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Dosing pump on a budget. Jebao DP-4


cliff

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So, I found this pump on ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/JEBAO-DP-4-PROGRAMMABLE-AUTO-DOSING-PUMP-4-CHANNEL-VERSION-2/252471428450?_trksid=p2047675.c100623.m-1&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D37470%26meid%3Dc2cb61f2e2aa4a1fbe653b833ec0f77c%26pid%3D100623%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D161822492190

I read some reviews and everyone is saying great things about it! I figured I would give it a try. 70 bucks for a 4 channel pump?!? It will be here Wednesday and I will post an update after I play with it. Anyone here ever used this pump. Thoughts? I know the rule of thumb is you get what you pay for, but I dont have $200 that I want to spend on a dosing pump. Hopefully someone here has this pump and can throw some input in.

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My neighbor has been using this pump for about 6 months without any issues. his main complaint is having to check the levels in the bottles now. Those 1.5gal vinegar jugs from costco/sams are perfect for this :)

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Got the pump in yesterday. Only had about 30 minutes to play with it. Super easy to set up.

Programming : My complaint (not a big problem) is how long it takes to set up. If your only dosing twice a day on two channels you only have to set 28 different dates and times.Yes. You have to set dates and times individually. There is no every 6hrs, Or every 12 hrs options. So that sucks. But...it's very easy and once you have it set up there is a capacitor inside that will save your settings for a power outage or so you can program from the comfort of your couch then move it to the tank.

Calibrating. Easy. (200 ml container needed) select the channel. Press the up arrow. The screen will display "100ml = X" X starts county up when you hit the up arrow. When it has dosed 100mls, press the up arrow again. Done. My channel one came out to 100ml=216. Very easy to do this step.

Accuracy : very accurate. It uses an internal calculator programmed from the calibration. As stated above It will show when calibrating, 100ml = (200-300 depending on the specific pump head). I calibrated it then pumped 100 ml 3 times in a row. On the dot. I have nothing to worry about when it comes to accuracy.

Durability: this is where " you get what you pay for" comes into play. Yes. It is very light weight, mostly plastic, and feels cheap. However when you look at how these work, a strong frame doesn't seem necessary. Inside the pump head there are 3 plastic cylinder rollers squeezed inside a plastic cap. A rubber hose squeezes between the rollers and the cap and while it spins, the rollers push the liquid through the rubber hose. It's hard to explain (will post pictures when I get home). All in all this is a calculator hooked to 3 small spinning motors. Doesn't need to weigh a lot or be droppable in my opinion.

Longevity : I have no earthly idea...that will be an update 6 months and 12 months from now. I read a post on an expensive apex doser sticking open and dumping a gallon of alk in a tank and nuking it...so that's just a risk we're going to have to accept (cheap or expensive) if we don't want to hand dose.

So. If money is no object. Don't get this pump for the plain and simple fact of programming it taking so long. However, if you reef on a budget like me. This is defiantly the most bang for your buck.

Pictures to follow soon.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Sorry I have not got pictures up yet, pump is still running good. Im dosing Calcium 10ml every 4 hrs for a total of 60ml calcium. 12am,4am,8am,12pm,4pm,8pm. Alk is dosing 10ML every 4 hrs for a total of 60 ml a day. 2am,6am,10am,2pm,6pm,10pm. Everyone is happy. corals,fish,me and the wife... took me a total of 20 minutes to program. Good purchase.

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  • 2 years later...

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