reef-pi :: An opensource reef tank controller based on Raspberry Pi.

[pickupman66]

And 100000+ hours? lol

HA! Reading maybe because I read everything. But only a few hours really invested heavily in construction. I am a NOVICE. I have never really soldered before, especially on a PCB. Go check out my post in my build thread. It should detail my thought process and what all I did. I plan to add PH soon and will be working to help implement PWM Dc pump controls.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/p...lified-66-rimless.165580/page-11#post-5090612

 

[LionHeart2017]

The new kessil light is micro usb connector based. I have a breakout board already :-) can’t wait till it comes out :-). It will be neat if I can control everything with reef-pi. For those who are not aware , the new kessil allows 1% dimming (currently it allows only 14% or more ) and finer control of the spectrum . Standard micro usb breakout has 5 pins , let’s see what signal the light expects ... they’ll release it in December :-( , long wait , but hey it’s a nice Christmas gift :-)

Its using usbc sockets, not micro usb ranjib

 

[Ranjib]

Its using usbc sockets, not micro usb ranjib

Is it? thats good to know.. i have to look for UBC breakout then. Thanks for pointing out :-)

 

[Ranjib]

Ok , just checked , there are plenty usb c breakout boards in Amazon. We’ll have to wait till the new light comes out then we can tinker with it. Mean while , I’ll go ahead and order some of these breakout board and usb c cable

 

[wesman42]

Is this on GitHub? I'd like to contribute if possible.

 

[eb_reef]

I saw this and thought it would be a good add for a reef-pi
https://www.androidpolice.com/2018/...power-strip-6-independently-controlled-plugs/

 

[Ranjib]

Is this on GitHub? I'd like to contribute if possible.

Yes: https://github.com/reef-pi/reef-pi

 

[Ranjib]

I saw this and thought it would be a good add for a reef-pi
https://www.androidpolice.com/2018/...power-strip-6-independently-controlled-plugs/

Neat. It does not let you control the outlet from outside programs .

 

[sfgabe]

Neat. It does not let you control the outlet from outside programs .

This brings up another question / development suggestion. I have a bunch of these (or something on another label but from what I've seen I think most are Tuya/SmartLife frameworks). They can be controlled though simple curl commands through IFTTT or through integrations with the Tuya HomeAssistant component. Are there plans to have Reef-pi integrate with IFTTT or send some simple web requests? POST / GET requests can integrate with IFTTT webhooks for very basic integration. Combined with the Reef-pi API this could be a very low cost option for automating on/off switches.

 

[Ranjib]

This brings up another question / development suggestion. I have a bunch of these (or something on another label but from what I've seen I think most are Tuya/SmartLife frameworks). They can be controlled though simple curl commands through IFTTT or through integrations with the Tuya HomeAssistant component. Are there plans to have Reef-pi integrate with IFTTT or send some simple web requests? POST / GET requests can integrate with IFTTT webhooks for very basic integration. Combined with the Reef-pi API this could be a very low cost option for automating on/off switches.

yes :-)
IFTTT for controls and MQTT for telemetry is something on my mind. But as of now theres little interest. I am more than happy to work on this, if theres others who are also interested.
I would also like to emphasize that this comes at a huge reliability and compatibility cost. Wifi and those invidivdual outlets having their own micor controller is no where as reliable and simple as the dumb powerstrip+relay solution. It also comes at little higher price (the extra electronics that goes into making it smart). But these are fair risk to me. As of now I am more concerned about which API to settle on. We dont want a proliferation of drivers. i.e. settle on a opensource friendly reputaed vendor, or the most popular one that can be source across north america, europe, south africa and australia.

Please keep the conversation going, and thank you for bringing this up... I 'll be adding this as 3.0 thing,

 

[Ranjib]

The very first adafruit guide on reef-pi: installation and demonstration, is live now :-)
https://learn.adafruit.com/reef-pi-installation-and-configuration

 

[pickupman66]

Very nice! I need to get the Ph circuit created I guess.

 

[MaccaPopEye]

So i have been creeping on this post for a while, and I am very interested in it. But im just wondering, how much do ppl have invested in these Pi-controllers? Just want to know if is dramatically cheaper then buying a pre-built on I.E. Apex and so on. TIA!

I'm sitting at about $400-$450 AUD for my Reef-Pi with 16 outlets and 18 channels of PWM (no pH yet). It might seem high but there is a few reasons for that.
a) electrical components in Australia are quite expensive. I get as much as I can from china but some things I just have to bite the bullet and buy at a higher cost.
b) I keep changing my mind about how I want things set up. I went from a DIY enclosure to a 3D printed one and I set up initially with a bread board and then took it apart to solder onto a proto board and now I'm waiting for the PCB's before I go any further :p my goal is to get Reef-Pi up and running for more than a week this year! hahahaha

If I hadn't changed my mind constantly about things over the last year or if I was starting now with the same knowledge I've gained, I'd probably have been able to get to the same point with only $200 AUD

To put it in perspective, in Australia the Apex Jr (which I think only has 4 outlets) is $1133 AUD so even after I buy the pH boards and probe I will still be coming in at half the cost of an apex jr with way more functionality.

And while I have invested a lot of time into this, it's all learning which is well worth my time. And I have learned a lot and had a lot of fun!

 

[MaccaPopEye]

The very first adafruit guide on reef-pi: installation and demonstration, is live now :)
https://learn.adafruit.com/reef-pi-installation-and-configuration

Just had a read, great job Ranjib!

 

[Ranjib]

Just had a read, great job Ranjib!

Thank you :-)
Let me know if you see any errors

 

[pickupman66]

Just for your viewing pleasure.

 

[.-=Jord=-.]

Hi Bryan,
Warm welcome to reef2reef, you’ll love it here.
reef-pi lighting module is not any specific type aware , it allows you to set intensity profile of any type of led light. We have build guides for the circuit part, that depends on the specific light type. In short you can use the same feature that’s used to simulate day light cyclc , for moon light cycle also. We do not have any seasonal pattern thing, if you have any details around it , I’m all ears and would love to implement it in next major release.
I use a coralife actinic blue led strip as moon light in one of my tank , that’s controlled by reef-pi. Here is a photo of the circuit,

This a power source (12v 2amp) , a raspberry pi , an lm2596 module and the light itself, is all you need
Light

Lm2596

I am working on the adafruit guides, hence the photos were already there :)
Happy reefing ,
Ranjib

Is this what I would need to male to control a SB Reef Light?

 

[Zephrant]

My Equipment timers stopped working last week. I can turn my relays on/off manually, but the time on/off cycles do not happen.

I’ve rebooted, upgraded to Beta7 (from 6), and deleted and re-created the timers.

Any suggestions?

 

[Ranjib]

My Equipment timers stopped working last week. I can turn my relays on/off manually, but the time on/off cycles do not happen.

I’ve rebooted, upgraded to Beta7 (from 6), and deleted and re-created the timers.

Any suggestions?

Can you upgrade to the alpha release . Due to an ui bug , timers were saved in disabled state in beta-7 , we fixed it in alpha 0

 

[Ranjib]

Is this what I would need to male to control a SB Reef Light?

Actually , I don’t know . I only run kessil and coralife actinic strips . I know others have used different lights with reef-pi. Do you know what’s the control voltage for reefbrite ?