nor_cal_nano Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 (edited) I am wondering why people are saying this switch works : http://cgi.ebay.com/Liquid-Water-Level-Sen...=item23058477e3From what I understand is that it operates at the AC frequency so and that's what we're trying to avoid in our tanks, but I could totally be reading it's info all wrong since it's been mentioned to be safe. Thats just the max load. should still work with dc...? Edited March 1, 2010 by nor_cal_nano Quote Link to comment
Pilg0re Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 Sorry to bring back an old thread, but I'm building this ATO and I'm having trouble understanding the up/down concept of the switches. This is the cheapest switch I could find Ebay Link and it says it's an up switch. So if I'm correct and the seller isn't wrong, when I have the switch oriented with the wires up(and out of the water) and the float goes down the switch will turn on, thus activating the pump. Am I correct in my statement, and is that the right switch I need? Thanks for you help! Quote Link to comment
neanderthalman Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 I cannot tell. The nomenclature of an "up" switch is meaningless. Is it up to close or up to open? The proper way to describe what you need is "normally closed". This means that in the absence of water, the floatswitch falls, and the switch closes. "normally" refers to the "shelf state", or the state of the switch without any water. Quote Link to comment
Pilg0re Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 I cannot tell. The nomenclature of an "up" switch is meaningless. Is it up to close or up to open? The proper way to describe what you need is "normally closed". This means that in the absence of water, the floatswitch falls, and the switch closes. "normally" refers to the "shelf state", or the state of the switch without any water. Thanks! I got my definition of up from plumbing supply. I thought I was using the right terms, but now i know what I need. Quote Link to comment
lovelandbmxrider Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 I'm also looking, at doing an ato where can I get a cheap float switch? Quote Link to comment
nor_cal_nano Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 I'm also looking, at doing an ato where can I get a cheap float switch? ebay... ^ Quote Link to comment
neanderthalman Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 I recommend the Chicago Sensor FLT015. These are the well-known floatswitches.net floatswitches. Chicago Sensor bought them out a couple of years ago. Good product, not as cheap as ebay, but at least you know what you're getting. Quote Link to comment
scalowag Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 I recommend the Chicago Sensor FLT015. These are the well-known floatswitches.net floatswitches. Chicago Sensor bought them out a couple of years ago. Good product, not as cheap as ebay, but at least you know what you're getting. Just what I needed to know. You sir just earned a beer. Quote Link to comment
jbarr2000 Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Just came here to say that I built one and so far it's great! Got my switch from Chicago Sensor, ordered Sunday and it was here today. Picked up a bubble box from Wal-Mart and away we go. Using it on my 10g, only have a quart bottle right now until I can learn to trust it. So easy and completely effective. Thanks a ton for the idea. Quote Link to comment
Pilg0re Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 Just came here to say that I built one and so far it's great! Got my switch from Chicago Sensor, ordered Sunday and it was here today. Picked up a bubble box from Wal-Mart and away we go. Using it on my 10g, only have a quart bottle right now until I can learn to trust it. So easy and completely effective. Thanks a ton for the idea. I did the exact same thing, just make sure that you have a perfect airtight seal throughout the system. If you don't even if it's a slow leak it will suck water back in the bottle. Also, it's just a hunch I had and it may or may not be true, but the water stopped getting sucked back in when I had my pump higher than the jug. Quote Link to comment
jbarr2000 Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 I've actually got my hose out of the water, so I'm not too worried about it siphoning back. Quote Link to comment
synergy Posted April 29, 2010 Share Posted April 29, 2010 Is everyone's ATO loud? I am using an Azoo pump and it is rather loud. I really like the simplicity, and cost, of this system but the noise is a bit bothersome. Has anyone found a quiet pump or a way to conceal the noise from these pumps? Quote Link to comment
nor_cal_nano Posted April 29, 2010 Share Posted April 29, 2010 Conceal it in your stand? Quote Link to comment
jbarr2000 Posted April 29, 2010 Share Posted April 29, 2010 Mine lets off a bit of noise but it runs for less than 15 seconds every 90-120 minutes, so it's not too big of a deal. I've just got it sitting on my desk with the tank and everything right now though, once I get it put away it likely won't be noticed. Quote Link to comment
thewire Posted April 30, 2010 Share Posted April 30, 2010 any good suggestion what kind of container is air tight enough? I found that 1g bottle is no good. Also how you sealed the hose (rigid) and soft? Where to buy rigid hose? Quote Link to comment
Pilg0re Posted April 30, 2010 Share Posted April 30, 2010 any good suggestion what kind of container is air tight enough? I found that 1g bottle is no good. Also how you sealed the hose (rigid) and soft? Where to buy rigid hose? I'm using a 1g jug and it's working just fine for me. I superglued the crap out of the inside and outside of the cap and then I tighten the cap as hard as possible. It also helps to get a check valve from the pump into the jug just to make sure you don't get a slow leak from the cheap diaphragm in the pump. Quote Link to comment
jbarr2000 Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 (edited) Mines not even air tight yet. It's only pushing water 12" or so, but I had planned on either super glue or silicone to seal up the hoses, should work just fine. On a funny note: I got a call from my GF the other day and she left a voicemail. I listen to it and she starts out: "Hey, this contraption you made...it just keeps running." At this point I'm thinking, "Oh ####! There's water everywhere!" Then I remembered it's only a 40oz container, how bad could it be? She then continued to say that my container was out of water. Whew. I bout had a heart attack. Moral of the story, keep your container filled. Edited May 2, 2010 by jbarr2000 Quote Link to comment
Pilg0re Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 Yeah it doesn't really have to be air tight, it's just if it's able to maintain the pressure in the jug then the pump has to be on less because the pump won't have to build the pressure again. Quote Link to comment
thewire Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 anyone has did the ATO on a NC12? I need to find something to hang on the back wall chamber without actually trying to bend some plexi...any idea? Quote Link to comment
nor_cal_nano Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 anyone has did the ATO on a NC12? I need to find something to hang on the back wall chamber without actually trying to bend some plexi...any idea? I used a cd case. Just heated it up with a candle or something and bent to shape. Works great. Quote Link to comment
thewire Posted May 4, 2010 Share Posted May 4, 2010 I used a cd case. Just heated it up with a candle or something and bent to shape. Works great. thanks...i will give it a try. Kyle that thing will rust lol Quote Link to comment
Rick Shaw Posted May 4, 2010 Share Posted May 4, 2010 So spray paint it. Replace it every other week. Dont drop it in your tank? Those clips dont rust too fast, I use them for holding the tubing when acclimating. When ya dont wanna heat up some acrylic yer kind limited, I'm just lazy. Quote Link to comment
chrssprngs Posted May 7, 2010 Share Posted May 7, 2010 Ok. My switch has arrived. Time to get my pump and figure and figure out the mounting. I would like to ask you, UTR, what battery pump should I get? When calculating head pressure, is the delta in elevations tank elevation minus the water level elevation in the supply reservor. If so my max head would be 4' when the supply is at it's lowest. Quote Link to comment
jbarr2000 Posted May 16, 2010 Share Posted May 16, 2010 Careful if you're batteries are getting low. Might have just been a fluke but my pump must have stopped at a point where the batteries didn't have enough juice to get it going again. Sat on all night like that, most likely. Although I did just do a water change, so hopefully it wasn't on too long. Motor was pretty warm, but once I figured out what was wrong it kicked right back on. Has anyone with a bubble-box from walmart thought of wiring the batteries in series instead of parallel? I would assume that motor wouldn't have much problem with 3v instead of 1.5v. That should get you more head pressure also, if you need it. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.