Finally installed home made automation to include variable position valve control.

Rich D · Aug 14, 2021

Update.. I purchased this..

Transducers Direct - Wireless Bluetooth Pressure Sensor | Monitor Pool Filter Pressure Remotely | Pressure Gauge for Pools, Spas, or Pond Pumps | 1% Accuracy | TDWLB-LCRPPF: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Transducers Direct - Wireless Bluetooth Pressure Sensor | Monitor Pool Filter Pressure Remotely | Pressure Gauge for Pools, Spas, or Pond Pumps | 1% Accuracy | TDWLB-LCRPPF: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

Wich replaces the pressure Guage on the IFCS head. It links via Bluetooth directly to my android smart phone. With this I can now monitor the pressures of the individual zones. @jonpcar - On my system they did a very good job balancing the zone pressures. All my zones run exactly at 14 psi @ 3000 RPM except one. The sun shelf runs at 13 psi. Thankfully with that info and some time calculations I can now set up my script to monitor for the 13 psi and then turn on off the IFCS wich then alerts me to go manually pause the zone rotation. I have purchased a servo to mount on the IFCS head so I will be able to automate the pausing of the zones. This might take some time to implement..

jonpcar · Aug 15, 2021

Rich D said:
Update.. I purchased this..

Transducers Direct - Wireless Bluetooth Pressure Sensor | Monitor Pool Filter Pressure Remotely | Pressure Gauge for Pools, Spas, or Pond Pumps | 1% Accuracy | TDWLB-LCRPPF: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Transducers Direct - Wireless Bluetooth Pressure Sensor | Monitor Pool Filter Pressure Remotely | Pressure Gauge for Pools, Spas, or Pond Pumps | 1% Accuracy | TDWLB-LCRPPF: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

Wich replaces the pressure Guage on the IFCS head. It links via Bluetooth directly to my android smart phone. With this I can now monitor the pressures of the individual zones. @jonpcar - On my system they did a very good job balancing the zone pressures. All my zones run exactly at 14 psi @ 3000 RPM except one. The sun shelf runs at 13 psi. Thankfully with that info and some time calculations I can now set up my script to monitor for the 13 psi and then turn on off the IFCS wich then alerts me to go manually pause the zone rotation. I have purchased a servo to mount on the IFCS head so I will be able to automate the pausing of the zones. This might take some time to implement..

Hey Rich…that transducer looks pretty nice! And it’s also nice that you have a “signature” psi to keep track of the zones. Be careful on the “absolute” number of 13 psi. That pressure will change as your filter clogs up…or is cleaned. You might need to figure a way to use a differential pressure of approximately the 1psi (difference between sun shelf and other zones) in order to determine which zone is your reference zone.

Let us know how the servo progresses…I am still interested in that for my system but haven’t done any legwork besides thinking about it, haha.

Rich D · Aug 15, 2021

jonpcar said:
You might need to figure a way to use a differential pressure of approximately the 1psi (difference between sun shelf and other zones) in order to determine which zone is your reference zone.

Ha,ha... I have already started working on that algorithm. Should not be too difficult as there is a very distinct pressure drop between zones. If I poll it every 2 seconds I can get about 12 readings per zone cycle so I should be able to average at least 6 readings to get a base line. Of course this will most likely end up having to loop the entire zone sequence at least 2 times to get the base line then find the lower value zone..

jonpcar said:
Let us know how the servo progresses…I am still interested in that for my system but haven’t done any legwork besides thinking about it, haha.

Will do.. This is the one I picked... Seems fairly straightforward, just need to find the best mounting arrangement...

Amazon.com: LJWRC servo 25KG servo Motor 180 Degree Metal Gear High Torque Waterproof Digital Servo : Toys & Games

www.amazon.com

Rich D · Aug 15, 2021

jonpcar said:
Hey Rich…that transducer looks pretty nice

A little more info on this transducer.. It is not "All" I had hoped for. Unfortunately it uses Bluetooth for connection. The developers so far have chosen not to include a background service to the app. So this means you need to have the app in the foreground and your device screen on to stay connected to the sensor. I have already in put in a request for them to add a background service.
The other issue with Bluetooth is you need to be fairly close to sensor for a good connection.

It runs off a replaceable battery so I am already planning to run some power to it to fix that issue.

PoolGate · Aug 15, 2021

If you're talking to the developers maybe you can get them to switch it to WiFi.

Rich D · Aug 15, 2021

PoolGate said:
If you're talking to the developers maybe you can get them to switch it to WiFi.

I did have a conversation with them about that as well. They are planning a wifi version, However it seems this version will require online service wich will have a monthy/ yearly subscription. I did put in a request for a simple local wifi version as well so we we have to wait and see... It was supposed to be available by now but it seems to more complex than they had anticipated..