Dirt Diggler's Reef-pi Build

[DirtDiggler2823]

Ok, the errors means that it wemt to read temps and could not find the probes for some reason

No idea why connectivity is flapping like that.

 

[That Crusso Kid]

No idea why connectivity is flapping like that.

Ohhhh, I'm not so sure. I heard you're a flapper from way back! :p

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Ohhhh, I'm not so sure. I heard you're a flapper from way back! :p

Lol

 

[Ranjib]

Did the temp signal issue still remained ?

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Did the temp signal issue still remained ?

Yes it has, but it hasn't popped up in the last couple of days. I can't make any sense of it, honestly. Now I'm just getting API errors to adafruit, but it is pulling feeds now. I'm just biding my time until Reef-Pi 3.0 drops and I work in the pH functions. For now the system is stable.

 

[Bigtrout]

Very strange that it is intermittent like that. I know the one wire bus can be sensitive to capacitance, are you still running the headphone jack splitter? Perhaps thats where the issue lies.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Very strange that it is intermittent like that. I know the one wire bus can be sensitive to capacitance, are you still running the headphone jack splitter? Perhaps thats where the issue lies.

I pulled the splitter and the second probe to narrow down the problem. At this point it's either the board, probe, or logical in nature.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Just pulled the trigger on the pH probe. I should have it by the end of next week. This is the final component for this particular reef-pi, and it is exciting for me. Thanks @Ranjib and @theatrus

 

[Ranjib]

Totally looking forward to this. Are you using the reference solution that comes with probe? or other ph kit etc. make sure you calibrate at the same temperature as the tank or something closer to that range

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Totally looking forward to this. Are you using the reference solution that comes with probe? or other ph kit etc. make sure you calibrate at the same temperature as the tank or something closer to that range

I purchased some milwaukee solution as well. I'll be sure to float the solution to normalize the temperature before testing. I wasn't aware that the probe came with it's own solution, but I'll have a means to calibrate either way. Has the math for the conversion been locked in yet?

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

but I'll have a means to calibrate either way. Has the math for the conversion been locked in yet?

Miller genuine draft may work for this but I personally go with a tasty microbrew like bells two hearted when I’m trying to calibrate myself.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Miller genuine draft may work for this but I personally go with a tasty microbrew like bells two hearted when I’m trying to calibrate myself.

I too, enjoy a nice microbrew, but when I'm on the bench, I like having a beer I won't cry over if I spill it.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

pH probe should be in this Wednesday. So stoked!

 

[Ranjib]

Just cut a early release for ph board testing, details are here , let me know how it goes

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Quite pleased with where my reef-pi is right now, but I'm always down for some testing

 

[Ranjib]

Looking awesome :-)

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Looking awesome :)

It's exciting, if I'm being honest. Pretty soon, this box will exceed the capabilities of the APEX gear, and I'm all for it.

 

[Ranjib]

Above all you have built it :) . You must have learned a lot, and probably you know how things work in due process. So, your acquired knowledge is another huge gain from this build.

 

[DirtDiggler2823]

Above all you have built it :) . You must have learned a lot, and probably you know how things work in due process. So, your acquired knowledge is another huge gain from this build.

Certainly. I work in cyber and telecommunications, but I've never had to engineer end items, just the systems they fit into. This has been very enlightening, indeed. I still need to learn a coding language at some point, but this was fun. @theatrus ' pico-board really made things a lot easier, and I think it can be expanded to include ORP probes, and whatever else a reefer might want/need. This is a heck of a product, and building it yourself and being a part of the community effort does give you a sense of ownership in the end.

 

[Ranjib]

Agree. Pico board was deliberately simplistic to give best bang from a single pi zero, and aimed to completely automate a pico reef :-) . I think it was a good decision since even with pico it took more than a year to sort out everything (note: ph driver is still not available in stable release yet). We do had discussion around more beefier, feature rich system, but we wanted to iterate with small setup first. I also wanted to understand the pros and cons of clustering multiple independent controller vs having a single powerful one.