Feedback wanted on climate control system.

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

Hi,

For two years we have been creating our own climate control system. As we speak we are finalizing our designs, and looking for feedback.

The system is designed to control a complete grow room. We think it is perfectly suitable for a hydroponic system, because you can control anything from watering to lights. You can attach different sensors to get insight in the climate. For a basic insight we think that an (NDiR) CO2 sensor, humidity sensor and air temperature sensor are the minimum requirements. We have created a sensor unit that contains all these sensors.

The base system contains 6 programmable power outlets. You can switch these outlets on or off based on sensor readings, time or manually. We are currently finalizing other sensors like a soil temperature sensor, a water temperature sensor, water leak sensors, water flow sensors so you can see how much water your plants get, different gas sensors and EC/PH sensors. Also we created extension boxes that can be used to add extra power outlets to your system. These extentions are in the final stage of development.

The system can be controlled via a webpage on the Master unit. You can connect to it with a built in WiFi access point. You can also choose to connect the system to your own local network via WiFi and/or Ethernet. The software is designed to give maximum insight in the climate conditions in your grow room. There are charts for all sensors, and all switch moments of the power outlets are logged and viewable. We have chosen for a web based control panel, so that you can use it on any device you want, phone, tablet or laptop/computer.

We are currently looking for feedback on the system that we have created. We try to create an extremely easy to use system that can manage all situations that might be encountered, and make sure that it is also perfectly fit for hydroponic systems. We are currently building a website; on the following page you can find more detailed information about the system, and see some pictures for a general impression: http://goo.gl/koMqoK

Based on the information above, is there anything obvious that we have overlooked?

We appreciate all feedback!

Comments (5)

ricksindoorgarden
8 years ago
any way you could sense rotation? I have a volksgarden that spins about a center light. It takes 45 minutes for the wheel to make 1 rotation. The biggest problem is when the wheel stops due to malfunction. It happens about once every 6 to 8 months. By the time I catch it the lights have dried it out and the plants are toast. There probably aren't enough of these systems out there to warrant the sensors required.
RDclimate thanked ricksindoorgarden
RDclimate
Original Author
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Hi Rick,

Thank you for your comment!

You are correct; rotation sensing isn't something we have implemented at the moment. I can think of a couple of ways that we can accomodate a setup like this, for instance using a magnet mounted on the rotating part. This magnet triggers a sensor every time it passes by, resetting a user defined counter. This way we can simply trigger an alarm that goes off when the counter runs out.

Out of interest, can you please provide me with some more information (or even pictures) of your volksgarden? I am really curious about the exact setup as i haven't encountered a rotating growing setup in real life yet.

I will consult with the hardware developer to see if we can build a test setup sometime and see if this works as i imagine. We won't be able to implement it right away, but i think this is a really nice feature to implement as soon as we have the chance, as there are indeed no other systems that offer this function.
Related Discussions
Lawn Irrigation System using a water pillow feedback?
Q
Comments (5)
Hi Lehual Thanks for the feedback. I need in the range of 14GPM and 45psi. I'll be honest I have slacked on picking a pump. I just don't have a lot of knowledge about them. So if you have a suggestion I'd love to hear it. I'm putting in a rainbird system so I have rotor and popup heads. It will have 10 zones with no more than 4 rotary per zone or 7 popup per zone. I believe I will need on average 12-14GPM. Rain bird designed the system for me so that is where I'm getting the 45psi needed for the rotor heads and 30psi for the popup. Ha you are right I have been enamored by the pillow idea and that might be why I didn't find any info out there no one has been stupid enough to do it. My thought about using the pillow will be I will only water the front ward during slow rainfall. I'll have about 2641G (10,000L) of water and at 14GPM I'll have 188 minutes to water or 18 minutes per zone. I only have 4 front yard zones and only 3 really need water. The pillow will be under my deck so its not very accessible for animals to come and have a drink (or at least I hope). That brings up a good point to make sure I put rodent repellant around the pillow often. Plus it will sit on a mat on the ground. I'm glad you made me think about all this. I think I might have not put enough thought into this system. Maybe the best idea is to only put it in the front yard that way the water will last longer. Still looking for feedback if anyone else has some pointer good or bad. Thanks Kevin
...See More
WANTED: Seed Trade Feedback System!
Q
Comments (12)
Hi Again: After a few responses from some very nice members concerning a feedback system, I wanted to clarify a few items! I realize everyone has special circumstances, about getting their seeds out in a trade. Pensioners, people on limited funds and members that can only mail once a week or so. I would never put anyone down for this, nor should anyone... Plus, post is very unpredictable around this country & around the world. Many people have mentioned in e-mails the last little while, there are a select few traders that are not coming true with their part of a trade. Some members even mention this in their trade lists, I'm sure we have all seen them. As concerned members have mentioned some people are making good money and others are on a pension. Some members don't care if they spend the time organizing a trade, packaging their seeds and spending the money to send out a package(Domestic not much / International three times as much). Now for a pensioner or someone on limited funds, that may mean something to them! Someone that has special seeds/plants/bulbs that are very limited, trades with someone, they take the time & money to send those to another member... Just for the other member to receive and not send anything in return... Meanwhile that bad member hides behind a phony trade list, probably fake name and never returns e-mail or blocks your e-mail. This can be very disheartening too... It happens... Seems to be more frequent lately! Now are these people going to prey on more innocent members... Probably, when we are suppose to keep "private"... Like I've stated, a very large amount of members on GardenWeb that trade, are very honest people and always come thru with their end of the deal! There are just that small percentage that aren't! Though there are always people in society that take advantage of situtaions to capitalize for their own good, not caring about others. It is disheartening... This happens in all aspects of our society, this is why we have laws in effect and people to enforce them. Thanks, Randy
...See More
Bryant Evolution System - Need Feedback on Proposed System
Q
Comments (12)
Pitflyer, thank you for your comments. The two stage you have would definately bump up the price. I previously was looking at Bryant's preferred two stage and the quote was several hundred dollars higher, but that a/c did not communicate to the Evolution thermidistat and since then, for a couple of reasons, decided on a one stage and wanted to go with a evolution a/c. So your quote might not be that far off from mine. I really appreciate your feedback. Everyone wants a good deal and I am hoping I have one. The contractor is a new business and is hungry. He has 25 yrs HVAC experience and his master's. No complaints or problems on BBB. I'm going to get a couple of references first though. He is going to throw in a filter. He said it comes with a filter cabinet. Funny you should mention the first year service part being free. I was planning on negotiating for that as well. Tiger, I will indeed ask for the latest thermidistat! I'll be so glad to get rid of this Delaware humidity. The heat is one thing. I think I could deal with it by itself. But I hate the humidity! Pitflyer, do you like your new system? Have you been able to notice a decrease in your energy consumption? Does it do well removing the humidity? The two stage should be good for that!
...See More
Lighting Control Systems
Q
Comments (35)
Sniff, I recall there being some way to program the button on one controller to respond to a button press on another controller. I think it's pretty much like programming a dimmer to respond to a button, but I've never tried it out. The Developer's kit is at a different level--it gives you the information to develop products. I bought it because I was thinking of building a nightstand controller that has actual knobs to adjust the light level instead of pushing buttons. But, that project hasn't risen to the "OK, do it!" level. I mentioned that Developer's kit above to demonstrate how open they are about Insteon compared with, say, Vantage. The Developer's Kit probably isn't terribly useful for an end-user. I haven't tried the HouseLink software. My impression is that it's intended to do roughly the sort of thing you're looking for, but I don't know if it will do exactly that. The Amazon reviews for HouseLink are pretty mixed--Some folks have found it very useful, and others have found it to be very rough around the edges and "techie-oriented." You might try their customer support. I called them when I was setting up my system (about a year and a half ago), and they were very willing to help, and did in fact answer my questions. Hopefully they haven't changed over the last year and a half.
...See More
ricksindoorgarden
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
This is my volksgarden. They make much larger systems that benefit from the detector you described. Commercial scale for sure, wouldn't want to lose an entire crop because you weren't there to react. Volksgardens are made by Omega Gardens, here is their website http://omegagarden.com/
RDclimate
Original Author
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Hi Rick,

Thanks for your response!

I consultated with the hardware engineer today, and we are fairly confident that we can create a sensor to detect the rotation, based on the magnetic principle i described before. We should be able to produce a first prototype in a couple of weeks.

Can you please describe what needs to happen to restore functionality once the wheel disfunctions? Does it need manual replacement of parts or would for instance a power off/on solve the problem? If possible we think it would be nice to offer a complete solution to this problem, rather than just detecting it (and turning off the lighting).

Kind Regards,
ricksindoorgarden
8 years ago
The wheel on the system is constantly spinning, the motor is a small gear motor and when it stops running it is either a power failure or a motor failure. If it is a power failure, the lights go off and the nutrient sump pump will not cycle on and when the power goes on all will be fine. When the motor fails it requires a mechanical fix. If this happens while the lights are on, the plants will dry out much quicker than without the lights on. I would say the rotation failure mode should turn off the lights and make a phone call.

Feedback wanted on climate control system.

Comments (5)

ricksindoorgarden

RDclimate
Original Author

Related Discussions

ricksindoorgarden

RDclimate
Original Author

ricksindoorgarden

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Feedback wanted on climate control system.

Comments (5)

ricksindoorgarden

RDclimateOriginal Author

Related Discussions

ricksindoorgarden

RDclimateOriginal Author

ricksindoorgarden

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

RDclimate
Original Author

RDclimate
Original Author