Controlling a Valve Actuator Remotely

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I have done similar projects and get all my parts except water proof boxes off of Amazon or eBay. Amazon is way faster for a little more money, if you don't mind waiting a month in some cases you can get parts form china from eBay. Boxes I just get at HD or Lowes they have all shapes and sizes of PVC electrical boxes
 
Rich D said:
Here is what I have used for these applications..

Functional Devices RIBU1C Enclosed Pilot Relay, 10 Amp Spdt with 10-30 Vac/Dc/120 Vac Coil: Security And Surveillance Products: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Functional Devices RIBU1C Enclosed Pilot Relay, 10 Amp Spdt with 10-30 Vac/Dc/120 Vac Coil: Security And Surveillance Products: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific
www.amazon.com
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Thank you Rich. Perfect as was looking for something is a box and somewhat weatherproof.
 
Jimrahbe said:
Rich,

Manually, you can put a three way valve in any position you want... An actuator will only rotate the valve from one stop to the other...

Inside the actuator, you can adjust the position of the stops so you can set the valve to turn to whatever position you want.

Thanks,

Jim R.
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I just ordered my first actuator here..

www.poolsupplyworld.com

Jandy 4424 AquaLink RS JVA2440 Valve Actuator, 180 Degrees, 24V

The Jandy AquaLink RS Valve Actuator is fully adjustable for versatile pool and spa automation.
www.poolsupplyworld.com www.poolsupplyworld.com

$122.00 seemed like a good price. I am planning on having it wired to a wall switch in the house as well as a wifi switch I can use from my phone. So far my experience with wifi switches are "They are "great" (when they work...)

Just curious how the fully automated systems work. Are you able to open a valve to different positions? IE. Open valve to 3/4 at 10:00 then open valve to full at 12:00. If so how do they achieve this?

Thanks, Rich..
 
Jimrahbe said:
Rich,

See your own post #7 above...

Jim R.
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Thanks Jim. But that relates to setting the stops on the actuator which would mean there is no way to use the actuator to open the valve to more than one chosen position. So are you saying that even the very expensive automation systems can not achieve this either?
 
Yes,

At the present time, automated valves only open or close.. from one stop to the other.. You can mechanically set the stops, but the actuator will only turn from one stop to the other.

In theory, the new IntelliCenter is supposed to do what you want, but it is not released yet, and I'm not holding my breath. And you have to have the new Pentair actuators.. In 99% of the cases it is just not needed and is more of a gimmick that it is useful. It just adds more complexity to a system that those 99% already do not understand.. It would be great for the 1% group, but not sure that is enough of a market..

That said, I have been wrong about 100 times this morning alone, so we will just have to wait and see if and when it is released... :)

Thanks,

Jim R.
 

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PoolGate said:
The Jandy automation can control the jva stops in 5% increments (smart jva). I have this on mine it works great.
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PG,

Tell us how this works.. Do you have three actual (saveable) positions or do you have two positions and if you want a third position you have to "calibrate" it.. Then you still have two positions but now your third one is the one you just added..

I guess what I am asking is are you able to select three separate positions and just select them one at a time without any other actions???

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
PG,

Tell us how this works.. Do you have three actual (saveable) positions or do you have two positions and if you want a third position you have to "calibrate" it.. Then you still have two positions but now your third one is the one you just added..

I guess what I am asking is are you able to select three separate positions and just select them one at a time without any other actions???

Jim R.
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When I activate a feature connected to a SmartJVA, it turns on, goes to the saved setting, and presents me with the below screen so I can adjust how/if I want it. I can change up or down in 5% increments or just ignore the below screen and it goes away. So it is just 1 "saved" position. I also cannot make a macro and have it go to the percent that I choose for that macro. That is just programming and I am hoping Jandy will add this to future releases. Oh and it still will only go between the hard stops. Calibrating it tells it where those hard stops are located.

jva3.jpg
 
Jim, I have three IntelliValves on intake, return & solar valves. I can see the ability to dynamically adjust the return valve for spa spillway as having a use, but not so much for the intake valve. I read this webpage saying that the ability to adjust the solar valve is useful for flow control. Right now my valve is either fully open or closed depending if solar heat is called for, but what are the applications for restricting flow by partially opening the valve for solar heating?
 
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guinness said:
Jim, I have three IntelliValves on intake, return & solar valves. I can see the ability to dynamically adjust the return valve for spa spillway as having a use, but not so much for the intake valve. I read this webpage saying that the ability to adjust the solar valve is useful for flow control. Right now my valve is either fully open or closed depending if solar heat is called for, but what are the applications for restricting flow by partially opening the valve?
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I have 2 water features that I balance differently depending on our mood. Sometimes we want the sheer descent on full (there is a bench under it), sometimes balanced between the sheer and the rock waterfall and sometimes just the rock waterfall. I would also like to have an adjustable valve on my valve that controls the percent of water between my floor returns and my wall returns. This is to direct more water for skimming, heating, or sometimes just to put more water to the water features. The ability to adjust a valve remotely is very useful.
 
Thanks PoolGate, I understand the application that you have for controlling your features with your return valve(s). My question is specifically related to controlling the flow of water to solar heating panels, so I've rephrased my question slightly. Ultimately I'd like to know if there is any benefit to not having the solar valve fully open when trying to heat the pool via the solar panels.
 
I believe I can almost duplicate the incremental feature of the "smart jva" by using a 3 position wall switch. Fortunately I can see my waterfall from where the switch will be. So if I have 3 position wall switch I should be able to have
Position 1 (up)- power -red- valve open
position 2 (middle) - no power to either
position 3 (down) power -white- valve closed

So if the valve is in the open position (switch in up position )I would just flick the switch to the down position for a few seconds then to the off (middle) to stop the valve from rotating. Then just repeat until the desired flow over the falls is achieved.

one transformer and 2 relays should do the trick.

I do not believe this will work well with any type of wifi switch because of the inevitable delays associated with them but It will achieve my goal of being able to adjust the water fall from within the house without investing in the more expensive automation system.
 
Rich D said:
I believe I can almost duplicate the incremental feature of the "smart jva" by using a 3 position wall switch. Fortunately I can see my waterfall from where the switch will be. So if I have 3 position wall switch I should be able to have
Position 1 (up)- power -red- valve open
position 2 (middle) - no power to either
position 3 (down) power -white- valve closed

So if the valve is in the open position (switch in up position )I would just flick the switch to the down position for a few seconds then to the off (middle) to stop the valve from rotating. Then just repeat until the desired flow over the falls is achieved.

one transformer and 2 relays should do the trick.

I do not believe this will work well with any type of wifi switch because of the inevitable delays associated with them but It will achieve my goal of being able to adjust the water fall from within the house without investing in the more expensive automation system.
Click to expand...

Your sigline says you have iAqualink, does your system not support the SmartJVA module?
 

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