you will not see any difference. It also has a smaller profil which is good.
> 
> When I first got it. Calibration!
> ...



Thanks @Hanuman  Good to know! I ordered one today!

Cheers,
Michael


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## MichaelJ (15 Feb 2022)

Yay! it arrived!  




Cheers,
Michael


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