Reef Discussion

macca_75

Member
Apr 22, 2012
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Pacific Sun Kore 5th
Hey Guys,

Looking at getting a new dosing unit. 4 would be good but 5 heads would be great.

Thinking of the Kore 5th - does anyone have one and what do you think? Any other alternatives that are similar in feature set?
 

Wrangy

Member
May 7, 2013
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Kore 5th! Kore 5th! Kore 5th! Lol

I adore mine! And I couldn't recommend it more, yes they're expensive but well worth it! I use the ato on mine and the temp probe and it's one of the best bits I've bought lol
 

Rob

Member
Apr 26, 2012
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The world of DIY must of imploded around you as you typed that question !
 

Ben Daley

/dev/null
Dec 23, 2016
162
101
Melbourne
I have the complete set (bottle holder + mag stirrer) and maybe I got a really bad one, but well, I hate it.

IMO, these are the pros:
  • it can dose with 0.1ml accuracy
  • the ATO sensors seem decent
  • it comes with a lot of tubing, drip dispensers and a bracket

and these are the cons:
  • The whole unit is bulky. There's the listed dimensions and then the quasi DIY DIN connectors on the cables, which effectively add another 40mm (or 25%) to the footprint. Depending on your available space (or DIY skills) this may or may not be a problem.
  • You can't expand it with a slave, so you're limited to 5 heads on the unit
  • The control app (OSX) is not very good and connection is exclusively via bluetooth (which may be a problem on some PCs)
  • My second pump doses 0.3ml if I configure it to dose 6ml over 2 doses (eg. 3ml each). It records the dosage as having dosed 0.6ml for the day. If I configure an amount other than 6ml, it works as intended. This behaviour seriously diminished my faith in the product.
  • My ATO pump died late last year and I requested a replacement from PacSun, which was going to cost me $150AUD for a small DC pump with what appears to be a 6.35mm headphone jack? I presume that other parts will be similarly priced.
  • The bottle holder has a max capacity of 5x 500ml bottles and the bottles are a little awkward to change. I found the frequency of bottle changes to be a nuisance
  • Finally, features such as the temperature sensor are of extremely limited use but they add to the final ticket price. In the event a heater malfunctions, the kore can't turn it off, or interface with something that can. What the Kore can do, is turn on an additional fan accessory to cause evaporation and record the max temp of the day
If I was buying again, I think I would go for the coral box wifi doser, separate ATO and forgot about (or DIY) the mag stirrer.
 

macca_75

Member
Apr 22, 2012
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All good points @Ben Daley and @Wrangy - I know you're a fan

The size isn't an issue for me and I won't be using the ATO/Temp functionality.

I guess what I am after (ideally) is
  • 5 dosing heads (currently dosing Mg, Ca, Alk and manually Vodka. Would love a 5th in case I need to dose nitrates/Lath,etc). 4 would suffice but a spare would be great.
  • Accurate dosing - I like the idea that most units will now dose down to 0.1ml. I can't see me dosing less than 5ml/day of anything - currently vodka @ 2 x 12ml doses is my smallest
  • Monitoring of solution left and alerting (how does the Kore alert you that you are running out of a solution??) Can it send an email or is it only if you check the app?
  • For something like this I am budget conscious. Doesn't mean I want the cheapest unit, but can't afford to go to the top end of the market either.
  • Would like to dose "amounts" of solution per day, not run pumps for xx seconds (like my current marine magic)
At this stage I am not fussed about the magnetic stirrer options and I make solutions up in 9L batches so little 500ml containers aren't going to cut it.

I have separate equipment for heating/cooling/Auto Water Change/ATO. Purely looking at a dosing solution here.

Any other options other than the Coral WiFi I should be looking at?

(Side note: @Ben Daley - are you running the latest firmware? I read something about a bug like this in earlier releases)
 

Ben Daley

/dev/null
Dec 23, 2016
162
101
Melbourne
@macca_75
I think (from memory) that there is a pro and standard version of the Kore, and the pro includes the "extras" such as the ATO temp sensor etc. so perhaps you can get the standard version and save yourself some money on the pro version.

  • how does the Kore alert you that you are running out of a solution?
It won't email you, but you can set a warning level (I think the default is 10%) - if you deplete the reservoir to this level, it will make an audible alarm that persists until you refill the liquid. FYI, the liquid remaining is not determined with a sensor or anything, just computed from how much it dosed.

  • Would like to dose "amounts" of solution per day, not run pumps for xx seconds (like my current marine magic)
Yes, this is how it works - total dose per day (in mls) along with number of doses. You can also offset the time of the dose.

(Side note: @Ben Daley - are you running the latest firmware? I read something about a bug like this in earlier releases)
It's been on the shelf for a while - so quite possibly not. I plan to dust off just the doser for my new build in the near future so will make sure it's up to date.
 

Wrangy

Member
May 7, 2013
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As Ben has said for your needs just get the Standard if you do plan on a Kore as the Pro is all the things you don't need or will use lol And if you don't have a laptop or computer with bluetooth then don't bother lol the only connectivity they have is bluetooth.

You can always look at a Kamoer too :) They're rock solid and the new one's come with 5 heads. They also work on amounts dosed not time. I ran my old Kamoer for 2 years without any issues at all! Kamoer are a medical manufacturer so the doser is for medical standards but they're also cheap as in terms of high quality dosers!
 

macca_75

Member
Apr 22, 2012
2,125
844
Thanks Guys.

So along the lines of not being able to afford it, does anyone have personal experience with the GHL Doser 2? Not budget I guys, but aside from the brand name is using "stepper motors" worth the extra cost? It's only a 4 head unit until you add an expansion (if you do) but the interface looks great and it's pretty well know than the brand/product are built to stand the test of time.

The Kamoer is probably out of my budget I think (really need to do some serious shopping online for prices as I suspect the GHL wouldn't be much cheaper)