Valve Actuator Mounting SOS

[John_and_Val]

I have a question on these actuators.....can i control the opening/closing through the automation app? For example - if i put a actuator on a water feature pipe...will i be able to "dial in" the flow?

Meaning if one of my water jets needs a little more flow - will i be able to do this through the intellicenter app?

 

[ajw22]

I have a question on these actuators.....can i control the opening/closing through the automation app? For example - if i put a actuator on a water feature pipe...will i be able to "dial in" the flow?

Meaning if one of my water jets needs a little more flow - will i be able to do this through the intellicenter app?

Not right now, maybe someday. The two valve positions are set on the valve. That app just moves the valve between the two preset positions.

 

[PoolGate]

I have a question on these actuators.....can i control the opening/closing through the automation app? For example - if i put a actuator on a water feature pipe...will i be able to "dial in" the flow?

Meaning if one of my water jets needs a little more flow - will i be able to do this through the intellicenter app?

Jandy can do this with the proper setup.

 

[MyAZPool]

My,

One of us has way too much idle time on their hands... and I'm the one that is retired...

Once you get your system up and running, you will find that valve accuracy is about the same as grenade accuracy... anything close, is close enough..

Nice work by the way,

Jim R.

;-).. You're not the only one in the "retirement" boat . I would never be able to do what I'm doing with Mr. Pool, if I had a real job now.
But hey, thanks much Jim, see, even a "blind squirrel finds an acorn once in a while". :grin:.

Now, I guess I'm going to have to revise the expression I use from time to time regarding approximation.

Now it's "close only counts when playing horseshoes,
throwing hand grenades,
detonating a nuclear weapon AND
setting a valve diverter position" ...

Thanks again Jim for taking the time to provide all of the help and advice to me, throughout my pool equipment renovation project. Really appreciate it!
r...

 

[MyAZPool]

Originally Posted by John_and_Val I have a question on these actuators.....can i control the opening/closing through the automation app? For example - if i put a actuator on a water feature pipe...will i be able to "dial in" the flow?
Meaning if one of my water jets needs a little more flow - will i be able to do this through the intellicenter app?

Originally Posted by ajw22 "Not right now, maybe someday. The two valve positions are set on the valve. That app just moves the valve between the two preset positions.""

Exactly. Right now, you can just set (program) a user defined "home" and a user defined second position on the actuator and the automation signals the actuator to go to one setting or the other, through an electrical signal ONLY.

However, this particular actuator has two wires that are currently not being used that will provide RS-485 communication from the automation system to the valve actuator in the future. I was told by Pentair that a firmware upgrade will be released in 2019, that will allow for this. You will have to buy an additional "expansion" board (Pentair Serial COM Expansion Board) which mounts in the Pentair Load or Power Center, that will allow these two additional wires to be connected to the automation system.

Now, how one will go about executing the valve positioning through the automation system is anyone's guess, but Pentair told me that after the firmware upgrade release, you can then set the valve position to any of five (5) predetermined, user defined positions.
Can't wait to see how this will work and hopefully it won't be to "hokey"...
r...

 

[bdavis466]

I have a question on these actuators.....can i control the opening/closing through the automation app? For example - if i put a actuator on a water feature pipe...will i be able to "dial in" the flow?

Meaning if one of my water jets needs a little more flow - will i be able to do this through the intellicenter app?

Usually the water features are a set and forget type situation. Each feature should have it's own valve and once they are adjusted for equal flow there shouldn't be a reason to mess with it again.

You planned on a variable speed pump for your water features so if you wanted increased flow you would use a feature circuit to ramp up the pump speed.

 

[MyAZPool]

Usually the water features are a set and forget type situation. Each feature should have it's own valve and once they are adjusted for equal flow there shouldn't be a reason to mess with it again.

You planned on a variable speed pump for your water features so if you wanted increased flow you would use a feature circuit to ramp up the pump speed.

Some good points, especially for those with a dedicated pump for the water feature(s). But not sure everyone uses their water features on a constant basis (especially for the one's that have to use their filter pump to supply flow to the water feature. Some of my neighbors and friends (myself included), only use water features when they want that particular ambience, for parties etc.

For myself, I find that using the water feature on a consistent basis tends to really mess with my pH, so I only use the water feature when I want it on for a particular purpose.

Unfortunately for me, I do not have a pump dedicated for my water feature (3 sprays), so not only will it mess with my pH if I use it all the time, but it drives up my filter pressure, since it adds a restriction to the return flow. Sometimes what I do to get around this issue, is use a valve to bypass the filter and chem manifold, when I want to use the water features for an extended period of time.

Regarding the IntelliValves, Here is how I have finalized my IntelliValve programming. These settings seem to be working very well for me at this point anyway. We'll see how it goes. If you see a problem or have a suggestion on a change, I'm open for that (other than revising my plumbing make-up :lol...



By the way, I timed the IntelliValve movement. I takes 38 seconds for the actuator to move the valve (3-way) throughout the full range of travel (180 degrees). That's about 1.5 seconds per IntelliValve actuator position (1-24).
r.