timers

[ramonareef]

what are all you guys running for timers for your lights im looking for a nice timer with out spending a ton of money

[swissfish]

big lots has some cheap reliable ones

[swissfish]

Got two of these running, work great: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=40148

It will be on sale soon:D

[ramonareef]

what about digital ones

[pk-sd]

IKEA 2 for $5. Perfect for powerheads for wavemaker, you can switch them on and off every 15 minutes (approx).

[Nick_Kun]

IKEA 2 for $5. Perfect for powerheads for wavemaker, you can switch them on and off every 15 minutes (approx).

Exactly what I use for my tank!

[Dakota]

pretty much any wheel clickie one. I use a heavy duty (3 prong) one for my halides. . . just in case something shorts.... it's nice to have a ground.

[phishphood]

So anyone have any suggestions for a digital one?

[lucubrator]

I remember reading that there was a decent digital timer at walmart made by timex. I think they're $10-15 each. HF's $3 reliable timers are good otherwise. I have three in operation, I know there are 10+ others being used by various people on the board as well.

[jbvdhp]

the digital is more convenient because the time is a little more accurate i suppose. i use the intermatic HD ones. they are good and only a few minutes off; need to be adjusted every now and then. no big deal...

[Reefer Addict]

I remember reading that there was a decent digital timer at walmart made by timex. I think they're $10-15 each. HF's $3 reliable timers are good otherwise. I have three in operation, I know there are 10+ others being used by various people on the board as well.
I use the timex digital timers which I originally bought from Target. Luv them. I used to always screw up the 'wheel' style timers buy bumping into those darn turn on/off pegs. I feel that they are more accurate than the manual 'wheel' version. Another advantage is that they have a backup battery. Which means that you do not have to reset it if there is a power outage or you need to cut power to do some maintenance..

[lucubrator]

the digital is more convenient because the time is a little more accurate i suppose. i use the intermatic HD ones. they are good and only a few minutes off; need to be adjusted every now and then. no big deal...
I've read a lot of people posting that their intermatic timers fail after 1-3months, and that their return policy is worthless. I guess we'll see if they've cleaned up their act.

[swissfish]

just make sure you don't have to reprogram the digital ones after a power failure.
If you are a little kowledgable in elecronics, you can use a micro PLC such as the Siemens LOGO.

[lucubrator]

They look really cool, but how much do they cost?

[CNCreefer]

I've read a lot of people posting that their intermatic timers fail after 1-3months, and that their return policy is worthless. I guess we'll see if they've cleaned up their act.
I have one that's over 3 years old and still works great. No problems whatsoever.
I highly recommend the intermatic or timex digital timers over the old mechanical ones. More accurate, very quiet, when the lights come on all you hear is a faint click, not a loud CLICK and you hear no gear noises either.
I used to use an old mechanical timer to turn the coffeepot on in the morning. The loud click would wake me up every time and half the time it didn't work anyway, even when it turned on.
I had a proctor silex coffeemaker that died a while back. I gutted the digital timer out of it before I tossed it in the dumpster. The clock/timer works fine.

[Reefer Addict]

I was at Target ealier today. The timex digital version that i have are about $14.99 each...

[ramonareef]

yeah i think im going to go to target to get some thanks

[Moloch]

I was at Target ealier today. The timex digital version that i have are about $14.99 each...


On the digital timer you have what is the minimum time you can have them running for? 5 mins, 1 min???

[Reefer Addict]

I believe it is 1 min.

[Moloch]

cool thanks!



I believe it is 1 min.

[Reefer Addict]

They are a bit exspensive but are worth it IMO. I have a world clock in my home office. My two digitial timers have not been off for even 1 minute since I set them to the world clock over 6 months or so... The added advantage is that they have a battery backup during power outages..Or in my case, when I shut down the power strip in order to do some maintenance..