Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
I’ve discovered another issue with the “Activate Master?” option.
My hardware configuration is as follows:
o OpenSprinkler V2.0 hardware with a 2.0GB MicroSD card added.
o Firmware/Software Version is 2.09.
o There are three additional 8-channel zone expansion (clear case) connected to the OpenSprinkler V2.0 hardware.
o Of the 32 Zones that can be controlled, 28 are in use.
o Zone 1 is used to control a master valve.The problem I encounter is that after turning off the, “Activate Master?”, option for unused zones 30->32 and clicking Submit, zones 22->24 have their “Activate Master?” option turned off and zones 30->32 are still activated.
This has obviously been detrimental to three areas of my yard. I should have tested before I let a week go by without watering…
Just speculating, but since the zones being un-linked to the master zone are eight-off from the zones selected, there may be a small zone pointer or expansion module pointer calculation error?
When I originally installed my OSPi hardware I quickly discovered that I had a shorted solenoid, 😳 !!!
The shorted solenoid immediately caused a triac to give all it could until it smoked. 😯
After emailing with Ray, Ray highly recommended that I put a fuse (a one amp fast-blow type) in series to the 24VAC power going to the OSPi.
I’ve not had any more shorted solenoids, but if I ever do, I feel confident the fuse will blow before the OSPi is hurt.
I’ve had intermittent issues where the RPi would become not be running and would be unresponsive to ssh. Sometimes a physical power cycle would recover it’s normal OSPi operations, but sometimes it would just not even reboot. After swapping out SD cards a few times – with different SD card sizes and speeds – it didn’t seem to make a difference.
In my original configuration, the temperatures of the RPi’s CPU would be in the 65C – 80C range. In tolerance, but… …I still suspected a heat issue. My RPi is mounted on the OSPi board and both are mounted under the clear plastic cover, and that’s mounted in an unventilated box. In hind-sight, that seemed the most logical problem…
So, on the main enclosure, I drilled a 3-inch air intake hole at the bottom-side and a 3-inch exhaust vent adjacent to the OSPi on the opposite side of the main enclosure. I’ve removed the clear plastic cover from the RPi and the OSPi main board. I’ve added a 3.5″ muffin fan as an exhaust vent.
I’ve been running the fan for about a week now and the RPi’s CPU temp has been in the lower 40’s. Best of all, the RPi has not stopped once over the last week, except for a 24-hr rain delay!
Finally, WOW! 😮 The latest interval program and web apps are fantastic! I am always impressed with what people can do with software. Good Job Everyone! 😀
I’ve decided using any solenoids to “push” a garage door remote button won’t work.
I started with using an old doorbell. Even a new one at Home Depot costs $10. The one I have actually has two long-stroke plungers in a dual solenoid package. Seemed like a perfect idea. The spacing between the plungers would have worked on the remote I was going to use. The remote would have had to been at a slight angle to the solenoids, but the spacing was nearly perfect.
The deciding factors to not go this route was several-fold. The doorbell transformer was 16Vac not 24Vac. I tried them with a 24Vac transformer and they would strike the doorbells (tampered to decrease the noise to a clunking sound) with even more force. I measured the current draw from the 24Vac transformer and recorded a sustained current of about 1A. Not a good thing. Second, the striking power was good and hard but the solenoid coil couldn’t provide sustained force on the buttons of the remote. It could punch hard but couldn’t sustain the button push long enough to operate the door. Plus, the solenoids 60Hz “humming” was enough to warrant some concern.
I think a relay configuration will be my best option. I’ve even thought about using the doorbell dual-solenoid to make home-grown relay connections. The current draw and humming makes that unlikely. I don’t want to risk a few bucks on a potential fire hazard.
I just saw this garage door topic thread and thought I join in.
The idea of using a spare garage door transmitter to control my two garage doors seems to be the less complicated.
Since the OSPi system drives solenoids for the sprinkler valves, and the solenoids I use are less than $10 at Home Depot, how hard do you think it would be to build a mount so that a solenoid plunger could push a transmitter button? The plunger on the Hunter solenoids I use don’t have much movement and they move inward not outward. Does anyone know of any 24Vac solenoids that “push” outward and have at least a 1/4 to 3/4 inch movement?
It might be fun to build this as a project. 8^)
The only problem I’ve had was that I had a valve with a shorted solenoid and that smoked a triac in the OSPi. At Ray’s suggestion, I’ve added a 1-Amp fuse to the ground/common wire. I’ve replaced the shorted solenoid and changed the wiring to now use a spare OSPi channel.
I’ve had both controllers connected in parallel for several weeks now. Now that I’m using the RPi web app with the interval timer daily, the Hunter has been in the off position. The Hunter is only supplying the 26Vac power to the OSPi. I intend to disconnect the Hunter from the OSPi when the Texas heat ends this late 😉 Fall and it becomes somewhat cooler in the garage.
No problem. I understand the need for commonality. The Github idea sounds best.
A side note, my neighbor now wants an OSPi and your software. This system and software has huge potential! My neighbor also asked me to demo this at the HOA meeting coming up soon. I might do so. I really dislike public speaking…
Do you have a running list of suggestions that users are feeding you? It is hard to read all 33/34 screens to search if anyone has suggesting something…
My suggestion/request is for the run-once function. Is there a way, when running a zone, that the master zone also be enabled? Otherwise, the run-once feature does not work for me.
The manual mode allows me to turn on more than one zone. Thus, I can turn on the master zone and the zone I want to water. But, it’s manual…
I do really like the Web App and the interval program working together or independently. It is amazing what these programs can do on such a small computer! Do keep up the great work! 😀
YOU ARE MOST WELCOME!
It is simply amazing what you have created and what you and your associates in this forum have developed and refined. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
Aha! With nothing to lose (SD card backed-up) I decided to start over on installing the /var/www/sprinklers directory.
I typed into the RPi ssh remote terminal:
sudo /bin/rm -rf /var/www/sprinklers
sudo git clone https://github.com/salbahra/OpenSprinkler-Controller.git /var/www/sprinklers
cd /var/www/sprinklers
sudo chmod 777 *In my iPhone browser I typed: 192.168.1.12/sprinklers
In the New Install screen I noticed the text, “You can also specify a port by using IP:Port”, above the “Open Sprinkler IP” field. So, I typed: 192.168.1.12:8086.
And it seem to have grabbed all the info and seems to be working! NOW the fun begins! Looking forward to this user interface. AMAZING!
I’m showing my ignorance, but I have no clue as to what PHP is. I performed the steps in the README file and installed apache, PHP, et al.
Is there something I can do on the RPi to provide you some data for analysis?
BTW: I started a station running and saw a ‘1’ among the 32 zeros that seemed to reflect the zone position I turned on… I’m assuming the ‘1’ means a zone is running.
When I type the IP address port and “sn0”, e.g., 192.168.1.12:8086/sn0, I get one line displayed. It has 32 zeros, “00000000000000000000000000000000”.
I am using Ray’s OpenSprinkler Pi and I do have three expansion modules for 32 zones. I’m currently using 27 of them. Do these 32 zeros indicate something to you?
Odd. I installed the same last night and have the same problems you describe. Makes me think we may have a common solution. I’m using a different port because port 8080 was already assigned to a different computer…
I bet the solution is something obvious and easy!
salbahra wrote:@PabloS/@cmwahlqu I found a fix for the red bar not moving in program preview and submitted it to Dan. In the meantime your welcome to test this fix if your comfortable editing some code.Inside ospi.py you will find the following line (#796 in the latest code 6/22/2013):
Looks Good. 😀 THANKS FOR ALL THE GREAT WORK!
VERY NICE!
Easy for this noob to download and install. Ran right out of the “box”, so to speak.
A couple of issues and questions.
1. The options doesn’t seem to accept any port number I set. It uses 8080 only.
2. When reviewing the program preview, the MASTER only shows up for the first seven zones. (I’ve not completed my wiring, so no way for me to tell if the MASTER is really on for zones on the expansion cards. )
3. Also in the program preview, the red “NOW” line stays at about the 12:45am mark.
4. And the question – how difficult would it be to add the functionality of a manual mode into this!So far, all I can say is WOW! As a noob, I look forward to learning more!
Thanks!
