Automated Reef Controller Build

[Vancouver Reefer]

Hi all,

 

Well after months and months of research i have finally ordered my parts for my DIY reef controller.

 

Due to my living arrangements at the moment, i cant setup up my tank yet, but it does give me time to play, building my fully automated tank controller. Its been 10 years since i did any digital programming, but being an ex-electronics engineer, has given me the excitement of learning something new while making a great toy for my future reef.

 

So here is the outline of my tank controllers requirements:-

 

Aurduino controller

 

Full automatic top off with high and low level float switches with timer so prevent pump sticking on and diluting water.

 

Fully automated water change using hi/lo float switches with auto drain and fill capability.

 

Full control of salt mixing/heating container for water changes.

 

16x4 LCD display for tank parameters.

 

Time and date stamp

 

LED light build with PWM control for fade in/out settings.

 

PWM control of heat sink cooling fans to be controlled by heat sink mounted temperature IC.

 

Water PH and Temp input and display on LCD.

 

A floor flooding sensor which will cut power to all external pumps but leave tank internal pumps working.

 

Communication with PC for real time monitoring with possible internet capability.

 

Battery backup system to keep circ pumps and tank heater operational in a power outage.

 

 

 

Future options include:

 

SMS text alert for alarms or out of range parameters.

PWM control for dosing pumps.

 

 

 

This is going to be a great challenge, but by working on one piece of the puzzle at a time, will hopefully bring together a complete AIO unit. The joys of not having a tank yet, allow me to play with no pressure and fully test every part of the system before it gets fitted to my reef.

 

Im a visual person so ill post as many pics as possible to keep everyone updated on the progress and will hopefully end up with a great thread for anyone else to follow.

 

Parts arriving soon!!!!

 

Vancouver Reefer

[evilc66]

Sounds fun. I have had fun playing with my Arduino unit. Easy to get going, and pretty powerful.

[Vancouver Reefer]

Sounds fun.

I have had fun playing with my Arduino unit. Easy to get going, and pretty powerful.

 

 

 

 

 

After reading all the posts on here and other forums i decided on the Arduino for its cost, simplicity and the amount of information on the Arduino website. Programming is going to be great fun but i know there is going to be times when im going to need to get some help on it! I suppose if it was easy it would be no fun!!

[Azfishguy]

Sounds futuristic. Going to be quite a challenge. Im still in aww that your going to have it do automated water changes. I guess this way you just sit back and watch the tank and do almost no work.

[John7429]

Wow. That is quite a large plate to tackle.

 

I'll be watching this!

[DrCooper]

sounds hard but amazing

best of luck

[Vancouver Reefer]

There does sound alot to it but if you break it down into individual projects and then bring them all together into one unit it does'nt sound so complex. ( Well thats what i keep telling myself!! ) I think the hardest part of it, is going to be the PH addition. I havent found much info out there on incorporating or writing the code for this but im sure it will work out in the end.

 

As for the automated water changes, i will still be there when it happens. It will consist of a tank of salt mix already prepared the day before. Then i will press a button to start a drain pump. This will pull out tank water into a drain tank until a low level switch activates, this will then stop the drain pump and then activate the salt mix pump which will then pump the new water back into the tank until the upper ATO/AWC float switch makes. This will then shut off the salt mix pump and voila, water change complete. All i have to do then will be to empty the drain tank and replenish the salt mix tank with a new batch of salt and RO, and at the same time top up the ATO tank.

 

Here is a pic of the 3 holding tank setup inside the stand of a BC29 and schematics of the outline of the project:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/xpko4...feat=directlink

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/D7sT_...feat=directlink

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/uZJfy...feat=directlink

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/op6GM...feat=directlink

 

I hope the pics work - first time posting pics on here!

 

I like neat aquarium setups so all of the pumps and equipment is going to be hidden in the back compartment of the BC 29 and in the stand.

 

VR

[neanderthalman]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The operating principle of your AWC is identical to mine. I have the circuit details (relay based) in my 40B thread if helps you out. Looking forward to seeing this project in action.

[Vancouver Reefer]

haha thats funny Neanderthalman.

 

It does sound similar now ive read yours. Ive done alot of work with PLC's and relays so it was easy to knock up a design for it.

 

Rather than use 2 high level switches, in mine i have gone for one and a 555 timer circuit to only allow the pump to stay on for a limited amount of time. I thought about the 2 high level switch idea but i liked the idea of getting my brain working using electronics.

 

As soon as my parts arrive ill put more posts up. Its going to take a while to get the code right for the Arduino, but once it gets sorted i think it will work great.

 

 

Have you had your AWC working for long and have you made any more mods to it since you implemented it?

 

VR

[neanderthalman]

haha thats funny Neanderthalman.

 

It does sound similar now ive read yours. Ive done alot of work with PLC's and relays so it was easy to knock up a design for it.

 

Rather than use 2 high level switches, in mine i have gone for one and a 555 timer circuit to only allow the pump to stay on for a limited amount of time. I thought about the 2 high level switch idea but i liked the idea of getting my brain working using electronics.

 

As soon as my parts arrive ill put more posts up. Its going to take a while to get the code right for the Arduino, but once it gets sorted i think it will work great.

 

 

Have you had your AWC working for long and have you made any more mods to it since you implemented it?

 

VR

 

Yeah, I tossed in a simple RC timer as well for the same purpose....but I already have the extra switch, and when it comes to preventing accidents, I am all about redundancy. Comes with the job

 

The 555 timer is also a good idea, but I already had the parts for the RC timer....so why bother?

 

I haven't had it operating on a live tank yet. I simulated the circuit before building it, and have a working prototype on a breadboard (replaced pumps with lights). Months ago, it was set it aside temporarily while I complete my tank build, as it will be necessary for a field test. No mods seemed necessary during testing.

 

I just finished installing the float switches in the sump literally twenty minutes ago. I'll be filling with saltwater in the next couple of days, and I'll give 'er a first field test then. Expect a new DIY thread documenting it all once I have a successful test - I plan to record the first test on video.

 

Best of luck, after reading a bit about this arduino controller it sounds a bit easier than the PIC programming I worked with on previous AWC versions. Plus...open source. . If I were planning to incorporate more than ATO/AWC, I'd be looking for a solution similar to what you're working with. For now, a few relays makes for a good DIY, meets the project needs, and is easily replicable by others in the community.

[e12pilot]

Sounds cool, and I have been interested in this for some time now.

 

How are you planning on doing the pH and temp probes? I was thinking encapsulating a couple 1-Wire temp sensors (dirt cheap) and making a redundant probe system/heater control (multiple independent probes), but was wondering on the waterproofing that would be required.

 

Not sure how to implement the pH probe though?

 

It looks like you could get a nice controller going with redundant temp sensors, X10 for power control, ethernet shield, and controller for well under the price of a new Aquacontroller 3. Also, you could probably integrate a conductivity probe in there as well, but not sure about IO inputs on the Arduino.

 

Cool idea!

[neanderthalman]

Sounds cool, and I have been interested in this for some time now.

 

How are you planning on doing the pH and temp probes? I was thinking encapsulating a couple 1-Wire temp sensors (dirt cheap) and making a redundant probe system/heater control (multiple independent probes), but was wondering on the waterproofing that would be required.

 

Not sure how to implement the pH probe though?

 

It looks like you could get a nice controller going with redundant temp sensors, X10 for power control, ethernet shield, and controller for well under the price of a new Aquacontroller 3. Also, you could probably integrate a conductivity probe in there as well, but not sure about IO inputs on the Arduino.

 

Cool idea!

 

It looks like the arduino accepts only 0-5V inputs...so all or most inputs, not just conductivity, will require an external bridge circuit.

 

There's also a galvanostat that someone has already created which could probably be cannibalized for a conductivity probe.....for all I know it's also using a bridge. http://dansteingart.com/ardustat/

 

 

 

 

 

I'm starting to think I ought to pick up a board for experimentation purposes.....this is bringing back some good memories.

[e12pilot]

Looks like there is at least one pH probe out there that work under 5v:

 

"The pH Sensor will produce a voltage of 1.75 volts in a pH 7 buffer. The voltage

will increase by about 0.25 volts for every pH number decrease. The voltage will

decrease by about 0.25 volts/pH number as the pH increases."

 

From here: http://www2.vernier.com/booklets/ph-bta.pdf

 

Probe is $74 (little on the high end): http://www.vernier.com/probes/ph-bta.html

 

Not sure how that would connect to the Arduino, however I am sure it would be possible.

[121a]

good luck, looking forward watching this thread!

[e12pilot]

Vernier seems to have a pretty good selection of probes/sensors:

 

http://www.vernier.com/probes/index.html

 

Not the best prices, but some of them are fairly well documented....the salinity probe looks interesting, just not sure how it's inputs/outputs work in terms of analog voltage. The docs don't seem to indicate what is output by the probe under certain circumstances.

[Vancouver Reefer]

For me the probes are going to cause the biggest headache. Im still in the researching phase of the probes but there is always a way to solve these problems if you throw enough money at it. Keeping the cost down is a must with all DIY projects though.

 

Im going to start with the tank temp probe first. Its the easiest. The heatsink temp is just a temp IC but the tank probe will need to be water proof. I may just hack up an aquarium digital thermometer and steal the probe or make my own. Not sure yet.

 

Once the PH probe has been mastered then i can look into more probes. The more digital i can go, the better, so we may have to keep working together on this to find a solution.

 

The arduino's seem a great start to play with. I programmed a PIC in Uni and having to buy the programmer etc just added to the extra cost. Thats why i didnt go that route.

[neanderthalman]

I read through the vernier probes - nice find pilot.

 

 

The arduino's seem a great start to play with. I programmed a PIC in Uni and having to buy the programmer etc just added to the extra cost. Thats why i didnt go that route.

 

+11 T billion.

 

PICs are great for mass production, but brutal for a single project. This arduino looks fantastic (and reusable!)

 

On that topic, I had no end of trouble with weird unexpected noise effects from electric motors on my PICs. One was so bad that it was easier to use a separate battery for the PIC and separate it with optically coupled relays. I don't know how sensitive the arduino module is, but one entry under the conductivity probe specs concerned me and brought back that nightmare. Apparently it will interfere with other probes if connected to the same "module", as it passes small currents through the water...and the same issue could be had with any conductivity probe and thermocouple/rtd's and ph probes connected to the same arduino module.

 

Not insurmountable, for sure. Just an irritating complication to watch out for.

[Vancouver Reefer]

Thanks for the heads up on the probes. I will keep that in mind and may have to look into the opto-coupled components. Im sure there has been somewhere out there that was been able to link multiple probes into one Arduino so it might just be a matter of some serious websurfing to see how people have built them.

[e12pilot]

Thanks for the heads up on the probes. I will keep that in mind and may have to look into the opto-coupled components. Im sure there has been somewhere out there that was been able to link multiple probes into one Arduino so it might just be a matter of some serious websurfing to see how people have built them.

 

I read the same thing on the salinity probe, in fact the AquaController 3 probe has the same caveat, it needs to be 18 inches away from all other probes.

 

I was thinking though, would it be possible to turn off voltage to the pH probe/temp probe when sampling from the salinity probe? This way you could effectively put the probes next to each, but simply code around the problem (I.e when sampling salinity, all other probes off, when sampling temp and pH salinity probe off). I wouldn't think you would need a constant real-time salinity measurement, probably once every 5 minutes or so would work well.

 

I was thinking about this some more, how are you planning on doing the controlled outlets, SSRs? I looked around and the 1-Wire stuff from Maxxim looks pretty sweet in that it will only take up one IO port on the controller, and I believe there is a relay controller type 1-Wire device out there. Would allow you to daisy-chain multiple controlled outlets on a common bus (ala ReefKeeper Elite). Let me know how you were planning on doing this, as for me it is the hardest to wrap my head around.

[Vancouver Reefer]

Pilot,

 

So far my Arduino is only going to be having one SSR relay output. This will be to cut off the main 110v supply line to the external reservoir pumps, in the event of flood detection.

 

The output to my cooling fans and LED drivers are pwm and will either be through opto-couplers or a transistor.

 

Here is a link to the Arduino playground for how they reccommend connecting to external relays:

 

http://www.arduino.cc/playground/uploads/Learning/relays.pdf

 

Hope this helps.

 

The idea of sampling the probes one at a time is a good idea. The controller could just scroll through each probe. This may require each probes voltage supply to be connected to an output so it can be turned off or build a seperate board to turn on each probe sequentially. I think when i get to the probes i will have a play at building a probe sequencing circuit to allow one probe to be on at a time.

 

something like this could be used to sequence the supply voltage to up to 10 probes:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/richardorme197...149806365057954

 

This project is getting more complex by the minute!!! I like it

[Matt K]

I picked up an arduino over xmas this year, with an eye to doing aquarium control with it as well. I'm thinking I want to start simple, and work upwards. That being said, I decided the first goal is to set up an ATO without float switches. I am setting up a FW tank with no sump, so I don't want a pair of big, ugly float switches in the display tank. I'm thinking about trying to get a capacitive sensor (like this: http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_i...oducts_id=7918) to try to sense the water level thru the glass.

 

A much simpler idea would just be a dumbed down version of the conductivity sensor you talk about, but I'm afraid of running a constant (even low) voltage into the tank. One possibility is just to have it off most of the time, and just turn it on to make a check every 15 minutes or something like that, and go into the "refill" function if it detects low water...

 

Thoughts?

[The Propagator]

/\

 

"505 internal server error"

[KDris]

Here's an interesting link that might help you. Someone on instructables built an ATO using an ultrasonic ranger finder.

 

http://www.instructables.com/id/The_Aqua_Replenisher/

[Vancouver Reefer]

Hi Matt,

 

your link does not work. As 'The Propagator' says, we get the 505 internal server error.

 

 

How are you finding your Arduino? I picked mine up last week and have started playing with basic pwm fan control outputs etc. Im still waiting on most of my parts i ordered. Im getting annoyed as i ordered them on Jan 2nd!!! As soon as the rest of my goodies arrive i will post more pics! Anybody know why my links dont come up as a photo like most peoples threads?

 

You will have to keep us posted on your capacitive sensing idea. Although you could make a very simple, very low voltage water sensor circuit which should'nt cause too much trouble. Im sure there are people out there who have done it with no problems. I think even your pumps put quite abit of stray voltage into your tank ( mV levels ), so a small millivolt sensor wont make much difference. Making a small R/C timing circuit with a 555 could also help you turn your probe on every once in a while to check for level. You will then have to devise a way to make it no overfill your tank if your only sampling every few minutes.

 

I like the ultrasonic range finder idea. I will have to have a play with that one later down the line. It will be interesting to see how well it works with a turbulent water surface.

 

VR

[Vancouver Reefer]

Still waiting on my parts folks

 

 

Wont be using that supplier again!!!!!