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

[ekopapers]

So I am trying to get my viparspectra hooked up to my reefpi, I have the @Michael Lane goby hat and adapter, I am trying to make sure I wire it correctly, from the picture on the upper right jst connector is the yellow Chanel 2 the black(center) the ground and the red Chanel 1? After I get the wiring correct do I need to setup a pca9685 driver for it and then add a new jack calling pins 13,14 and listing the driver I created?

@Ranjib I can't get the lights to power, is there a step I am missing? Other than running power to my pi do I need to hook up an additional power source to my goby hat to get it to work?

 

[b4tn]

Question. Do you guys wire your relays normally open or normally closed? Which and why?

 

[Ranjib]

@Ranjib I can't get the lights to power, is there a step I am missing? Other than running power to my pi do I need to hook up an additional power source to my goby hat to get it to work?

I don’t have this setup or tinkered with in past . I’m sorry I can’t validate the circuit, let’s wait for someone with this unit to respond

 

[Ranjib]

Question. Do you guys wire your relays normally open or normally closed? Which and why?

I used wire normally closed, because of heater. I didn’t want it to turn off when it’s not being controlled. I can see reasons for the opposite as well. If you are doing scratch build, then no reason to have mixed setup as well, if that suits your need,

 

[ekopapers]

@Ranjib I can't get the lights to power, is there a step I am missing? Other than running power to my pi do I need to hook up an additional power source to my goby hat to get it to work?

If I unplug what I think is the ground wire the light will turn on but I can't control it, it is either on or off. If I plug the ground wire in then the lights turn off immediately. Anyone else experience this?

 

[stefanm]

Question. Do you guys wire your relays normally open or normally closed? Which and why?

I run a mixed set up, pumps and skimmer NC and everything else NO, this is for two reasons, firstly if I need to remove the pi the pumps remain on and secondly if the pi fails I don't have the chiller constantly on etc...

 

[b4tn]

I planned to wire them 50/50 but accidentally wired all 16 NC. I was trying to convince myself to just leave it so I didn’t have to disassemble everything and re do it. Lol. But I went ahead and took it all apart and re did it. I have 8 NC and 8 NO now.

 

[andieasy]

Adding analog sensors with ADS1115

Michael Lane has been working on a new ADS1015/ADS1115 driver for reef-pi.

This brings new possibilities to Reef-Pi:

• PH/Orp probes
• Pressure sensors
• Flow sensors
• Etc.

Any analog sensor can be used as long as the analog signal is in between 2.0V to 5.5V.

ADS1115 16-Bit ADC - 4 Channel with Programmable Gain Amplifier

ADS1115 Features:

• Resolution: 16 Bits
• Programmable Sample Rate: 8 to 860 Samples/Second
• Power Supply/Logic Levels: 2.0V to 5.5V
• Low Current Consumption: Continuous Mode: Only 150µA Single-Shot Mode: Auto Shut-Down
• Internal Low-Drift Voltage Reference
• Internal Oscillator
• Internal PGA: up to x16
• I2C Interface: 4-Pin-Selectable Addresses
• Four Single-Ended or 2 Differential Inputs
• Programmable Comparator

I had an ADS1115 board so I tried if my PH probe is working. So I made a “How to guide” maybe it will be of use for others. I used a Raspberry Pi 2 Model B with Reef-Pi version 3.5.

Add driver under Configuration/Drivers

Configure the Driver:

Name: PH
Type: ads1115
Address: standard is 72
Gain: 2/3, 1, 2, 4, 8 or 16

An Adafruit tutorial has this guidance.
# Choose a gain of 1 for reading voltages from 0 to 4.09V.
# Or pick a different gain to change the range of voltages that are read:
# - 2/3 = +/-6.144V (High Gain, Sensitive to noise)
# - 1 = +/-4.096V
# - 2 = +/-2.048V
# - 4 = +/-1.024V
# - 8 = +/-0.512V
# - 16 = +/-0.256V (Low Gain, Not Sensitive to Noise)
# See table 3 in the ADS1015/ADS1115 datasheet for more info on gain.

Reboot (Configuration/Admin)

Add analog input under Configuration/Connectors

Configure the connector

Name: PHpin0
Pins: 0 (depends what pin you use on the ADS1115 board)
Driver: PH
Reload (Configuration/Admin)

Add the probe under pH

Configure the PH probe

Name: PH
Analog input: PHpin0
Check frequency: 10
Ph status: Enabled
The other settings are not mandatory.

Calibration
The first readings will be high:

Therefore you need to calibrate!

To be able to calibrate you first have to disable the Ph status

• Edit ph.
• Disable probe.
• Save
• Calibrate
• Rinse probe in rodi
• Place in 7 calibration fluid
• Wait for readings to stabilize
• Set cal value to 7 (Midpoint)
• Push Run
• Rinse probe
• Put in 10 calibration fluid
• Set cal value to 10 (Second Point)
• Run
• Enable probe
• Rinse probe and check both 7 and 10 and make sure it’s close.

Enjoy!

thank you for this post, the step by step you provided really helpful. finally, I can use my pH probe. I admit that this cheap pH probe perhaps lacks of accuracy if compared to ezo pH probe. But in my place, the ezo is really expensive and I can not afford it.
I still face a problem however, whenever I put my pH probe into my tank, the pH is always fluctuating. I search about it and found that I have stray voltage on my tank. do you have any suggestions to overcome this? it seems that analog isolator might be the answer, yet as it is still pricy for me, I would like to hear your opinion about this. or perhaps you have an idea about DIY analog isolator. of course, the step by step will help much :):):). Once again thank you

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

If I unplug what I think is the ground wire the light will turn on but I can't control it, it is either on or off. If I plug the ground wire in then the lights turn off immediately. Anyone else experience this?

I’ve you tried different intensity for the lights like 50% or 80%? Did you contact Mike Lane for wiring help?

 

[Stephen2]

Just want to find out
Is there an official logo/image for the reef-pi?

 

[BenB]

thank you for this post, the step by step you provided really helpful. finally, I can use my pH probe. I admit that this cheap pH probe perhaps lacks of accuracy if compared to ezo pH probe. But in my place, the ezo is really expensive and I can not afford it.
I still face a problem however, whenever I put my pH probe into my tank, the pH is always fluctuating. I search about it and found that I have stray voltage on my tank. do you have any suggestions to overcome this? it seems that analog isolator might be the answer, yet as it is still pricy for me, I would like to hear your opinion about this. or perhaps you have an idea about DIY analog isolator. of course, the step by step will help much :):):). Once again thank you

Yes you will need an analog signal isolater. I did not have time to dive in to it, but there are some chips that will work, with some soldering yourself to keep the costs Low. If you find something then keep us updated.

 

[ekopapers]

I’ve you tried different intensity for the lights like 50% or 80%? Did you contact Mike Lane for wiring help?

Yes I have confirmed with him now that the ground is center one and I have it wired correctly. I have also tried all up and down the sliders and with the ground plugged in it does nothing. If I take the grounding wire out the and leave the 2 channels plugged into the hat then the lights light up at 100 percent :/ but with no control

 

[ekopapers]

I also have tried with a second viparspectra with the same result :/ and if I plug the main control board back into the lights it controls them normally

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

I also have tried with a second viparspectra with the same result :/ and if I plug the main control board back into the lights it controls them normally

Perhaps it is the pwm frequency. I am purely guessing.

 

[Matt Carden]

I need help figuring out where to hook up wires on an ML hat. In the attached picture the attachments I'm having trouble with are the " V+" , "NC" , and "5V ? Also the 12v+ power connector is where the power supply power out goes right?

This is the relay board the ML hat is coaching.

Then on the left side of the board there is a connector for 5v power. Is this 5v out?

 

[drm2215]

When you are setting up the PCA9865 driver for the lighting module how do you determine the address and frequency?

 

[Des Westcott]

I need help figuring out where to hook up wires on an ML hat. In the attached picture the attachments I'm having trouble with are the " V+" , "NC" , and "5V ? Also the 12v+ power connector is where the power supply power out goes right?

This is the relay board the ML hat is coaching.

Then on the left side of the board there is a connector for 5v power. Is this 5v out?

Hi. I'll try help where I can. I am using the same board / HAT from Michael, but am using some things in a slightly "non-standard" way.

• Firstly NC is "Not Connected" you can ignore that pin completely - it does nothing.
• The 12V Power pins at the bottom are the pins that give power to the "Power 2" relay pins. So if you want the Power 2 port to run 12V relays, you connect 12V to those. In my case, I'm using 5V relays, so I have 5V on those pins. It is where power comes into the HAT to drive the relays.
• The "5V" pin on the "Power 1" goes to the VCC on the relay board those pins are driving.
• The "V+" on the "Power 2" goes to the VCC on the relay board those pins are driving.
• "5V Power" is where you connect 5V to run the HAT and the Raspberry Pi. With 5V connected there you do not need the Pi powered via the micro USB

Hope that helps.

 

[Des Westcott]

Is there any real world difference using a DS18S20 temperature sensor as opposed to a DS18B20?

Reason I'm asking is that I can get a 5m cable length here in SA in "S" version, but only 1m in the "B" version and I'd rather cut 3m off a cable than add 1m to one.

No real problem either way to me, I just have to wait longer to get a "B" in the longer cable.

 

[Mikeneedsahobby]

Is there any real world difference using a DS18S20 temperature sensor as opposed to a DS18B20?

Reason I'm asking is that I can get a 5m cable length here in SA in "S" version, but only 1m in the "B" version and I'd rather cut 3m off a cable than add 1m to one.

No real problem either way to me, I just have to wait longer to get a "B" in the longer cable.

Looks like you need to wait for the b

1-Wire Protocol PDF of DS18S20 vs DS18B20 Digital Themormete

Maxim Integrated's DS18B20 and DS18S20 are two very popular 1-Wire digital thermometers. This 1-wire protocol explains the similarities and differences between these two parts.

www.maximintegrated.com

 

[Matt Carden]

I have a question about light control via ML hat. Is there any pre-made circuitry to transform the 3.3v PWM to 10v PWM? With my old eyes I have difficulty focusing on small circuitry. Also does the PWM signal go to zero to shut off LED power supply like Meanwell HLG-320h-c700ab? Is there a better method of control using 0-10v control via reef-pi?