DIY controller
- Thread starter ronc98
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Not to get off the subject of probes...But I do want to just make a comment on my experience with Ron and his aquarium controller. I have had nothing but an excellent experience talking with Ron and purchasing his aquarium controller.
I have been communicating with Ron since October 2005 about the Aquarium controller. I don't know how many times I have e-mailed him with questions and he has answered them promptly and is able to explain everything very well! I may even e-mail him too much about little questions/suggestions/ides - I hope he doesn't mind.
I ordered my aquarium controller kit from him in January and have been taking my time on putting it together. As I've been assembling, I have e-mailed him about 1000 times about the controller and once again he has answered very quickly and with great detail. He definitely knows what he is doing.
There was a delay on getting the outlet PCBs (which was due to a change in the circuit design), but I didn't have a problem with waiting for them since I was still assembling the main PCB. In order to get testing done on my end - he sent me some vector board and LEDs, so that I could still test out the controller! Can it get any better than this? Probably not! Thank you Ron!
If I had to order another one, would I do it? NO QUESTION ABOUT IT! It has been a wonderful experience and an AWESOME project. If anyone is deciding whether or not to buy a kit or a preassembled version - DO SO. You will not regret it - the more people using the controller the better because the hardware end is finished and so software will be advancing even more over time. This controller can do anything you have in mind (related to software). Right now software is being looked at/written so that the status of the tank can be monitored via cell phone - how many other controllers can do that (without having to pay dearly for it?)
Anyways...I just wanted to comment on the experience and THANK Ron once again for the great product!
Thanks,
David
I have been communicating with Ron since October 2005 about the Aquarium controller. I don't know how many times I have e-mailed him with questions and he has answered them promptly and is able to explain everything very well! I may even e-mail him too much about little questions/suggestions/ides - I hope he doesn't mind.
I ordered my aquarium controller kit from him in January and have been taking my time on putting it together. As I've been assembling, I have e-mailed him about 1000 times about the controller and once again he has answered very quickly and with great detail. He definitely knows what he is doing.
There was a delay on getting the outlet PCBs (which was due to a change in the circuit design), but I didn't have a problem with waiting for them since I was still assembling the main PCB. In order to get testing done on my end - he sent me some vector board and LEDs, so that I could still test out the controller! Can it get any better than this? Probably not! Thank you Ron!
If I had to order another one, would I do it? NO QUESTION ABOUT IT! It has been a wonderful experience and an AWESOME project. If anyone is deciding whether or not to buy a kit or a preassembled version - DO SO. You will not regret it - the more people using the controller the better because the hardware end is finished and so software will be advancing even more over time. This controller can do anything you have in mind (related to software). Right now software is being looked at/written so that the status of the tank can be monitored via cell phone - how many other controllers can do that (without having to pay dearly for it?)
Anyways...I just wanted to comment on the experience and THANK Ron once again for the great product!
Thanks,
David
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
EEEK.... lets not get this thread removed for comercial purposes! In other words lets not talk about selling these things!!!
Bean
Bean
ronc98
New member
I have not had alot of time to play with the verneir probes. That is on my list however finishing up the code has taken alot of my time. It is on my list. Connector wise I have not looked into it much . Many of the docs I have read indicates that those probes are mostly BNC type probes. To be honest I would rather then be a 3 pin connector so I can run them in a true diff mode.
Zephrant
Premium Member
I'd like to have 3 TDS probe inputs. One on my input water to see when the TDS spikes on me over the year. One after the RO membrane to check for a breach, and one after the DI resin to tell me when to change the resin.
A pressure transducer input to tell when my pressure tank is out of water (error condition) would be handy too.
Zeph
A pressure transducer input to tell when my pressure tank is out of water (error condition) would be handy too.
Zeph
ronc98
New member
Measuring TDS is rather expensive. The special part of this measurement is in the probe itself. The commerical ones are around 100 dollars and then you have to buy a specific one for the range you are measuring. The difference in the probes have to deal with the distance the plat rings are from one another. The circuity itself is not as simple as say a PH or ORP probe but it not that difficult either.
I do have a conductivity circuit designed and running however I have not implemented it yet into the main PCB. In my original plan I wanted to use to conductivity probes on in the main tank to measure salinity and the other on the RO/DI to detect when the DI unit was exhausted.
I do have a conductivity circuit designed and running however I have not implemented it yet into the main PCB. In my original plan I wanted to use to conductivity probes on in the main tank to measure salinity and the other on the RO/DI to detect when the DI unit was exhausted.
douggiestyle
New member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7065671#post7065671 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Zephrant
Oh, and "tags" are deleted when I find them, but thanks for posting the reminder.
Thanks-
Zeph
you are a moderator, so i guess you have the authority.
will try to always subscribe instead.
BeanAnimal
Premium Member
RON.
Why not purchase a few of the $35 dual inline TDS meters? They have drive a digital display, and therefore MUST have some type of output thtat we can interface into?
Bean
Why not purchase a few of the $35 dual inline TDS meters? They have drive a digital display, and therefore MUST have some type of output thtat we can interface into?
Bean
Runner
Active member
Neat little project here. I keep thinking about doing something similar, but then I look at the old Automation Direct PLC at work and an old copy of Wonderware with an ancient license at home and think I might go that route instead...
You should see a thread where "tagging" got really out of hand...
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=356975
Yep. They do that from time-to-time.
You should see a thread where "tagging" got really out of hand...
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=356975
ronc98
New member
I thought about buying a cheaper TDS and interfacing into it. I do not like the probe setup on the cheaper units since most of those are two probes that stick down. They tend to drift and foul alot in an oline type application. I figured if I was going to do this just use a good probe and do it the right way. But you could do it cheaply with a cheap TDS and hack into it, just might not be to stable.
The right way to do this is to use a four electrode setup. These are much more resistent to fouling.
The right way to do this is to use a four electrode setup. These are much more resistent to fouling.
ronc98
New member
I am updating the manual and thought you guys might want to check a graph of the log file.
The top graph is the Temp of the tank and the temp of the room
The middle graph shows the Tank PH and the PH in the Calc reactor. Control of the calc reactor is being done with the controller
The bottom graph is the ORP. I have run Ozone in the past however at this point I turned it off.
Here is the first page of the Log data in statistical format
The top graph is the Temp of the tank and the temp of the room
The middle graph shows the Tank PH and the PH in the Calc reactor. Control of the calc reactor is being done with the controller
The bottom graph is the ORP. I have run Ozone in the past however at this point I turned it off.
Here is the first page of the Log data in statistical format
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