Glacier Pool Cooler with Omnilogic Automation DIY in Louisiana

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twillux said:
I checked my Glacier model manual and couldn’t find the requirement for the T to be vertical at the suction side of the pump. Honestly, i can’t see it making a difference if you plumb it in vertically vs horizontally to run the new PVC to the chiller outlet, particularly as you’re planning actuators that will block flow from the Chiller when not enabled. My install is plumbed as “new install” per the manuals, not an “existing pool retrofit”, but I think you’ll be fine.
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I emailed Glacier about this and they said the tee fitting should also be upright in the non-automated retrofit (with check valves) and that this was left out of the manual. He did not answer why, but just to follow the instruction manual.
 
stgreath21 said:
I emailed Glacier about this and they said the tee fitting should also be upright in the non-automated retrofit (with check valves) and that this was left out of the manual. He did not answer why, but just to follow the instruction manual.
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Whelp, that’s good to know, as mine is definitely not plumbed like that :)
 
@twillux , your setup is much more advanced than mine, as my system is old and has limited programming. However, as my chiller is getting older, I worry about pump failure. Do you believe it would be possible to add another float switch, so that if the water in the basin rises to a certain level (above the pump float) the chiller would shut off and actuators would close? My chiller comes on at 3am and I run it every day. I’d hate to wake up to a flooded yard and drained pool due to chiller pump failure.
 
jark87 said:
@twillux , your setup is much more advanced than mine, as my system is old and has limited programming. However, as my chiller is getting older, I worry about pump failure. Do you believe it would be possible to add another float switch, so that if the water in the basin rises to a certain level (above the pump float) the chiller would shut off and actuators would close? My chiller comes on at 3am and I run it every day. I’d hate to wake up to a flooded yard and drained pool due to chiller pump failure.
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I’ve been giving this some thought as well lately. There’s even another thread on TFP discussing this topic that I’ve been following, but I haven’t seen a viable solution proposed just yet. You could hypothetically use an HVAC float switch which are very cheap, but how to wire that in to your specific pool controller to detect the high water basin level is the question.

I have an OmniPL which does have one external interlock input which could be used to detect the float switch trip on high water volume. The Omni would then be easy to configure this as an interlock to shutdown the chiller, which would actuate the valves to close. In my case however I’m using that interlock already to detect when my home is on generator power, to then load shed the pool pump if the generator load gets too high. My alternate thought and what I’m leaning towards is a separate homemade ESP32 controller that I already have installed in my Omni controller panel which has some extra breadboard space; using that today to monitor controller temp and chiller water temperature as the Omni let me down by not being able get access to the extra temperature inputs on the board. Would be simple to add in the float switch, then use Home Assistant to stop the chiller.

What pool controller do you have? If you have an interlock input similar to the Omni, that’s an option with the float switch. I’ve thought about if it would be possible to wire the float switch in series with the valve actuator to close it when the float trips, but I need to read more about how the actuators work to see if that’s a possibility.
 
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I've just been following along because I do love the automation discussions.

Just my $0.02 on the high level shutdown. I would have this as a hard wired shutdown, through an additional motor contactor, so it would kill the pump power. From what it sounds like, the issue is the pump remaining on when it shouldn't and emptying the pool. I would not want to rely on the automation to work properly and turn off the pump circuit for this.

--Jeff
 
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twillux said:
What pool controller do you have?
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It’s ancient - Jandy Aqualink RS. I don’t have any knowledge about how to implement the solution, but it just seems like if you can trigger a signal based on a float, you should be able to turn something off. My chiller has been programmed so that when turned on, the actuators open and the chiller starts running and the opposite when turned off. I was thinking that a float switch could send the signal to turn it off, which sounds easy enough. Maybe not, though.
 
twillux said:
I’ve been giving this some thought as well lately. There’s even another thread on TFP discussing this topic that I’ve been following, but I haven’t seen a viable solution proposed just yet. You could hypothetically use an HVAC float switch which are very cheap, but how to wire that in to your specific pool controller to detect the high water basin level is the question.

I have an OmniPL which does have one external interlock input which could be used to detect the float switch trip on high water volume. The Omni would then be easy to configure this as an interlock to shutdown the chiller, which would actuate the valves to close. In my case however I’m using that interlock already to detect when my home is on generator power, to then load shed the pool pump if the generator load gets too high. My alternate thought and what I’m leaning towards is a separate homemade ESP32 controller that I already have installed in my Omni controller panel which has some extra breadboard space; using that today to monitor controller temp and chiller water temperature as the Omni let me down by not being able get access to the extra temperature inputs on the board. Would be simple to add in the float switch, then use Home Assistant to stop the chiller.

What pool controller do you have? If you have an interlock input similar to the Omni, that’s an option with the float switch. I’ve thought about if it would be possible to wire the float switch in series with the valve actuator to close it when the float trips, but I need to read more about how the actuators work to see if that’s a possibility.
Click to expand...
Since you're a Home Assistant guy (as am I) maybe using a Capacitive Level Gauge Water Level Sensor to detect basin level?
 

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