Preventing Water Features from coming on when automatic cover is closed

[PaulJackson]

Hi all. I've come to this forum for many answers in the past, but this is my first time asking a question.

Has anyone come across a solution for preventing the water feature (waterfall) from turning on if certain criteria are not met? In my case, in the situation where our CoverStar automatic cover is not fully open, I want the OmniLogic app to disable the possibility of turning on the waterfall. Yes, you guessed it....our teenage daughter almost killed our pool, our cover, and our waterfall wall.

I can code....so I don't mind sinking my hands into the API if it's possible. But would prefer a turnkey option if one exists.

Like...

a) There's a way for CoverStar and Hayward to communicate and do this safety check out-of-the-box. I have searched, and emailed CoverStar....and it doesn't seem like this integration exists today. But maybe I'm wrong?

b) Is there a hack? Like if I put a sensor on the cover, and another sensor at the pool wall next to where the sensor is when the cover is open, and can somehow code an API into the OmniLogic app so that if the sensors are not next to each other then either disable the option to turn on the water feature, or ignore the request to turn it on.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Paul

 

[mknauss]

Welcome to the forum.
From @PoolBrews :
Pool Cover Interlock Scaleback: Added ability to associate filter speed, heater set point, and chlorination percentage to the pool cover closed interlock. For those of you that have an integrated pool cover, this lets you have your system set specific settings based on whether the cover is closed or not.

This was for R3.2

Let's see if he can help you out.

 

[JamesW]

https://www.poolspanews.com/products/equipment/pool-cover-specialists_o

Home - AU

Hayward offers environmentally responsible, cutting-edge pool and spa equipment for residential and commercial, in-ground and above-ground pools.

www.hayward-pool.com.au

Pool Cover Specialists, A Division Of Latham Pool Products, And Hayward® Pool Products Announce The Release Of The Hayward/Pcs Pool Cover Interface

11.03.2014

For more information, contact:

Gary Young

Phone: 908.351.5400 x4252

Email: [email protected]

November 3, 2014 – Pool Cover Specialists, a division of Latham Pool Products Inc.—North America's largest manufacturer of swimming pool components—and Hayward Pool Products, the international market leader in residential swimming pool equipment, announced today the release of the Hayward/PCS Pool Cover Interface. This new technology allows the integration of a Pool Cover Specialists automatic swimming pool cover into the Hayward OmniLogic® and Hayward ProLogic® automation systems which can control all swimming pool functions, as well as other backyard features.

Bruce Grogg, General Manager of Pool Cover Specialists, a division of Latham Pool Products, said, “By providing seamless integration of a Pool Cover Specialists automatic swimming pool cover and Hayward’s automation controls, pool owners don’t have to choose between having the convenience of automated water features or having an auto cover…they can now have both.” Grogg went on to say, “This new interface allows the pool cover to talk with the automation system and automatically coordinate between the two systems. With Hayward’s automation, you can turn on and off of water features, slides, spa jets and other features when the pool cover is opened or closed, and keep the water from running on top of the pool cover.”

“Having worked with Pool Cover Specialists for a couple years on this idea, we’re very excited about adding this new capability into our existing automation systems,” said Greg Fournier, Hayward’s Senior Product Manager for Controls and Backyard Synergies. “We have future enhancements planned that will allow pool owners even more functionality and control when they add an automatic swimming pool cover to our OmniLogic controls.”

About Latham Pool Products

Latham Pool Products is the largest manufacturer of swimming pool components and pool accessories in North America. Latham’s products are sold primarily to the in-ground pool market, both through a wide range of business-to-business distribution channels in the U.S. and Canada, and direct to pool builders and dealers.

The company is parent to many industry leading brands, including Viking, Trilogy, and Blue Hawaiian fiberglass pools; package pool brands Pacific Pools, Fort Wayne Pools, Kafko Pool Products, Performance Pool Products, Plastimayd and VynAll pool liners, and Pool Cover Specialists and Coverstar automatic, mesh and solid safety covers. Latham is headquartered in Latham, New York, with over 20 locations in the U.S. and Canada.

About Hayward Pool Products

Hayward Pool Products, a division of Hayward Industries, Inc. is the largest manufacturer of residential swimming pool equipment in the world, with a significant presence in the commercial pool market that is continuously growing. Headquartered in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Hayward designs, manufactures and markets a full line of residential and commercial pool and spa equipment including pumps, filters, heating, cleaners, salt chlorinators, automation, lighting, safety, flow control and energy solutions.

The company, which has built its brand on innovation, energy-efficiency, safety and reliability, includes such brands as Salt & Swim® 3C, EcoStar®, EcoStar® C TriStar®, Super Pump®, ProLogic®, AquaConnect®, HeatPro®, ColorLogic®, CrystaLogic™, CAT Controllers®, AquaRite®, Navigator® Pro, PoolVac XL™, TigerShark®, among others.

Hayward products are sold throughout the U.S., Canada, Asia, Australia, Latin America and the Middle East. For more information, contact Hayward at (908) 351-5400 or visit www.haywardindustries.com.

Latham Pool Products Contact:

Michelle Zollinger

Phone: 260-459-4144

E-mail: [email protected]

 

[PaulJackson]

Great responses, thank you!

I'm going to connect again with CoverStar and show them this. If CoverStar supports this, then it should be a matter of getting them to talk. I will report back what I find.

 

[Poolbreh]

I’ve seen a microswitch installed that would close the circuit on the relays low voltage. It would close circuit if cover is open and open circuit when cover was closed. Not sure how safe this is but I found it interesting. (The relay wouldn’t engage when cover was closed)

 

[CoverGuy99]

Hi all. I've come to this forum for many answers in the past, but this is my first time asking a question.

Has anyone come across a solution for preventing the water feature (waterfall) from turning on if certain criteria are not met? In my case, in the situation where our CoverStar automatic cover is not fully open, I want the OmniLogic app to disable the possibility of turning on the waterfall. Yes, you guessed it....our teenage daughter almost killed our pool, our cover, and our waterfall wall.

I can code....so I don't mind sinking my hands into the API if it's possible. But would prefer a turnkey option if one exists.

Like...

a) There's a way for CoverStar and Hayward to communicate and do this safety check out-of-the-box. I have searched, and emailed CoverStar....and it doesn't seem like this integration exists today. But maybe I'm wrong?

b) Is there a hack? Like if I put a sensor on the cover, and another sensor at the pool wall next to where the sensor is when the cover is open, and can somehow code an API into the OmniLogic app so that if the sensors are not next to each other then either disable the option to turn on the water feature, or ignore the request to turn it on.

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Paul

Paul, you will need s Normally Open sensor that attaches to your guide feed and a magnet that attaches to the cover. The sensor will have 2 wires coming from it. They need to be run to the External Input on the Hayward Panel. From there, you can program the interlock. Shoot me an email and I'll send you some more info - [email protected]