Must-haves for EASY DIY controller?

Just like to say thanks to those who have contributed to this project. I finished mine today, and I don't even have a reef (freshwater!) :D The instructions were all easy to follow even for someone who has never soldered anything before.

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Now on to the fun of programming it!

Also, I know there was some discussion of enclosures earlier, anyone have one that is working well for this project?
 
Great work Hamato! Glad you found the instructions helpful. Please do share your progress when you have the controller all setup.

For case, I've tried searching for a few cases, but nothing is a good fit so far. Mine just hangs on the side from a hook on the top of my electrical cabinet :)
 
the +5V regulator does get a bit warm, but unless the enclosure is heat insulating I wouldn't worry much about it.

The board almost fits in a Box 26K9019 enclosure, but it will require a bit of modification of the layout and I'm not sure if it is worth it as the IO part of the controller will be tough to get out in just 2 sides.

I've been thinking of playing around a bit with the board to try and set it up for that enclosure but never really sat down to do it.

Edit: Maybe something like the Box B2-160 or B3-160 will work (4.7 x 6.3) but will have quite a bit space in them.
 
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I considered shapeways for custom 3d printing, but i looks like it would between $50-100 for a custom case. It would be cool, but too expensive.
 
Where are the instructions exactly? I might be considering this, but I have a pico tank. However I will be getting a larger tank setup (still nano) and wish to try this technology out for myself.
 
That tank is a long way off. As it is, I am using my pico as an experimental tank. I really want to get LED sunrise/set thing going on in that. then at some point repeat/ transfer what I learned to a larger project.

edit: thanks for the link. This looks like fun.
 
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Looks like it should do it, but you will have to use the relay expansion board minus the transistors or build your own board with an MCP23008 and 8 x 10k resistors.
 
It might. It doesn't say what is the rating on the relays, but by the size of them, they might be fine. I wouldn't get it though, because not all specs are available.
 
They are 10A with a 5V coil. The datasheet link is at the bottom of the description.

Also, it appears I was wrong about the control. It looks like the board has the resistors built in. You should be able to drive it directly with a 5v source and the outputs from an MCP23008.

As for the quality of it, that's anyone's guess...
 
finished my hydra the other day everything worked great. Loaded hello world came up fine "this is hydraaaa. Let it run over night. When I unplug the usb bub It shuts off at leased the LCD shuts down hooked a nine volt power supply made no difference any ideas.
 
I don't know your skill level so forgive me if this is something you already know. Do you have the right polarity on the incoming power to the board from your 9v supply? Is the red indicator LED on the board lighting up?
 
Thanks for being polite. Skill level is low. However The red led is on both with the 9v or the bub. I need to get a better meter from work. What is the best way to meter the +5 reg?. Yes it seems to work just with the bub much dimmer and stays on 0:0:0. But when I add in the 9v with the bub seems to work great. Readable and counting
 
Seems like there might be a short/bad joint or something. The BUB will power mine just fine. Do you have a pic of your board?

I would try what TeraHz suggested and test your incoming power and power going out of your 5v regulator with a meter.
 
Sounds to me like it is trying to draw too much power. Check all your parts again and look for really fine solder connections where they should not be (hair thin).
 
On Mar 16 I ordered the Ethernet Jacks from Hong Kong and some other things from SparkFun. The package from Hong Kong came yesterday and the package from SparkFun came today. Pretty good service from Hong Kong huh? :thumbsup:
 
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