kenchilada
New member
Why do you need buck converters?
DIY 4 Head Doser 0-10V Port
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kenchilada
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Looks great! I’m doing something very similar. What LED displays are those?
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I got low volume 3.3v pumps so I could do smaller doses. The whole system, including the relays runs at 12v. I figured I'd just step it down right at the pump head with a buck convertor, in case I want to change something later.
kenchilada
New member
Any reason I can’t power this all from a hydros drive port? The pumps I’m looking at are 0.25A.
I thought a drive port supplies 1.5A max but I can’t confirm.
Danny
HYDROS Expert
It depends on what controller they are on what the specs are for that output. Most will not do 1.5 amps.
kenchilada
New member
Oh I see. I was trying to avoid a brick with a barrel plug but no big deal. Thanks for the info.
thom_smith
HYDROS Expert
CaptRocketPants
New member
How are you guys controlling multiple heads with one drive port now that Hydros has removed the simple doser type option. From what I see that option allows you to select how many heads you are controlling but they seem to have removed it from the app?
Danny
HYDROS Expert
The simple doser has always been for just a single doser. The drive port is just a 12v power on or off. There is no logic in the port it is either on or off. So if you want to control simple dosing pumps separately you have to have each on its own drive port.
CaptRocketPants
New member
Danny thank you!!! so when these dose all 4 heads will dose at the same time correct? The 5-minute delay between each dose had me confused I thought that meant from each head not the entire unit. Thank you!
Danny
HYDROS Expert
Not sure what you are referring to. The simple doser plugs into a drive port and only has one pump head. The only Hydros device with 4 dosing pumps is the X10 controller and those are 4 separate dosing pumps but can be controlled by one schedule which can have a delay between each pump. Even multiple simple dosers can be used in a single schedule but each one would have to be connected to a separate drive port on a controller.
kenchilada
New member
How are you guys cutting the holes in the box cover? I’m using one of these. Drill to start and then dremel?
CaptRocketPants
New member
Hey Dmytro,
Couple of quick questions. I am looking to build on of these. Since you can calibrate the flow rate in the schedule what is the purpose for the flow adjusting knobs? Similar question about the buttons since we are using 10V output off of Hydos I don't understand what the buttons would be used for? Not Trying to critique just genuinely wanting to understand the workings of your set up? I like the idea of more flexibility just curious how it all works. Thanks!
I can't speak for Dmytro, but the reason I've seen that a lot of people use the dials is for smaller doses.
Say you get a 12v dosing head that does 25ml/m. Hydros can have up to a 2.5 second "lag" for turning the pumps on and off, so your minimum dose would be 25ml/m, divided by 60 seconds in a minute, times the 2.5 second "lag", or (basically) 1.04ml. So that is the smallest dose you can have with that pump running at 12v.
Now if you dial the same pump to 40% speed (4.8v), or 10ml/m, that same 2.5 second dose time gets you a .42ml minimum dose.
You might need big doses for alkalinity or calcium, but you may only need tiny doses for things like trace elements. So, depending on what you're dosing, you can use a faster dosing head and just dial the speed up or down to accommodate your needs. Make sense?
I kind of accomplished the same thing by getting 3v, 5.4ml/m dosing heads and using buck convertors to reduce the 12v input to 3.3v. I knew I'd be dosing smaller amounts for this application, and this allows me to get down around .2ml individual doses if needed. I could've used faster heads and dialed them down, but it adds more complexity, extra parts and extra wiring. I wanted to keep things simple, and I can always let it run longer to get more if I need to.
Hooz answered almost all questions. Flow adjusting knobs gives you control over flow. As said above motor at 12v gives 80ml/min but when you decrease voltage, min dose also decreases. It gives you flexibility with min dosing volume. Often you need to dose only 0.1 ml. Another example of so tiny dosing is: imagine your aquarium needs 1 ml of something per day. Saltwater aquarium is all about stability and it’s better to dose 10 times per 0.1ml instead of 1 dose 1 ml!
Buttons allows to prime hoses manually
All these additional buttons and regulator gives you more options
With drive port we give only power to this doser
We give command to motors with 0-10v cable which has 4 channels. 1 channel per motor
When channel receives a signal it triggers relay which gives power to a motor. No signal and motor stops
That’s how it works
Yes. Control X4 or a WaveEngine. Those are the only options with 0-10v OUTPUTS.