Automated Self-Maintaning fresh water aquarium

[Aquabot]

Hello everyone,
I am a student at Devry University. My colleagues and I are building an automated aquarium for our senior project. We propose to build a device that will monitor certain variables in an aquarium such as PH balance, temperature, O2, etc. Our device will perform proper adjustments to keep the aquarium in a stable environment according to the user’s settings. I need your help. I need to know what you would like to see in a this product. I have created a survey that will take only a minute to complete. The link to the survey is as follows:

http://FreeOnlineSurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?id=78596

I would appreciate your help and advice. Thanks!

--Ched

 

[Kasakato]

Now where have I see that before?

 

[cdawson]

sorry Aquabot, there are too many things that can go wrong and too many parameters that need to be met. It's literally impossible to create a self sustaining aquarium. Even public aquarium displays need to be manually maintained and they have automatic water changes that happen once an hour. It's a nice thought, but I think you and your colleagues are a little too far sighted.

 

[Aquabot]

Thanks for your thoughts and concerns cdawson. My peers and I are currently brainstorming and thinking of ideas how we may create such a device. We understand that this is not an easy feat. What our device offer is to ease the labor that us, fish owners, have to go through to take care of our fishes. We understand that fish owners need to continue to look after their fishes. We are not proposing to make an automated device so we may ignore our fishes. That would take out the fun of caring for our pets. We simply want to extend a helping hand to our fellow fish hobbyists.

 

[Blinky]

I'm impressed that you're trying to do this, and I'm sure it will be a great project, but the idea is completely unappealing to me as a hobbyist.
In a well-maintained tank, pH, O2, CO2, etc. don't really need constant watching/tinkering, and for me maintenance isn't really a chore - it's more a time to take a really close look at all the inhabitants (while they take a close look - and nibble - at my hand ) and make sure they're thriving, and check that all the equipment is in good order. It takes very little time, and I wouldn't trade that part of my day for anything .

 

[Lazersniper]

I'd have to agree with the other posters. Honestly, the only way an already stable tank is going to be come unstable is if we the owners actually does something out of the ordinary to it (no water changes, no feeding etc), or if something uncontrolable should happen like a power outage.

The different elements you listed can already be easily monitored, and for the most part easily adjusted. The only concern is cost, but if you're thinking about a machine that can fix all of these things, it would certainly cost more then just buying the individual unit that you need. As cdawson stated there are a lot of elements that you'd have to be accountable for, and then you'd be stuck with too much stuff in the machine that some people may not use but are paying for.

In agreement with Blinky, the time spent with the fish/maintaining the fish tank is peace of mind. Whether I'm changing out the water, glancing at the thermometer, or simply watching my fish it's all the same. No matter how long it takes, or how daunting the task, in the end it's enjoyed.

 

[Remmy]

as blinky said, i too enjoy doing tank maintenance, and personally wouldnt trust a machine/device to do it
however it may appeal to certain crowds who find maintenance a chore or have a great amount of tanks to care for
goodluck either way

 

[labont865]

I for one, say good luck and I hope you succeed! I can see a unbelievably huge market for a product like this!
People who simply dont have the time to deal with their tanks everyday, but still love to have them. Will be absolutely thrilled with this product. I dont think the intention should be or is to completely replace the need for a human to maintain the tank but mainly as assistance for that human in maintaining the tank. People have dabled with this idea for years and there are a few product out there already, but none are meant to do 100% of any of the work, but to aid the human in maintaining their tank properly without having to spend an hour a day doing maintenance. If I had a machine that would check water perameters every few hours and would inform me or even add the needed cemicals to the tank to balance it out and maintain temp, PH, or that could even do a small water change if needed. My life would be very much easier.
I hope you have success with this and hope you will keep us updated with your progress.

 

[JSchmidt]

The stuff I check regularly: pH, temp, KH, GH, nitrates and fish activity/behavior. I don't know how you could automate monitoring fish behavior, but the others would be pretty easy. I also think that, in my case, I'd want to make sure replacement water matched tank water on these parameters (e.g., I mod my water for african cichlids; an automated system would have to add buffers appropriately for new water).

I don't see anything particularly blasphemous about such a gadget. Lots of us have all sorts of time- and effort-saving devices. I enjoy tank maintenance, but there's alway plenty to do; if something saves time from one task, I'll just do something else that needs to be done. Now if only someone could find a way to clean my mechanical filter media automatically...

Jim

 

[Murphster]

I've designed and built a system that automatically prepares a mix of r/o and well water (I use a 70%/30% ratio) and keeps it in a heated holding bin. The system then will transfer the prepared water to the wet/dry sump when the sump level becomes too low either from evaporative loss or when I do a water change. I've got a 90g tank and the system prepares about 10g so all I have to do is break out my syphon and remove a couple of 5g buckets of water. As I do, the prepared, heated water is automatically transferred. Level sensors in both the sump and holding bin control the solenoids and pumps used to accomplish the automation. I've been using this for several months now and it works very well. While this system does not monitor water perameters, it does reduce the amount of labor required to do water changes which, to me, are the largest hassle in caring for my tank.