auto top diy plan

[Guest]

i was thinking of making my own.

2 thick wires located at your desired cutoff point can provide a tiny sensing current carried by the water that holds a relay open. if the wires are wet the circuit works if water is lower then the relay returns to normally closed which powers a solenoid valve ripped from a dead washing machine. water fills until it hits the wires then the sense current opens relay of the solenoid circuit and water stops.

for safety:
-running a 2nd relay in series to prevent disaster from relay failure.
-running a 2nd solenoid valve after the first prevents disaster from stuck valves.
-the sensor current , relay and solenoid should all be powered from the same origin and packaged together to prevent disaster from sensor /relay only power failure that would allow the relay to fall to its normally on position which mistakenly powers the solenoid valve forever. a wall transformer used for sensor supply should be hard wired somehow and not permitted to get knocked out of socket.
-the sensor wires must be fixed firmly in position because knocking or moving them would cause the solenoid to stay on forever. inserted into a pvc pipe approx 2x the height of the tank loosley clamped to the adjacent wall would allow the pipe to slide up and out for tank maintenence.
-another emergency sensor wire /relay combo at very top of tank level cuts solenoid power at some point between the solenoid and its primary power relay in case of unforseen high water level due to whatever we havent thought of yet.
- and again a pairing the emergency relay through a 2nd would prevent disaster from this emergency relays possible failure.


would someone think it though and let me know if theres a hole in the plan somewhere?

 

[Guest]

somewhat afraid to start with that plan i'm making an LED fuel guage now to see levels and provide a safe remote fill from a button swtch.

a bundle of 9 solid insulated wires cut at equally staggered lengths spannnig the height of your
tank carry tiny current thru water from wire 1 to wire 2,3,4 etc. creating upto 8 wet circuits that light upto 8 LEDs on my 8 LED fuel guage.


as in my autofill plan, rigid sensor wire mounting and position is needed to be consistent or dependable.
i can then press a momentary button switch to engauge a relay for the solenoid valve and fill it to the desired LED, 3-4 times a day even from my computer chair.

LED circuits 1-2 ,7-8 can also have a warning buzzer
for low and high level audible warnings.

once this is working as a backup then the autofill plan wont be as dangerous or scary.

 

[HIDEyourBUD]

If you have a properly working float switch, you won't need the fuel level guage. Save your money and/or time and buy a float valve. They are easy to install and mine has worked consistantly for the last year without any problems.

 

[mushupork5]

a float valve is a much easier option, cool concept, but seems like it would be hard to prototype and get working as well as a float valve does.

 

[Guest]

sure hope that lil float thingy dont get stuck with a leaf in it or something...
if it does..overflow city at your grow.
running 2 in series would make that unlikely tho.

and i wouldnt want to run 120vac thru that thing so close to the water. to be safe you should run it from a 3,6,12v wall transformer that actuates a relay for any AC powered pumps or solenoids.

 

[Guest]

so anyways has anyone tried coper wire in a nute rez?
does it get ate up with corrsion quickly or what.

 

[kusherberry]

float valve is the best look at your toilet tank it works for years with alot of prasher coming out frome your home pips, just conect to a rez tank and youll be ok

 

[Guest]

toilet tanks have an overflow drain and lots of peoples toilet valves leak but they dont notice or care because it just drains directly out the
overflow and only adds a couple dollars to their water bill. those are really a differnet subject they are float valves and we are talking float swtches.

safety is the first concern for someone that grows hydro upstairs because it will ruin the flooring, walls and ceiling below as well as possibly get u busted. no matter what device i think running
2 in series is really important if you dont have an overflow drain to catch the overfill from a failed
single switch or relay or solenoid or valve.

 

[kusherberry]

http://www.giplindia.com/domestic-RO.htm

 

[Guest]

nice valve... expensive looking.
i think the solenoid valves from the dead washing
machine will work ok. i've now got 2 so i'll run one thru the other that way if one sticks open the other will still stop the flow.

 

[MTF-Sandman]

^^You could also just install an overflow drain in your res instead of a second float valve...that way if the float valve sticks, it'll just run to waste...

 

[Guest]

cutting holes or drilling into a cheap rubbermaid knockoff tub would be asking for trouble i think.

 

[Guest]

woops double post

 

[The Dopest]

this is my reserve, its only 5gals and my closet is outside so i had to improvise. i hooked up a tee to the icemaker behind the refrigerator then ran 75' of 1/4" food grade line through the attic to the closet out back where i hooked it into that valve on the right. the float on the left tells it when to open and close to keep my reserve topped off. i have a manual float valve in my control to top off from reserve when needed. i got this lil autotopper setup on ebay but here is a link to similar products. gl

http://www.aquahub.com/store/autotopoffcomp.html

btw mine runs at 24vdc with a transformer.

 

[Guest]

i guess what i like about the sensor wires is that with the fuel guage method i described i can connect the solenoid relay to whichever LED "level" i want to fill to so i very easily get 8 water level fill settings or more as many as i want to add sensor wires for.. seems easier than making an adjusting jig to mount the float switcheds or valves on.
with float switches or just a pair of wires you have to move them to adjust the level somehow.
the wires will also be very easy pull out of the tank for cleaning and dont need much to affix them to tank or nearby wall.
and one other thing.. once all this is tested and working the next project can be a similar rig for adding nutes.

electric control of a nutes mix has advantage over floats because it can be driven remotely in timed duration by adjusting the number of seconds fill time and delay between fills etc.
install a relay controlled drain pump and add extender wires to your nutes meter to put it in front your webcam and you can almost run the thing nute changes and all from another state via internet or telephone. ..and it really didnt require a systems engineer and a government research grant.