ACIII Operation

[jnarowe]

Rather than bug Curt again, maybe I can get some help here? I was so proud that we got my wireless connection set up and the ACIII Pro and my PC were communicating well.

Unfortunately I have one small problem: Although I am getting tank status, reports, etc. and can change the ACIII program via my PC which is evident by scrolling through the ACIII program on the unit itself, the unit is not communicating to the tank devices.

I checked all the cable connections, power, etc. and cannot figure out why. I tested program changes and while they appear to be fine on the unit, there is no affect on the equipment. I also tried to manual over-ride a few items but that had no effect either.

Anyone have any ideas on how to troubleshoot this? Thanks!!!

 

[Bumzyman]

Are you using X10 modules or DC modules?

If X10, are your tank devices all on the same power circuit? Is the PLC Interface (the one with the phone cord that connects to the IIIPro) connected on the same power circuit as the tank device modules?

If your X10 devices are on different power circuits you probably need to install a bridge capacitor at your circuit breaker box to bridge the two phases so the signals reach the other circuits.

 

[jnarowe]

Thanks for your reponse!

Good question and I should have explained in my original post that I am using three DC4HDs and one DC8 so it is not an issue of being on different circuits.

 

[Bumzyman]

Ok, In the case of using DC's you want to make sure that your IN's and OUT's are all going the right way. ie: connect the AC to the IN of the first DC and then connect the out of that first DC to the IN of the next and so on.

The other thing to double check is the dip switch settings on the bottom of the DC. Make sure that no two DC modules have the same setting and that you are infact addressing the port you think you are.

For example: If your first DC is a DC4 and set up with all the switches in the UP position then you would address those ports as A1 A2 A3 and A4 starting from the top left outlet. Like so.......

A1 A2
A3 A4

Remember a DC8 is going to use 8 addresses so be careful that the address you choose doesn't overlap with one of your DC4's. I don't have a DC8 but my best guess is that if all the switches are in the UP position it would use A1-A8. Double check your doc on that one though.

OH, and another big thing to check if your not using the provided phone cords to connect the DC modules is the polarity. You can't use a straight through cable, it must be flipped on one end. This drove me nuts. I ended up emailing Curt to find this out because I never thought to check the pin configuration on the supplied cables.

 

[jnarowe]

OK... so I have already checked the communication cables about 5 times. I have already checked the dip switches even more times. I set the DC4HDs to all be "A" and the DC8 to be "B". One question I thought of was would there be a conflict if the DC8 with the "B" setting were first in the communication cable series but I just don't think that would matter.

Now, about the phone cords...I am using one that didn't come with the system since I had an extra long run and that substitute is the first one in the series so maybe that's it. When I talked to Curt about the length issues stated in the manual and the large distance I need to cover, he told me that the manual is old and the distances have been extended, but he never mentioned the pin configuration issue. He said I could use any phone cord if I needed to. (or at least that is what i thought he said.)

So what I am going to do is move the cables around and see if I get a change. If so, I'll have to get a proper cable since I have one run that is 10 feet and I am using 2 Neptune cables coupled for the longest run.

I'll check back with results in a while. Thanks for your help!!

 

[jnarowe]

Checked it out and I see what you mean by the wires being reversed. Seems strange to me. I also see that one of the wires they sent me has 4 leads and the others only have 2.

Anyway, I switched around wires thinking I had found the solution but it didn't work. Still no response from any of the units. I tried a couple different configurations to make sure. Now I really don't know what to do!

Is there a way to get the connectors off one of these telephone cables to switch the leads around?

 

[Bumzyman]

I think you need to have 4 wires inside all the cables. The ones with just 2 may not work. I remember Curt saying something about 2 pairs in one of his emails when he was helping me with my wiring issues. You may want to call or email him to double check.

Unfortunately the ends are crimped on so all you can do is cut the end off and crimp a new connector on.

Try connecting just one DC unit to your controller with the cable that has 4 conductors and then go into the controllerââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s manual control menu and see if you can get one of the outlets to operate. Plug a lamp or something into the outlet so you can see if itââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢s working because you may or may not hear the relay click. If you canââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢t get a single DC working at this very basic level then you may need to have your controller checked out.

 

[jnarowe]

I have to give you my heartfelt thanks! It was the communication lines. Only two that I have are 4 lead wires so I need to get the correct ones. Once I got a 4-lead between the controller and the DC8 it all started working.

Thanks again for your patience and help!

 

[Bumzyman]

Iââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢m glad I could be of some help and happy that it was just a minor detail holding you back. Let me know if you ever start, or have already started a thread documenting your 1000g reef. I'm getting ready to start one for my 535 once I get some free time to get all the pictures together.

 

[jnarowe]

Click on the Red House to see my thread!