Personally id never rely on a controller to run my tank for me the hands on approach works better .. Too many componants to go wrong and they can, Plus the expense and hassle of cleaning probes all the time.
The important stuff to monitor like calcium, magnesium,nitrate, phos,salinity, can be done with the normals routes ie test kits, ... Thats just the approach i take with a reef tank, Not knocking controllers but as above i prefer to write down results this way and by looking at the tank .. I control it myself as it were
I don't understand this kind of opinion. It just doesn't make sense. Addressing the points in order:
1: Hands-on approach works better & too many components.
Uh, no, it doesn't. If you use a controller for what most people use it for -- controlling lights, pumps, monitoring temp/pH and auto-top-off, well, a controller works better. I'm getting an
Apex controller as soon as they ship, and instead of a tangle of cords running into multiple timers (which often get jostled and don't all keep the same time,) they'll all just go into one power strip. I'll run an ATO so I can leave the tank and, y'know, go places, without having to worry about the water level dropping too far in two or three days -- and, of course, an ATO minimizes salinity swings since the water level only drops a tiny amount before it's topped off. And it'll be able to turn on fans if the tank gets too warm during the day. Now, that'll increase evaporation and make me even more glad I have the ATO. And since I normally keep my tank topped off with kalk, the pH monitoring can prevent excessive pH swings by overriding the low-water-level topoff until the pH drops again.
Instead of yanking power cords out to stop the pumps so I can feed the tank, I'll be able to press a button. If that's not both easier and safer, I don't know what is.
2: Probes
I don't really don't know how often you have to clean the probes, but everything I've seen indicates that it's not exactly labor intensive. And I'd much rather have to clean a probe once a month and calibrate it once a year than have to constantly deal with inaccurate, imprecise colorimetric pH tests. *shrug* And having an instant pH readout is fantastically useful.
3: Monitoring, logging results, looking at the tank.
...Huh? Everything that a good controller does can be logged and then uploaded to your computer. You can go back later and figure out that the reason that your corals don't look so hot is 'cause the tank temp got up to 90 when you were at work. So, you actually have a more consistent, accurate, and expansive set of data points for any variable that the controller monitors. This can let you easily observe changes like the pH change that occurs when the lights go on and off, etc.
As to looking at and interacting with the tank, in addition to taking other measurements -- of course the controller doesn't replace these, but if anything, it gives you more time to deal with those tasks and enjoy the tank itself. Not to mention, if you have to spend extended periods of time away from your tank -- even if it's just while you work every day -- it gives you the peace of mind that something'll be there to kick in basic emergency procedures or at least set off an alarm if something goes wrong.
A controller doesn't run your tank for you. However, it'll automate basic tasks, and, if well-set-up and properly maintained, will do a better job of most of these than a human will. It's like having a 24/7 tank-sitter who won't decide the fish look hungry, or go to sleep while the top-off's running. And a controlled system, on anything but the most low-tech tanks, will probably have fewer components on the whole. Plus, some of them can do really neat things like lunar and solar simulations which can help induce natural spawning habits in aquarium inhabitants. While it's technically possible -- indeed, pretty simple -- to do something like that manually, adjusting the timers every day, boy, would that be a PITA. Particularly if you want your fuge illumination to operate opposite your tank illumination.
