Wifi Strip in Collective

[Gary]

Hi All-
I am wondering if someone can tell me if if I can add the Hydros WiFi strip to a collective? I have an XP8 in my basement with the sump, but not enough outlets and didn't want to buy another XP8 if it is not necessary. Also, is there a limit to the amount of collective devices? I have 2 of the X4s, 2 XP8s (one on main floor), Wave Engine V2, and 2 XS units. A WiFi strip would make 8 total units. Just now getting ready to wire these all up.

Also, does Hydros or any individuals offer a paid support service to actually log into a system and do all of the programming based on what i want it to do and avoid this learning curve?

 

[Carlos]

Yes, a collective is technically a virtual device comprising multiple HYDROS devices. You can add a WiFi strip to a collective as you add it to an individual non-collective device.

 

[Gary]

Thank yo for that. I want to hook up my mixing station pump to it. It will only be used to transfer 65 gallons from one container to the next. Then i put salt in the station and run the pump for 24 hours. This is done once a month only. Is there a simple way to program this to where I can simply turn the pump on manually and shut it off once the tank is full and then hit a function/program for it to run for 24 hours and shut off automatically?

 

[Carlos]

You could use a button box to turn on an outlet. Set Minimum Time ON to 23:59:59, and that would ensure that once you press the button, the outlet will stay on for 24 hours and then automatically shut off.

Essentially, you pour the salt, press and release the button and walk away. The pump will mix for 24 hours and then stop.

 

[Danny]

Thank yo for that. I want to hook up my mixing station pump to it. It will only be used to transfer 65 gallons from one container to the next. Then i put salt in the station and run the pump for 24 hours. This is done once a month only. Is there a simple way to program this to where I can simply turn the pump on manually and shut it off once the tank is full and then hit a function/program for it to run for 24 hours and shut off automatically?

I have 9 controllers in a collective. I also have 4 wifi strips and a wifi feeder. So far I have not hit a limit but I imagine there is some kind of limit. I have 37 inputs and 90 outputs setup in the collective. So I don't think you are anywhere near the limits yet. You can have up to 8 wifi devices in a collective. This would be like your wifi feeder, wifi strips and plugs.

 

[Danny]

I have my Hydros controlling my RODI and three storage tanks. I have DI storage and the ATO is pulled from there. I also have a dispense pump that I can dispense DI into containers for use. It is operated with a pushbutton. I also have fresh saltwater storage. The AWC is pulled from this tank and I also have a dispense pump so I can dispense saltwater into containers just like the DI. I also have a mix tank. The Hydros auto refills the DI tank from the RODI when it goes low. It will also refill the Fresh saltwater tank from the mix tank if the mix tank is ready to use. It then refills the mix tank from the RODI. Then all I have to do is add the salt mix to the mix tank and press a button when it is ready for use. I have a build thread on Reef Central with the information for doing this. It starts on page 5 post #98. This was before the Hydros had the RODI Filter output type. I changed it up since then to use that output type and ai go into that in later post. I also go into the button boxes I made in later post. There is a lot of Hydros information on there. The hydros info starts on page 4 near the end of that page. Here is a link if you are interested Hex Tank Build .

 

[Gary]

Thanks Danny. A lot of info there. I will read your post for your build. I wish i woudl have had that info from the get go. My set up sounds similar to yours. However, I only have the RO storage tank hooked up to a float to refill as needed. I also have a level sensor in there incase the float fails. The level sensor obviously notifies me of the problem but I also found an electronic ball valve that hooks up to my RO feed supply. If the sensor trips the water feed to the RODI shuts off automatically, no flood. The RO storage tank supplies the ATO as well and I have a Varios 2 inside the fresh salt water storage tank to refill during AWC. I also have both storage tanks on hot water tank pans that drain into the house drain system if for any reason they may flood. My sump is sitting on a pan that is attached to a drain also in case of a flood. Its my first build and took about 2 months so far to figure this much out!

 

[Gary]

I also learned that Alexa now can work on a timer as of Sept 2022. So I may just buy a $40 Dot and a $20 Amazon plug and then just say "Alexa turn on the mixing station. Then you can say "Alexa turn off mixing station after 24 hours. AI is getting better all the time. I just like the idea of having everything on one app which is essentially the draw and goal of Hydros.

 

[Danny]

Thanks Danny. A lot of info there. I will read your post for your build. I wish i woudl have had that info from the get go. My set up sounds similar to yours. However, I only have the RO storage tank hooked up to a float to refill as needed. I also have a level sensor in there incase the float fails. The level sensor obviously notifies me of the problem but I also found an electronic ball valve that hooks up to my RO feed supply. If the sensor trips the water feed to the RODI shuts off automatically, no flood. The RO storage tank supplies the ATO as well and I have a Varios 2 inside the fresh salt water storage tank to refill during AWC. I also have both storage tanks on hot water tank pans that drain into the house drain system if for any reason they may flood. My sump is sitting on a pan that is attached to a drain also in case of a flood. Its my first build and took about 2 months so far to figure this much out!

I control my RODI inputs and the output to either the mix tank or DI storage. I also now have a flush solenoid. All are controlled with the Hydros. The output that controls the RODI input solenoid is started with a combiner. I use the RODI filter output for it now also since it also controls the flush valve. I turn on a relay with a combiner output. The relay is in palace of the low and full level sensors. When the combiner output is on the input will show dry for both low and full level. When the combiner output is off it will show wet. I hooked the relay to a sense port and setup a water level input for it.

 

[Gary]

Would you recommend putting the input RODI to the storage tank on a solenoid instead of just letting a float valve refill it? I guess I never thought of that. It would make your float be your back up I guess instead of using my ball valve on the RO supply line connected to a high level sensor.

 

[Danny]

Would you recommend putting the input RODI to the storage tank on a solenoid instead of just letting a float valve refill it? I guess I never thought of that. It would make your float be your back up I guess instead of using my ball valve on the RO supply line connected to a high level sensor.

The main reason for the one on my input is I have had one of the filters spring a leak on the RODI unit and with it this way the leak detector can shut off that solenoid to shut off the RODI if there is a leak detected. The solenoids do not like to be left on 24/7 so I turn it on as needed. I also have a float valve as a backup.

 

[Gary]

If you get a chance check out on Amazon US Solid motorized ball valve. It will shut off the feed water if the plug loses power. Plugged it into the XP8 and configured it with a rope sensor as well just in case of that situation you’re talking about with an RODI system leak or over fill in the storage tank. I thought about the solenoid but this looked a little more solid.

 

[Danny]

If you get a chance check out on Amazon US Solid motorized ball valve. It will shut off the feed water if the plug loses power. Plugged it into the XP8 and configured it with a rope sensor as well just in case of that situation you’re talking about with an RODI system leak or over fill in the storage tank. I thought about the solenoid but this looked a little more solid.

Thanks if I ever need to replace it I will look into that. I got a US Solid nylon 1/4" solenoid valve to use. I have three of these valves I used with my old controller. I also got two of the Hydros solenoids that already had the drive port connectors. I was trying to keep as much metal out of the water system as possible. I guess it would not matter much on the input since it would still have to go through the RODI. The two Hydros solenoids or on the DI output of the RODI. One to fill the mix tank and one to fill the DI tank. Below is a photo of the solenoids. The left one is mix tank fill, the next is DI tank fill, the next is a DI flush for flushing after filter changes and the last one is the one for the RODI input. All 4 have manual cutoff valves inline with them.

 

[Gary]

Manual cut offs, very good idea. Very impressive setup.

 

[Carlos]

Manual cut offs, very good idea. Very impressive setup.

When you have been around long enough, manual cutoffs are a must! LOL

 

[Gary]

Hey Danny, not sure why this is but my heater has been set to 78 and over the past week since I have had salt water in it and not cycling the tank it has slowly moved up to 79.3 as of this morning. The heater has its own module with dual elements and it is internally set to 78 and reads 79 now. My Hydros temp sensor reads 79.3. I turn off the heater this morning and turned it back on so that Hydros will not even provide power from the XP8 until it gets down to 76. Point is, I don’t think it is rising due to the heater kicking on but I don’t even have any lights on the tank yet. It’s 73 where the 125 gallon DT is located and 76 degrees in my basement where the sump is located.
I had the tank running for about 10 days previously with only RODI water and it held at 78 degrees perfectly. Now, not even a week with water in the system and it has slowly climbed up 1.3 degrees. Any idea what might be causing this?

 

[Danny]

Mine alway will run higher than room temperature due to all the pumps in the tank. I have cooling fans and use evaporative cooling. I don't have a basement but my air conditioner is set at 76 and the cooling fans are set at a high point of 78.1 and low point of 77.9. The heaters never turn on in my tank this time of year. Below in the first screenshot is the temp for my tank. The second screenshot is the log for one of my heaters. The other one is set at a lower turn on temp and there is nothing on the log for it. The third screenshot is the fan log.

 

[Gary]

When you mention that you have cooking fans and use “evaporative cooling” what do mean by that?
I am thinking I can add a fan from the ceiling pointing down at the entire sump and have it power on/off dependent on the temp sensor reading or I can add an a/c vent right above the tank (about 4ft above). There is an a/c trunk that runs right above the tank so it would be easy to T in a vent just not sure what would be better option and not sure exactly how evaporative cooling works as an option.

 

[Danny]

Evaporative cooling happens blowing air on the surface of the water. They used cool houses with evaporative cooling. We used to call them swamp coolers. That causes evaporation which cools the water. I use 2 12 volt fans made by Cooler Guys that are IP67 rated. The first photo is on two Cooler Guys fans mounted on the bradket that mounts on top of my sump. The second photo is of the other side of a Cooler guys fan. The third photo is of the bracket on top of the sump at that time I was using a different fan but they will not last long without protection that the Cooler Guys fans are made with. Also the area your sump is in would need to be ventilated for that to work.Since my sump is inside my stand I have ventilation fans that exhaust air from that area into the room. I use the chiller output type to control the fans. They are connected to a XP8 outlet using a 12v wall wart type supply.

 

[Gary]

Very nicely set up. I like it. I am going to wait a bit and see if the temp levels out before taking any action. On another note, I was looking over my ATO log and while doing so I noticed in my AWC Dependency Output I think I had something wrong so I just changed changed it but want to make sure I have this correct. I have 4 outputs for this but also at the bottom I have the AWC dependent on the Return Pump. I not have it set for ON if OFF. That is correct right? The dependency would turn on which would stop the AWC from running if the return pump is shut off?