electrical idiot builds a controller - a reef pi build

[Bigtrout]

Trolls!

SLOW AND STEADY AS SHE GOES!!

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Don’t break. Don’t break!

 

[Bigtrout]

Don’t break. Don’t break!

If I do an AWC i have to do this to a sump under my stand with the return chanber emptied...yikes!
Im wondering if diy hob pvc overflow would suffice for a gallon or two an hour

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Hob overflow need enough water velocity to push out air bubbles. Otherwise over time the air accumulates to a point that it chokes and stops flowing. Look into flow rate versus pipe diameter for these. You may end up with the pipe being just an 1/4” tube. Put a valve on this to the flow to a drip.

drilling tanks is easy ... if you are in your yard with an empty tank drilling vertical with a garden hose running on it. Under cabinet, horizontal drilling, no water cooling, glass dust in your tank. No way would I attempt it.

or drain with a small pump or doser!

trolls now has four holes in it and is in my garage to get plastidip painted onto the back.

also I’m adding dosing adaptors to trolls pwm box.

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

The Trolls have been reborn!

 

[barcod21]

Hello Mikeneedsahobby, Bigtrout, Ranjib, Trolls and anyone else I missed.

First off let me say, your tanks are looking great!!

I'm new here but have been following this thread for some time, mainly because it came up when searching Reef-Pi and Beamsworks. I've been wanting to better control my lights (and CO2) but haven't had time to really set this up. I've accumulated some parts over the last few months that I didn't already have but one thing I'm unsure of is the mosfet. I see Mikeneedsahobby is using the
DFROBOT Gravity: MOSFET Power Controller Module
Amazon

Is there a difference/what is the difference between that and

400W Dual High-Power MOSFET Trigger Switch Drive Module
Amazon

I bought the 400W Dual High-Power Mosfet Trigger Switch some time ago (I think I saw it on the Reef-pi light controller build guide) but it seems a little different than what Mikeneedsahobby is using (some differences in components on the boards). This has as separate ground for the input and output voltage that I suppose I would tie together where Mikeneedsahobby has a single ground post between the Vin and Vout. Can someone let me know if these are technically the same/interchangeable parts? I think I've got a good handle on the rest of the circuit but I'm still a little unclear on what a MOSFET is actually doing.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Hello Mikeneedsahobby, Bigtrout, Ranjib, Trolls and anyone else I missed.

First off let me say, your tanks are looking great!!

don’t forget the goblins and I think I had gremlins at one point too.

For my freshwater build I mostly copied @Bigtrout. Yes the dfrobot p-mosfet is what I’m using. the thing I can see different with the mosfet you have is yours is bigger and can handle more power. You don’t need the power rating, but also I can’t see it hurting. I also don’t see a ground on the high power side of your mosfet. But power should flow through common and not ground.

the mosfet is converting pwm signal to variable 0-12v dc. This is used in the beamswork to vary the power to the led. At least I think. I’m not sure what the circuit inside the beamswork is. But the mosfets don’t directly power the leds . @Bigtrout will be by in a few to fix what I wrote wrong.

 

[Bigtrout]

Hello Mikeneedsahobby, Bigtrout, Ranjib, Trolls and anyone else I missed.

First off let me say, your tanks are looking great!!

I'm new here but have been following this thread for some time, mainly because it came up when searching Reef-Pi and Beamsworks. I've been wanting to better control my lights (and CO2) but haven't had time to really set this up. I've accumulated some parts over the last few months that I didn't already have but one thing I'm unsure of is the mosfet. I see Mikeneedsahobby is using the
DFROBOT Gravity: MOSFET Power Controller Module
Amazon

Is there a difference/what is the difference between that and

400W Dual High-Power MOSFET Trigger Switch Drive Module
Amazon

I bought the 400W Dual High-Power Mosfet Trigger Switch some time ago (I think I saw it on the Reef-pi light controller build guide) but it seems a little different than what Mikeneedsahobby is using (some differences in components on the boards). This has as separate ground for the input and output voltage that I suppose I would tie together where Mikeneedsahobby has a single ground post between the Vin and Vout. Can someone let me know if these are technically the same/interchangeable parts? I think I've got a good handle on the rest of the circuit but I'm still a little unclear on what a MOSFET is actually doing.

Thanks in advance!

Ok looked at your mosfet boards and they wont work because they are N channel mosfet boards.

The dfrobot are p channel mosfet boards. Stick with those for Beamswork lights.

N channel mosfets are used to switch on the low side or ground side of a circuit. P channel mosfets switch on the high side or +V side of the circuit.

Beamsworks lights are peculiar in that the way the leds are tied together, all the channels share a common ground. They have seperate +V lines for each channel one for the white, one for the blue. If you want seperate control we have to use p channel mosfet boards to switch these lines to dim the light.

A simple explanation of how the mosfet boards work is:
Pwm signal is used to switch the mosfet On and Off. The 15v from the beamswork power supply runs thru the mosfet and then to the led board.
Almost like a relay board only mosfets switch much faster. Fast enough to for led pwm.

 

[barcod21]

don’t forget the goblins and I think I had gremlins at one point too.

Thanks for the feedback! Completely forgot about the goblins and gremlins. If I remember correctly the Gremlins like pizza!

Ok looked at your mosfet boards and they wont work because they are N channel mosfet boards.

The dfrobot are p channel mosfet boards. Stick with those for Beamswork lights.

N channel mosfets are used to switch on the low side or ground side of a circuit. P channel mosfets switch on the high side or +V side of the circuit.

Beamsworks lights are peculiar in that the way the leds are tied together, all the channels share a common ground. They have seperate +V lines for each channel one for the white, one for the blue. If you want seperate control we have to use p channel mosfet boards to switch these lines to dim the light.

A simple explanation of how the mosfet boards work is:
Pwm signal is used to switch the mosfet On and Off. The 15v from the beamswork power supply runs thru the mosfet and then to the led board.
Almost like a relay board only mosfets switch much faster. Fast enough to for led pwm.

Thanks Bigtrout, I will most likely get the dfrobot mosfet boards, since I know I'll have time to work on this this weekend. I don't get a lot of time for hobbies.... That being said, I hate to pay the premium for these on Amazon when they are half the price on digi-key. Once I add in the shipping on Digi-key they end up being the same price so unless I can think of other parts I'm going to need (down the road, PH sensing, temp probes...) I'll probably go with Amazon and it will most likely arrive quicker. I hate to feel like I'm not getting a good deal though!

Just to help me out, how did you come to the conclusion that one in P channel and the other is N channel. I don't see any reference to "N channel" on the ones I have. I 100% believe you, I'm just curious to look for others that could be P channel when I don't see N or P called out on any of them.

Thanks so much for both of your help! I apologize if I'm hijacking your thread. I don't think I'll have a ton of questions but if you'd prefer me to start a new thread instead of asking here just let me know.

 

[Bigtrout]

Thanks for the feedback! Completely forgot about the goblins and gremlins. If I remember correctly the Gremlins like pizza!




Thanks Bigtrout, I will most likely get the dfrobot mosfet boards, since I know I'll have time to work on this this weekend. I don't get a lot of time for hobbies.... That being said, I hate to pay the premium for these on Amazon when they are half the price on digi-key. Once I add in the shipping on Digi-key they end up being the same price so unless I can think of other parts I'm going to need (down the road, PH sensing, temp probes...) I'll probably go with Amazon and it will most likely arrive quicker. I hate to feel like I'm not getting a good deal though!

Just to help me out, how did you come to the conclusion that one in P channel and the other is N channel. I don't see any reference to "N channel" on the ones I have. I 100% believe you, I'm just curious to look for others that could be P channel when I don't see N or P called out on any of them.

Thanks so much for both of your help! I apologize if I'm hijacking your thread. I don't think I'll have a ton of questions but if you'd prefer me to start a new thread instead of asking here just let me know.

You have to look at the mosfet on the board. The boards you linked on amazon have d4184 marked on the mosfets. That tells me they are AOD 4184 mosfets which are 40v N channel fets.

You have to look at a pic carefully to tell.

I have looked carefully thru every mosfet module there is. On my thread I found and am using another but the problem is they are on sale everywhere on ebay, and all with different supporting components on the board. If the supporting components are not right. They are not capable of supporting higher frequency pwm, so buying those is a crapshoot. The df robot modules WORK just dont set the frequency to much over 200hz if you want really low level dimming.

I was going to design a board for these, but havent had time to learn the board layout software. I have the circuit design and components figured out to make a p channel high speed module that will work at 1000hz. Maybe I need to collaborate with @Michael Lane or one of the other people familiar with the board design software.

 

[barcod21]

You have to look at the mosfet on the board. The boards you linked on amazon have d4184 marked on the mosfets. That tells me they are AOD 4184 mosfets which are 40v N channel fets.

You have to look at a pic carefully to tell.

I have looked carefully thru every mosfet module there is. On my thread I found and am using another but the problem is they are on sale everywhere on ebay, and all with different supporting components on the board. If the supporting components are not right. They are not capable of supporting higher frequency pwm, so buying those is a crapshoot. The df robot modules WORK just dont set the frequency to much over 200hz if you want really low level dimming.

Thanks, I was actually just going through your thread and saw those other Mosfet boards you mentioned and also a lot of good information about them in general. The dfrobot ones seem to be the best bet if I want to get started this weekend.

Thanks again for your help!

 

[Bigtrout]

Thanks, I was actually just going through your thread and saw those other Mosfet boards you mentioned and also a lot of good information about them in general. The dfrobot ones seem to be the best bet if I want to get started this weekend.

Thanks again for your help!

Yes I can shoot the ebay link for the others I bought. All of 1.82 per board but ship from a slow boat from China, to arrive in october.

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Thanks so much for both of your help! I apologize if I'm hijacking your thread. I don't think I'll have a ton of questions but if you'd prefer me to start a new thread instead of asking here just let me know.

Feel free to ask questions here. I’m glad this thread can help others. Your questions will help even more.

I think I’m almost out of new content anyway. I’m not sure what else to do with my pies.

of course if you want to make a home of your own just tag me, I’ll give high fives. And tag the smart people for good advice.

 

[barcod21]

Yes I can shoot the ebay link for the others I bought. All of 1.82 per board but ship from a slow boat from China, to arrive in october.

Thanks Bigtrout. If you can find the link, let me know. I looked for a while last night and couldn't find any that looked similar to the ones you are using. I went ahead and ordered the dfrobot ones for now but may still order these and install them later since they are so cheap. Also, its possible that I may build another reef pi down the road.

Feel free to ask questions here. I’m glad this thread can help others. Your questions will help even more.

Thanks Mikeneedsahobby. I do have a few more questions for you and Bigtrout and anyone else. I see you are using the PH board from Michael Lane. What probe are you using with this? He is out of stock on the board, but I went ahead and messaged him on Tindie to see if he knows when he will have more of those, the dosing pump adapters and the hat. I am planning on building my own hat but may go with his for the ease or if I can't get mine to look clean enough for my liking. I'm definitely interested in the other items though. In addition to the PH probe, how have your DROK temp probes held up? Any regrets or wishes that you went with something else? Those red cables aren't the prettiest but they look solid.

Thanks

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Here is the ph probe I got.
Milwaukee Instruments MA913B/3 pH Probe Double Junction with Kcl Gel Filled, Bnc

I have 2. I have no complaints. It hasn’t lost calibration ever. I know other people have other brands and I haven’t heard of anyone complain. Seems the probes are pretty consistent regardless of supplier.

Not so for temp probes. Don’t get the cheap temp probes. They aren’t as good. I potted mine in epoxy and it lasted a year or so. I just replaced it with this.
T-PRO DS18b20 Waterproof...
There was a post recently that almost all of the temp probes are using knock off chips. This one probably has a knock of chip too but it works good. The red wire probes worked well too but I couldn’t find them the next time I went to order probes.

get a good connector with them. Most temp probe problems are because of the connectors and bad soldering.

I highly suggest a pre-made hat. Mike Lane and Theatrus are stand up guys. Very helpful to me and the products are great quality and great value.

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Oh, one more thought I don’t think I’ve ever posted.

I don’t like the jebao dosing pumps. I have two. Both had the dosing heads built wrong. As built they slip and make a lot noise. I found videos online showing how to assemble them right. This helped. But the whole thing is low quality and I don’t really trust it. Just 2 days ago a head fell off the box. The screws loosened too much. they are an easy solution to add 4 dosing heads when paired with Michael lanes adapters but in this case it may be better to go the hard route and buy quality pump heads and build your own box and interface to reef pi.

jebao wave maker and dc pumps = Great
Jebao dosing pump = crap

 

[Bigtrout]

Thanks Bigtrout. If you can find the link, let me know. I looked for a while last night and couldn't find any that looked similar to the ones you are using. I went ahead and ordered the dfrobot ones for now but may still order these and install them later since they are so cheap. Also, its possible that I may build another reef pi down the road.




Thanks Mikeneedsahobby. I do have a few more questions for you and Bigtrout and anyone else. I see you are using the PH board from Michael Lane. What probe are you using with this? He is out of stock on the board, but I went ahead and messaged him on Tindie to see if he knows when he will have more of those, the dosing pump adapters and the hat. I am planning on building my own hat but may go with his for the ease or if I can't get mine to look clean enough for my liking. I'm definitely interested in the other items though. In addition to the PH probe, how have your DROK temp probes held up? Any regrets or wishes that you went with something else? Those red cables aren't the prettiest but they look solid.

Thanks

3V 5V Low Control High Voltage 12V 24V 36V E-switch Mosfet Module For Arduino | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 3V 5V Low Control High Voltage 12V 24V 36V E-switch Mosfet Module For Arduino at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[Bigtrout]

highly suggest a pre-made hat. Mike Lane and Theatrus are stand up guys. Very helpful to me and the products are great quality and

I second this, unless you like to solder, the hats make a clean and easy install.

 

[barcod21]

Here is the ph probe I got.
Milwaukee Instruments MA913B/3 pH Probe Double Junction with Kcl Gel Filled, Bnc

I have 2. I have no complaints. It hasn’t lost calibration ever. I know other people have other brands and I haven’t heard of anyone complain. Seems the probes are pretty consistent regardless of supplier.

Not so for temp probes. Don’t get the cheap temp probes. They aren’t as good. I potted mine in epoxy and it lasted a year or so. I just replaced it with this.
T-PRO DS18b20 Waterproof...
There was a post recently that almost all of the temp probes are using knock off chips. This one probably has a knock of chip too but it works good. The red wire probes worked well too but I couldn’t find them the next time I went to order probes.

get a good connector with them. Most temp probe problems are because of the connectors and bad soldering.

I highly suggest a pre-made hat. Mike Lane and Theatrus are stand up guys. Very helpful to me and the products are great quality and great value.

Thanks for the info, I was debating going ahead and ordering a cheap PH probe from AliExpress since I can't get the PH board right now anyway. The price for that Milwaukee probe really isn't bad at all. I've got a Milwaukee refractometer that is awesome, so I know they make good stuff.

I went ahead and bought the red wired probes. Mainly because of the length. The one meter on most of the others just didn't seem long enough. I bought some mini XLR connectors that look decent to connect them with.

3V 5V Low Control High Voltage 12V 24V 36V E-switch Mosfet Module For Arduino | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 3V 5V Low Control High Voltage 12V 24V 36V E-switch Mosfet Module For Arduino at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Thanks Bigtrout, for the price I will probably go ahead and order a few to have around.

I second this, unless you like to solder, the hats make a clean and easy install.

I don't mind soldering at all and actually probably enjoy the build on projects like this just as much, if not more than I do actually using what I make. Time is the killer for me, I just don't have much free time at all. I have a beer brewing setup that I spent a ton of time on and but since my daughter was born 3 years ago I haven't had time to brew any beer. I really liked building it and solving problems, figuring everything out, etc.. I work full time, started back at college last year and have an 8 year old and a 3 year old though. That being said, I am very much considering one of the pre-made hats. I see Mikeneedsahobby has both of them. Do you mind telling me which you like better? I understand if you don't want to comment on this publicly, they both seem to be providing really great items at very fair prices. Any idea on how often either of them restock because they're both out of stock!

Here's a picture of my brew setup since I mentioned it.

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

From the looks of your home brew system you will be a reef-pi expert in no time. You have a tinkerers gene I can tell.

I’ll start by saying that I am doing basically the same things with both boards, so both are fully functional. And I think they are both great options.

The reef pi pico baseboard from @theatrus is a work of art. It’s a beauty that should be appreciated. I would have covered it in clear epoxy so all visitors could gaze upon it’s exposed chips, but I didn’t want to put a nc-17 sticker on my tank.

All of the connectors are installed on the board. You attach your raspberry pi put them in the box that is precut for all plugs and turn it on. Very simple. It has the ph board integrated and the serial db9 connector to go to adj power strip. All in one. I don’t think I had to crimp even one pin connector for the functions on board. (Important - pin connectors are evil). And I have never had a failure or problem with anything preinstalled on the board. Once I put the lid onto the precut case I have never taken it back off.

it doesn’t have a pca9685 pwm board though. For things you want to control intensity on, you will need a break out box. My break out box has the 9685, some relays, and a power supply. And lots of pin connectors. And had lots of wiring problems to fix at different points of time.

the pi hat from @Michael Lane is, well, let’s say has a really nice personality. Your not going to want slather it in clear epoxy though. the board is made to be put into the center of an electrical box and then you run wires to case connectors of your choice (or to sub boards). It has the 9685 on the board already. the ph board is a separate sub board. The pi-hat is more flexible in that the all the connections are exposed.

my pi-hat case is large. It is filled with stuff. i have roughly 300,000 pin connectors (okay maybe 50). I have been inside many times to fix things I didn’t make right the first time. But I have never had a problem or had to fix anything on the board supplied by Mike. I would say the pico board is more reliable in a novices hand as it has less opportunity for a novice to make mistakes. But the pi-hat is more easily customized and is completely reliable in a more experienced hand.

I do think both options are good, and I recommend them!

I don’t know if they are still making the boards.
@theatrus are you still making and selling pico base boards?
@Michael Lane are you still making and selling reef pi-hats?

a third option that didn’t exist when i started mine is with robotank from @robsworld78. I don’t have direct experience but all the comments I’ve read have been gushingly positive. It seems he has a complete plug and play option and a diy board option.