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Creating a timer system for an Areoponic System.

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MattRidge

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Hello all, this is my first post, and I hope I am posting in the right place so bare with me.

I am a tinkerer, a hobbyist, what some people would call a techno-hack, I have of limited electronic knowledge, welding. I am working on building an Areoponics system. This is not for a class project, this is for a home project which has larger implications if I can get it working correctly.

I am building myself an Areoponic system in where I can have a small garden on my deck (veggies, etc), without the worry of dirt, and other attributes.

I have run through the basics, I have a watering system built, but what I need to do is build is a timer that will activate and deactivate between specific times.

What I'd like to see is two separate sections that allows the activation timer to be set manually at first, in where it can be set between 5 minutes to 30 seconds, and the second control for the time of the spray between 5 seconds up to 15 seconds.

My wish is to make it smart, so if the temperature increases or decreases the spray changes accordingly. Colder out the longer the spray has to activate, and the shorter it is activated for, to where it is hot and it sprays more frequently and for longer periods of time.

This would be attached to a standard water pump, at least for now one that is attached to a fish tank, so something that can be as small for a 5 gallon tank, to something as large as a 100+ gallon tank.

If someone could help me with this it would be greatly appreciated, I know enough to be dangerous, but not enough to do it myself, at least to draw out a schematic yet...

Thanks in advance.
 
Welcome to the forum.
A microntroller would do that job well, if your not into microelectronics there are development platforms that make things easier for the hobbyist, look up arduino and basic stamp.
 
Something with a lot of changes in programming may be better off with a PLC or Programmable Logic Controller. This is a very small one: https://us.idec.com/Catalog/ProductSeries.aspx?SeriesName=IDEC_SmartRelay&FamilyName You can demo the visual programming language with simulation without having the unit.

I believe Migro has one with an Autonomic timer, but their documentation isn;t found eaiily. Autonomic timeers allow you to determine sunrise and sunset times by a program, otherwise you may be constantly setting the time to water.

Wih just about any system, you need a lot of extra parts:
Some examples are development system/programmer or even a programming cable. The case and power supply tend to cost a few bucks.

Battery backup mayhave to be considered.

Then, there is the time/money aspect.

A perislaltic pump allows total volume of fluid controlled.

And then there is enancements such as checking the weather via the internet before watering. It's very possible, but you might have to start over.

Some of your requirements are:
1. A battery backed up clock calendar.
2. A temperature sensor
3. A few digital outputs

You can even integrate web pages into some controllers.
 
If I need a "programmable controller" for this kind of project, I pick up a used laptop computer with a parallel printer port at a garage sale for a few $. It comes with a display, keyboard, mouse, floppy disk, hard drive, clock, calendar, etc.

I boot it in DOS or Windows, and write the application program in Basic or QuickBasic. Interfacing the parallel printer port to external hardware is not difficult...
 
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