Liquid Level Indicator

B

bobn

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I'm going to add a liquid level indicator to my holding, and fresh water tank. I'm considering either the Raritan 1510012, which can monitor 4 tanks for $281, or a Scad monitor which can monitor 8 tanks for $288 with two sensors. A comparison test by Practical-Sailor rated the Scad better based mainly on its accuracy above the Raritan and noted Raritan's poor tech support.

I'd like to hear any experience with either of these, good or bad. Or any other brand for that matter. Thanks for all the replies.
 
If your tanks are plastic or fiberglass you may want to check out the Snake River Electronics website. The sensors stick to the outside of the tanks. Had one on last boat and worked fine. I think the model that will moniter up to 3 tanks is about $160.00. Not hard to install.
Good luck.
Ron
 
I love the 4 tank Raritan system I have. Bad tech support are they kidding? I have always been able to get a knowledgable person from tech support on the phone at Raritan. I monitor 2 water tanks and 1 holding tank they are Poly's. The installation is a breeze all wiring and sensors are outside of the tanks. Bill
 
Poor Tech Support? I'd like to know whom they dealt with at Raritan - I'm the primary guy in Raritan's Tech Support Department, and I get precious few complaints (that I know of)!

Bob, any shot of you copying that Prac Sailor article and faxing it to me? I'd sure like to read it. Fax: (856) 825-4409.
 
I will personally stick up for Vic and Raritan's service. Not only can you get him on the phone but he is also on this board. It's rare a question doesn't get answered by him within a day (on the board) and he even helps people with products that Raritan doesn't make! Vic I don't blame you for wanting to see the article. Bill
 
I've emailed Vic and advised him that I've printed a copy of the article and will fax it to him when I get to the office tommorrow. I want to be clear I wasn't offering an opinion regarding Raritan's support, I was simply stating what the article stated. I'm not sure if I saved the URL for the article. If I did I'll try to post it here tomorrow. If this helps it's Practical-Sailor.com, volume 32, number 2, Feb 2008, Marine holding-tank sensors: How do you know when the black water level is at red alert?
 
I reread my original post and noted I used "noted Raritan's poor tech support". The article stated the following
"We found it's tech support and website to be lacking"
When I wrote the original post I paraphased. Maybe "poor tech support" was a poor choice of words.
 
Thanks Bob; if you haven't already faxed the article to me, don't bother - I printed it out and studied it. Seems that their major gripe about Raritan Tech Support is that it isn't available on weekends. They didn't come right out and say it, but they did mention that Scad Solo has Tech Support phone availability 7/365.

We get courtesy copies of PS, and I'm amazed that I hadn't seen that article earlier, seeing as how it was published nearly a year ago. Beyond the Tech Support issue, the Raritan Tank Monitor seemed to stack up fairly well against the competition in the other categories.
 
Everybody has a tech support section. Only Raritan has a "Vic" Support section. Can't be beat in my opinion.
 
Vic,

That article also says "Raritan plans this spring to release a new monitor, so stay tuned for its
review in an update to this test." Is there a new and improved version? What is on the Raritan web site looks the same to me.

Thanks,
Erich
 
Nothing against Vic or Raritan. Have not used their product.

But I have used Snake Rivers, a liked it a lot. Very easy to install and has worked for years with no problems.
 
quote:
Originally posted by dumy

If your tanks are plastic or fiberglass you may want to check out the Snake River Electronics website.
Click to expand...


OK, the three tank LED system looks good to me but who sells them besides direct?
 
The Snake River unit and Raritan's Tank Monitor system are essentially the same.

Raritan's "new" tank monitor which just came out, can be found here:

www.raritaneng(dot)com/store/page9.html

It requires the control head plus one I/O box (sensor included) for each tank.
 
Vic,

If these units are basically the same, it would cost about twice as much (224 + 91) for the Raritan "old" model for 3 tanks (which is what I have) than the Snake River unit (160) which comes with 3 tank sensors. The new Raritan appears to be even more expensive than the old, especially based on the list prices shown at that link.

Erich
 
OK, I decided on the Sensa Tank system because it uses individual sensors rather than strips of foil and my "V" shaped holding tank has a metal fitting in the center of the top edge.

The system indicated "full" even though the tank was empty. I contacted the manufacturer and learned that "deposits" on the inside tank wall can give a false reading.

I cut a hole in the top of the tank for a 4" screw in access plate and cleaned the inside of the tank. It works fine now. I suppose I'll have to clean it every now and then but with the access plate, it won't be a problem.
 
Erich, everything you said is correct. The "old" Raritan Tank Monitor is very similar to the Snake River model.

The "new" Raritan Tank Monitor works on air pressure, and can be used on fuel tanks and metal tanks. The older version is for plastic or fiberglass tanks only.
 
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