Programming my EasyTouch

[Dirk]

Dirk,

I always say when the EasyTouch has an "L" in the model it means a Lite version.. and just like with food, the Lite stuff never does taste just right...

Sorry....

I have the ET 4 and wish I had the ET 8.. I keep finding new stuff that I wish I had a relay to control...

Is there anything that you want your system to do that it won't do now?

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

Thanks for asking. I need an hour or so with an expert to vet out all that I want to do and can't seem to be able to do. I haven't yet spent much time with the programming. What I have has not gone well, so I got frustrated and stopped trying. The filter mode runs. The cleaner mode runs. That's all I've got so far. It's kind of a mess right now. My plan was to get Pentair on the phone and work through it all with them. But I might put together something in a post, too.

The problem was, when I was shopping for the new pump and control unit, I was under the impression that there was a four and an eight, like one each. I had no idea at the time (and it wasn't explained to me by the installer), that there is a large number of models of 8s and 4s, all with different config's and capabilities and boxes, etc. It was ultimately my fault. I was busy, and didn't do my due diligence in researching what was available. Plus, I think he pushed on me the model he had in stock, to get rid of it. Do they all have SPA? I don't need SPA. Why did I end up with SPA? Whatever, too late now.

Circuits I have:
1. Pool/filter mode
2. Cleaner mode
3. Light
4. Skimmer mode (higher RPM than Pool/filter mode)

I also have solar and SWG that will complicate things in the spring.

I can't get the programming I want to stick. I'll set up four schedules, then one or two will disappear some time later. And I can't seem to get the egg timers to work as expected. And the freeze mode is also acting wonky. It comes on, but ScreenLogic doesn't seem to know about it. Nor does it come on at the RPM I've set. Maybe it's in the pump? Not sure. It's a mess.

I think part of the problem is programming from ScreenLogic. And I've been told I'm trying to add more schedules than allowed. That's what I need Pentair to explain. I've seen warnings about too many somethings (schedules, maybe, not sure).

This is what I wanted initially:

Pool mode to run automatically at least once a day, possible two or three times a day, depending on season and need.
Cleaner mode to run automatically once or twice a day.
Light to be activated manually.
Skimmer mode to run once or twice a day (to "polish" the surface, at a higher RPM than normal Pool mode)

I also want egg timers to kick in if I initiate any of the above manually. Maybe I want to run the vacuum just before people come over. Or polish the surface it there's some surface gunk. I want to be able to start a circuit from my Indoor Controller, then have whatever I start shut down after a brief run. Also wanted an egg timer for the light, so it wouldn't run all night if I forgot to turn it off before bed.

My skimmer and cleaner are on an actuator. So that the pump pulls 100% of water through either, but not both. That seems to be working fine.

And my solar works as expected, too.

But now there's a new wrinkle. Marty gave me a great idea, to use a circuit (other than Pool) to filter my pool during the winter, so that the SWG doesn't get power. If I understand that right, I'm one circuit short.

I've yet to get the SWG working, and don't know how that's going to integrate with everything. If I could get everything I need from my EasyTouch, then I could do some cool stuff. I could run the cleaner whenever, the high-rpm skimmer mode whenever, and run the normal filter mode, with or without SWG. That way, I could dial in exactly what cycles work best to keep my pool cleanest, and to add just the right amount of chlorine (between the SWG setting and the duration it's actually powered on). But then there's solar, which can be programmed, sort of, but not really, because that comes on at the mercy of the sun. How will solar RPMs kicking on and off at odd hours affect my SWG scheduling? Not sure how all that's going to work.

But so far, I don't think the egg timers work at all, and I can't get more than three schedules to stick, let alone the dozen I might like to have. And of those three, one doesn't work (I have the Pool mode scheduled for twice a day, only one works). Can you not have more than three schedules? Can two of the schedules be the same circuit (like if I wanted to circulate in two four hour sessions, rather than one eight-hour)? Can I not vacuum three times a day if I want to? Why can't I set my freeze RPM? And why doesn't ScreenLogic indicate freeze mode when I know the pump is in freeze mode? All mysteries to me.

Etc, etc. I first have to figure out what I want to do, then ask TFP or Pentair if I can, and if so how. And maybe in the process determine if I'm expecting too much, or have the wrong controller, or if the one I have is somehow defective. And I just haven't had the hours this is all gonna take to figure out...

What's frustrating is this is all pretty simple, programming-wise, and it's feeling like Pentair is hobbling the 4 to get people to fork over for the 8. Both of which seem pretty overpriced for what they actually do. I have a $20 light timer that can handle eight on and off times a day. Am I gonna be told my $600 EasyTouch can't automate four things twice a day? I'm not going to be happy about that...

- - - Updated - - -

Sorry, I went off there. Should I have done this from my own thread? I had intended to, but your question inspired me to get into it. Feel free to move it over to one of my threads if you think it best. I was actually saving this conversation for the spring, when I'll be firing up my SWG...

 

[Dirk]

OK. Another shot at this. I just attempted to re-schedule (in ScreenLogic). I deleted my two Pool schedules. One of which wasn't working anyway. I replaced them with two "Skimmer" schedules, in an attempt to see if I can get the pump to circulate the pool through the skimmer a couple times a day, without sending power to the SWG.

After a few minutes, one of the two new schedules disappeared (in ScreenLogic). Can't have two different schedules for the same circuit? Uhg.

So I added the second Skimmer schedule a second time. A few minutes later it's still there (in ScreenLogic).

We'll see if either does what it's supposed to. And if the two new schedules stick around.

More later...

 

[Jimrahbe]

Dirk,

I'm sure you have heard the old joke about .. "You can't get there from here..." Sorry, but you literally can't get to where you want to go, with the equipment you have...

The Lite version of the EasyTouch only has the following capabilities:

4 (Total) schedules..
4 IntelliFlo Speeds..
2 Feature circuits
2 User programmable valve controls.

This means that if you want to "schedule" your pump to come on 4 times a day... you have used up all 4 schedules. I am not sure about the PSL4, but on my Regular ET, using the Egg Timer for anything other than the default 12 hours... you guessed it... counts as a schedule. I suspect yours operates the same way, but I do not know for sure.

It seems like you only have two choices... Either replace your current system, or just reduce what you want it to do, to match what it can actually do...

Seems to me you can only have to following schedules:

1. Pool schedule.. Runs once a day.. for example 8 am until 8 pm
2. Cleaner schedule.. Runs once a day.. for example 6 am until 8 am (Rotates suction valve and increases pump speed)
3. Skimmer schedule.. Runs once a day... for example 11 am until 1 pm. (Just increases the pump speed during Pool schedule) (I'd use a Feature Circuit for this)
4. Spare schedule.. to be used for whatever you can't live without or for one egg timer operation.

Some random thoughts...

Having the Spa function should not cause you any issues..

I find it easiest to program ScreenLogic from my PC.. Here is a screenshot showing what is set to come on by freeze protection (which I no longer use...)

You can see where the Pool circuit has freeze protection enabled.

If this were my system, I'd use ScreenLogic to set up the three schedules above and confirm that they work as they should.. I'd then start working on the other issues..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

Thanks, Jim. You've just confirmed what I've pieced together from the various pool guys who have looked into this. I was just in denial about it, and still incredulous that a $600 glorified timer is so hobbled. Uhg.

I will ponder your options. I'm sure my pool will be fine with what my controller can actually do, it's just, uh, unfortunate that I was sold this particular unit.

I was able to get the two new Skimmer schedules to stick. The first one is working as planned, driving my pump at the desired RPM with the SWG powered down. But I lost water temp. I guess that only works in "Pool" mode. I've set all my egg timers to 12 hours. I'll check tonight to see if that gets the second Skimmer session to work.

Uhg, this sucks. I really wanted all four egg timers, and at least four schedules.

Can I replace the circuit board and upgrade my EasyTouch's capability, without having to completely dismantle the box and all the associated connections running in and out of it?

I know what I really want to do, and that's rip everything out and install the unit you recommended to that other guy. I can get the programming I want, and get rid of all that junk hanging off my wall.

Maybe I'll wait until the current warranty runs out. Or maybe until the EasyTouch and/or the SWG burns up, whichever happens first.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Dirk,

I believe that you can just change out the main board and end up with the same number of functions that the standard EasyTouch 4 or 8 has..

12 (total) Schedules
8 Pump speeds
8 Features circuits,
2 user programmable valve circuits.

But it would cost almost as much as you spent on your whole unit... I'm not sure it would be worth it.

I don't understand your desire to run without being in the Pool mode??? In my mind you want the SWCG on every moment you have the pump on.. If generating too much chlorine just decrease the %. If you want the SWCG off, just turn the % to zero. I love my SWCG pool, but if there is one downside, it is the length of time you have to run the pump to generate chlorine, so running with the SWCG off just seems counter productive to me.

Let me know when you decide to get your SWCG connected, I'd be glad to point you in the right direction..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[mknauss]

Jim -- I am the one that suggested setting up a Feature Circuit for non-SWCG use times. As in Winter. I had no idea the L meant not very functional in the EasyTouch.

I like to do it because having the electronics on the SWCG on when not needed. Not sure it means anything , but just me. When my pool water gets to 60F I delete the pool schedule and set up two 45 min times via a Feature Circuit to run the pump in the Am and Pm. Works for me.

Water temperature does only show when the Pool mode is on. I really do not care what the temperature is this time of year!

Thanks for your help.

 

[Dirk]

Thanks Jim, I'll be in touch come SWG time, including the best way to add salt and CYA (I've been running a fresh water pool since the new plaster, waiting for the water to warm up).

The non-Pool mode: I had posed a question about my SWG being powered on with Pool mode, even though I set it to zero. My water temp is in the low 50s. It was my understanding that the SWG wouldn't produce significant chlorine at that temp. I was wondering if I was wearing anything out in the SWG, even when set to zero (as it is now). Or if it was possible to turn it off, or advisable to physically remove it from the plumbing during the winter months. Marty described his solution, which was to use a non-Pool circuit to "fool" the pump to filter, but not power the SWG. So I was trying that out. I like the way that solution keeps the SWG powered down, and it lights up an LED on my Indoor Control Panel that alerts me when the pump is running (something that Pool mode does not do). But I lost water temp, which I use for PoolMath.

Come swim season, I'll be running Pool mode, so my solar will fire, and my SWG will fire, etc.

Alternately, I could disconnect the SWG power cable (but it's hardwired, not plugged in to anything). Or I could replace it with the blank that Pentair sells (and would still have to unplug it). Or I could just let it light up at zero and hope that doesn't cause any additional wear, to the electronics, or the plates. Thoughts?

For my pool, running SWG is less of an issue for me, I think. I have a water solar system, so I have to run the pump a lot anyway, to warm up the pool. More than the SWG will need, I suspect/hope. And I just put a PV solar system online this year too, so electricity use is less important than it was.

One of the things I'll be trying to figure out: Pool mode RPM and Solar mode RPM are significantly different. With just five settings, I've been wondering how well I will be able to dial in the chlorine generation. I figured that could be fine-tuned with Pool mode duration. But because I need Pool mode on for most of the day, to run the solar, I can't use duration to adjust the SWG output, only its % settings. And to complicate, or at least confuse, the solar RPM is intermittent, as it runs at different speeds and times, and different from day to day. While the Pool mode duration will be constant, the RPMs will not be (depending on what the pool temp and sun are doing). I'll be curious to see how that affects chlorine output.

With or without solar, can one expect the SWG to maintain a relatively constant chlorine level all summer? Or does one expect to be playing with it all season long?

I know I still have to test often. Do SWG owners supplement with liquid chlorine, or can they typically find a happy medium that requires little or no tweaking?

Mostly academic questions, I'll know when I know, when my system stabilizes and does what it's going to do...

- - - Updated - - -

Can't resist, I have to go back and blame Pentair again. All the hardware is there. The circuits and relays are there. It's the programming that irks me. One should be able to:

- have unlimited schedules (or at least a huge number of them), in addition to all the egg timers
- be able to control when temp works
- be able to schedule solar separately
- be able to schedule SWG power separately
- etc, etc

I really think Pentair should be doing better. And I suspect this is not any hardware cost issue (maybe a little extra RAM), just a matter of better programming, which, by all accounts, is not something they're particularly good at...

End of rant!

 

[Jimrahbe]

Dirk,

You don't "schedule" solar.. it just works off of a temperature difference. Basically, if the water in the pool is colder than you want and the water in solar is hot enough, it will just come on. No scheduling is involved, no matter what version of ET you have.

Please don't take this the wrong way, but I personally do not see this as a Pentair problem, just the same as if you buy an entry level car, you don't get all the bells and whistles, unless you pay for them, even though many features are already wired into the car's wiring harness..

I still see no reason to schedule the SWCG... but I had assumed being in California that it was still working.. If you just want to shut off the electronics in the winter, which I do not, you can just pop the SWCG's breaker, or in the case of an external power supply, just remove the fuse in the bottom of the power supply box. This would allow you to run in the pool mode and still keep your temperature readings.

Like most SWCG owners, I use Liquid Chlorine in the winter. Does not take all that much. In the summer, I have to adjust my % of output on a monthly basis.. Increase the % as the weather gets warmer in the Spring and early Summer and then decrease the % as the weather cools in the late Summer and Fall. One of the things I love about ScreenLogic is that I can do that from my PC.

The rpm your pump runs has zero impact on the amount of chlorine that the SWCG generates. Once the rpm is enough to close the flow switch (1200 rpm in my case) the cell will produce the same amount of chlorine per hour no matter what the rpm is..

At this point I think we just need to do the best we can with what we have..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

"Do the best..." Roger that. Thank you for your thoughts.

Fuse, good idea. I'll check that. My SWG is not on a dedicated breaker. And the breaker box is out of room. I could find a two-fer breaker. So that or the fuse might be the better solution than fooling with the circuits/scheduling.

I'm clear on the solar scheduling. What I meant was, a way to bracket schedule the solar within the Pool mode schedule.

Here's my real-world case:
6:00am - 8:00am Cleaner
6:00am - 5:00pm Pool mode
8:00am - 3:00pm Solar

I want the Pool schedule to overlap the Cleaner schedule so that I get temp (something I like to see first thing in the AM).
But I want the Solar to go off at 3:00 because of PG&E's tiers.
Maybe I want the Pool mode to continue after three (at a much-reduced RPM) for circulation or SWG, whatever.

Within the Solar schedule, it would do its normal thing, on and off based on temps, etc.

See? I can do that now, by Scheduling Pool with and without Heat, but that would require three of my four schedules, Cleaner makes four. Nothing left for egg timers.

I cannot dispute your take, basically "You get what you pay for." I concede that I did not buy the right unit for my need, and shouldn't expect what more expensive units offer. I get that. What I'm whining about is ALL the models, across the price spectrum, should be doing more than they do now. (Just my opinion.) These units are expensive, and I think they could be better at what they do. All the hardware is there to do what I want, it's just a matter of "releasing" some niceties, that, like you surmise, are probably hidden in the circuit board anyway. I just don't like that business model. Do MORE for the customer, offer BETTER value. Not hold the consumer hostage to squeeze them. Just my take... just venting...

But this is all academic. I appreciate you clearing up for me what my unit can and cannot do. I just need to pick the four most important things (to me and my pool) and put the rest out of my mind until I have a spare grand sitting around. And the reality is, my pool will be fine.

Good to know about chlorine production. I'm anxious to get that working to lower my maintenance tasks. Though, I don't mind repeating, taking care of my pool myself (thanks to TFP) is waaaaaay easier than I ever imagined!

Thx again!

Dirk,

You don't "schedule" solar.. it just works off of a temperature difference. Basically, if the water in the pool is colder than you want and the water in solar is hot enough, it will just come on. No scheduling is involved, no matter what version of ET you have.

Please don't take this the wrong way, but I personally do not see this as a Pentair problem, just the same as if you buy an entry level car, you don't get all the bells and whistles, unless you pay for them, even though many features are already wired into the car's wiring harness..

I still see no reason to schedule the SWCG... but I had assumed being in California that it was still working.. If you just want to shut off the electronics in the winter, which I do not, you can just pop the SWCG's breaker, or in the case of an external power supply, just remove the fuse in the bottom of the power supply box. This would allow you to run in the pool mode and still keep your temperature readings.

Like most SWCG owners, I use Liquid Chlorine in the winter. Does not take all that much. In the summer, I have to adjust my % of output on a monthly basis.. Increase the % as the weather gets warmer in the Spring and early Summer and then decrease the % as the weather cools in the late Summer and Fall. One of the things I love about ScreenLogic is that I can do that from my PC.

The rpm your pump runs has zero impact on the amount of chlorine that the SWCG generates. Once the rpm is enough to close the flow switch (1200 rpm in my case) the cell will produce the same amount of chlorine per hour no matter what the rpm is..

At this point I think we just need to do the best we can with what we have..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

If you just want to shut off the electronics in the winter, which I do not, you can just pop the SWCG's breaker, or in the case of an external power supply, just remove the fuse in the bottom of the power supply box. This would allow you to run in the pool mode and still keep your temperature readings.

OK, I'm back in Pool mode (instead of fooling the SWCG with an alternate scheduling mode). I pulled the breaker instead and the SWCG is now powered down. This gets me my pool temp back. Perfect. Thanks!

I contemplated adding a dedicated switch, or additional breaker, but pulling the fuse is pretty simple... Might just leave well enough alone...

Or not! Just for kicks:

I did like having LED feedback on my indoor control panel while in "AUX" mode. When in Pool mode, only the panel's display shows Pool mode is active, doesn't light up a green LED. My EasyTouch does have SPA capability. And there is a dedicated SPA LED on the indoor control panel. Is there a reason I couldn't use SPA mode instead of Pool mode for my pool? That would give me a dedicated button on the indoor control panel for filtering mode (now SPA mode instead of Pool mode), with the accompanying green LED. Would temp still work? Would solar still work? How about the SWCG?

I know you can go in and out of Pool mode using the up arrow button on the indoor panel, but I wish Pool mode would light up one of those LEDs. I don't have any other compelling reason to mess with this, so probably won't. Just curious...

 

[Dirk]

Speaking of programming... My ScreenLogic is giving me grief. Yesterday it wouldn't load at all, on computer or iPhone. I rebooted the interface (by unplugging it for a few seconds) and that solved half the problem. iPhone is working now. And computer loads, too, without the error message I was getting yesterday, but now I get a window with just black. No controls or graphics. Anybody seen this before? Quick trick? Or do I need to reinstall the software?

 

[Jimrahbe]

Dirk,

If your phone works, that means the protocol adapter is working...

I would reboot the PC and if that does not help, I would reload the protocol adapter...

I have never seen the black screen issue, so I'm just guessing..

You have an indoor control panel and ScreenLogic??? This means you have two antennas on your EasyTouch or is it hardwired???

I have no indoor panel, just my PC and phone. I almost never use my phone... If I was going to use an indoor panel I would use a tablet and it would show all the same icons as the PC...

There is no reason you can't use the Spa Mode for whatever you want.. I use it to control my standalone Spa..

When in the Pool mode the pool water temperature is shown on the left and when in the Spa mode the same sensor is used but the temperature is show on the right side. In my case, I switch temp probes and measure the temperature in my standalone Spa...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

I had ScreenLogic first, then added the Panel later. I hard-wired everything, as I don't like wireless for anything (when hardwiring is an option). I discuss this in other threads, I actually use the Panel way more than ScreenLogic, and find enough things I can do with the Panel that are not available in Logic that further justify the expense (I got my panel for about $150, so not as much as I've seen them go for online). And between finding a device and waiting for Logic to load, the Panel is usually way faster and handier for what I mostly want to do: check the temp, see if my Solar is active, fire up my Skimmer or Vacuum modes on the fly, turn on the pool light. I use Logic while in bed or on the couch, or for scheduling, or while away. I like its graphs. Nice to have both.

I don't have a SPA, so if I use that mode to "fool" my ET into treating my pool like a spa, will the solar and SWG still fire correctly, as if they were heating and treating a spa instead of a pool? Will my EasyTouch give me "spa" water temp like it does "pool" temp now? Do I have to move the temp sender wire to a different connector (what did you mean by "switch temp probes")?

My SPA side of the Logic interface doesn't show, and its line eventually stopped plotting on the graph. I think that was a check box, or popup menu option, in the Configure part of Logic. I guess I could swap the Pool interface for the SPA in Logic. The Solar and SWG stuff in the EasyTouch is still a bit of a mystery to me, though. You "tell" ET that they exist, and it sort'a does the rest. Not clear to me how it knows when they're in the SPA plumbing circuit vs the Pool plumbing circuit. I guess the ET would divert Solar water to the SPA via actuators if a SPA exists, so without a SPA actuator I guess the ET would just turn on the Solar regardless of SPA or Pool mode? But I'm not sure how it would handle the SWG.

I'm probably overthinking again, I'm not sure this is all worth a little green light...

 

[Jimrahbe]

Dirk,

When you have an in-ground Spa and Pool the same water temperature sensor is used. Since the sensor is at the equipment pad, it just reads the water temperature of the water flowing through the pump. When in the Spa mode, it would be Spa water and in the pool mode it would be pool water. When switching between pool and spa modes the Intake and Return valves move to direct the water flow from the Pool or from the Spa.

Without a spa, the water temperature probe would always read the pool water temperature, but ScreenLogic logic would display it under the Pool icon when in the pool mode and under the Spa Icon when in the Spa mode.

In the Spa mode, the SWCG has its own % of output setting... This prevents the SWCG from dumping huge amounts of chlorine into a little spa.. I can't see any reason your solar would work any different.

In my case I have a standalone Spa, so I have a relay that switches between the normal temperature probe by the pump, to a different temperature probe inside my Spa.

Tell me one thing that your indoor panel can do that ScreenLogic can't do??? There may be many things, but I need to be armed when I square off with Joyfullnoise, over which is better, ScreenLogic or indoor panels...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

Dirk,

When you have an in-ground Spa and Pool the same water temperature sensor is used. Since the sensor is at the equipment pad, it just reads the water temperature of the water flowing through the pump. When in the Spa mode, it would be Spa water and in the pool mode it would be pool water. When switching between pool and spa modes the Intake and Return valves move to direct the water flow from the Pool or from the Spa.

Without a spa, the water temperature probe would always read the pool water temperature, but ScreenLogic logic would display it under the Pool icon when in the pool mode and under the Spa Icon when in the Spa mode.

In the Spa mode, the SWCG has its own % of output setting... This prevents the SWCG from dumping huge amounts of chlorine into a little spa.. I can't see any reason your solar would work any different.

In my case I have a standalone Spa, so I have a relay that switches between the normal temperature probe by the pump, to a different temperature probe inside my Spa.

Tell me one thing that your indoor panel can do that ScreenLogic can't do??? There may be many things, but I need to be armed when I square off with Joyfullnoise, over which is better, ScreenLogic or indoor panels...

Thanks,

Jim R.

OK, duh, I should have figured that out about the temp sender. It's measuring temp at the pad, not actually in the spa or pool. OK, get it. Thanks. Your setup is different in that your spa water and pool water are independent of each other, so you have to swap the senders. I get it now.

So my ET can adjust my SWG based on whether I'm running in Pool mode or Spa mode? Huh. So if I only have a pool, but am running it as a spa, then the ET will just use whatever SWG % setting I give to the "spa?" Is that right?

Ha, regarding the Indoor Panel, I'm having the hardest time convincing anyone that this thing has value!! Well, it does to me, so that's the important thing!! Here's some ammo:

1.
Well, just today for instance, I found an errant program schedule using the Panel that was not showing up in Logic. It was driving me nuts, because as you taught me, I can only have four schedules and couldn't figure out why I couldn't use all four (when using Logic). The Panel revealed why.

2.
And even though somewhat obscure, it's actually clearer to me using the Panel how many schedules I've used up. You can see the whole list, at a glance (schedules and egg timers together). Logic lets you schedule as many as you want, including egg timers, without presenting an error. Panel tells you right away when you've maxed.

3.
I don't know if it's Logic, or me, or just my Logic, but I swear programming from it is not reliable. So many times I've entered a schedule, only to have it disappear some time later, minutes or days. I don't know what's going on there, but it's happened too many times to be a one-time glitch. Plus the glitch mentioned above. If it's me, and I'm trying to schedule something that is not possible, for any reason, Logic should tell me what, and why. Logic is not well programmed (I've said that before, and I'm sticking to it.)

4.
Only the Panel (and the ET itself) will give you the temp of the solar sender on the roof. (Hey, you said you needed one, you didn't say how useful it had to be!) I do actually use that occasionally.

I know there are a few others, but none that come to mind at the moment. I'll keep track as I find them (I have seen others, but forget them just as quick.). You can find them yourself if you look, the Panel pretty much mirrors most of the ET interface.

But...

5.
There are other niceties (beyond raw abilities) that I keep harping on, that have yet to convince anyone! I can just walk by my Panel, on the way to testing for example, which I do almost every day, and see if the pump is running and what the air and water temp are. One glance, two seconds. Go ahead and time it for yourself how long it takes to get all three bits of that info from ScreenLogic, starting from finding your phone or booting up your laptop (or even waking it from sleep), finding and launching the app, waiting for it to connect, click, click, touch, touch, screen, screen, etc. Go ahead. I'll wait...

6.
Now start the stop watch again: how long to get ScreenLogic to turn on your pool light. Uh huh. One half second here. How you doing over there?

So there are some things that ScreenLogic can't do at all, but many more that it just doesn't do as conveniently, or as fast. And, at least for me, those things count, and add up...

I really don't think one is better than the other, per se. Logic's graphs are nowhere to be found on the Panel, and I do use those frequently. And many things are faster on Logic (scheduling, for sure, when it works that is, or showing off your light's schemes to unsuspecting guests). And I tried using the Panel at the grocery store, to set the solar thermostat, but the cord was reeeeally long and got caught in the shopping cart wheel. Bummer. OK, that one goes begrudgingly to Logic.

If I had to choose I'd be hard-pressed. I really like having both, and I use both regularly... I don't regret either purchase.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Dirk,

Thanks for the feedback... I now just have to keep Joyfulnoise from reading this...

Because I use my PC 99% of the time, I did not think of the delays when using a phone. My PC is always on and ScreenLogic is always up..

I have never had a program go away on its own, so it must be something you are doing, or a issue with the lite version ET..

My thought is that it appears that you have options that let you choose what works best for you.. so that sounds great!!

Thanks again,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

Yep. I got my hackles up when someone else said my Panel was outdated tech and ScreenLogic completely supersedes it. There's a reason we don't all have identical pools with matching equipment pads...

 

[Dirk]

Dirk,

If your phone works, that means the protocol adapter is working...

I would reboot the PC and if that does not help, I would reload the protocol adapter...

I have never seen the black screen issue, so I'm just guessing..

More "black screen" this morning. I just downloaded the ScreenLogic software and reinstalled. Everything's fine now.

And by doing so, I just discovered the new version. I was at 733. Maybe this new 736 version will help with some of my other issues.

By the way, I'm running ScreenLogic on a Mac and iPhone. I still stand by my assessment that my Indoor Control Panel is faster (for me) than using ScreenLogic (for some things), but I should point out that the Mac version of ScreenLogic is actually the Windows version running in some sort of "Virtual PC" environment. It's called "Wineskin" for those in the know. It's a real hack and is offensive to a Mac user because the interface looks like it's from 1970 (and Windows!). It's awful. More to the point, I can't imagine it's loading and running at the same speed as it does on a Windows machine, so my experience with ScreenLogic is bound to be different/worse than yours.

Pentair doesn't seem to have a Mac programmer, so they use this hack to get around developing on two different OS platforms...

 

[Chopjaw]

Pentair doesn't seem to have a Mac programmer, so they use this hack to get around developing on two different OS platforms...

Prolly because, to be validated by Apple they charge a premium.

 

[Dirk]

Jim, I've made some good progress with my EasyTouch PSL4. I've got my two schedules working, and I've now got a working egg timer. Yay. My next challenge is freeze mode. I finally figured out what "On with Freeze" means, and got that straightened out. I've got a pump speed programmed for Freeze Mode, but it never lights to indicated Freeze Mode Active:



The pump does turn on, to about 1000 RPM at around 35°F, but I suspect that is the pump's built-in system, and not the EasyTouch doing anything.

Is there a way I can get the ET controlling and indicating freeze mode? It works for Solar mode in the summer, and the Solar Active button lights up. Just not Freeze Mode Active button in winter.

Is this another PSL4 restriction, that only the first four pump settings do anything?