OpenGarage Forums Comments, Suggestions, Requests Using OpenGarage as Water Tank Level Sensor

Viewing 6 posts - 1 through 6 (of 6 total)
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  • #744

    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Firstly, let me start by saying that I have absolutely no knowledge of the electronics or coding.
    I was hoping you could help me figure out a way to have some sort of Water Tank Level sensor. What I need is for the device to measure the Water Tank Level and when it gets to say 40% start the pump and turn it off when it gets to 90%. It must also send you a notification when the Tank Level reaches 30% which means the pump is not working.

    Would this be possible with the OpenGarage system or would a new unit have to be developed.

    #760

    Ray
    Keymaster

    The sensor (which is a ultrasonic distance sensor) can actually be used to detect water level. I haven’t tested it myself, but I’ve seen a sump pump monitor project that uses exactly this sensor:

    Sump pump alert with Moteino & HC-SR04

    #1043

    Opengarageio
    Participant

    Absolutely possible but would need some modification, if you dont have electronics or coding knowledge it might be difficult. Im working on something similar myself.

    The existing ultrasonic sensor and opengarage+ isnt waterproof, so your probably going to have issues eventually with it. Even if you protect it from the weather, being so close to a water tank is going to mean high humidity which will eventually cause corrosion and failure.

    You can get a waterproof sensor off ebay. You could then either pull apart an opengarage device and swap it over (soldering required) or buy a microcontroller and program that with the opengarage firmware (much cheaper this way).

    You would then need to modify the code a bit to get the additional features you specified.

    If youre interested I can provide more detail, but given its been so long since you posted, youve probably moved on.

    #1045

    TheDoctah
    Participant

    Would it not be cheaper and easier to set this up with float switches? No programming logic required. Just some electrical diy

    #1048

    Anonymous
    Inactive

    The normal way is to use a float switch. It is simple and cheap, but the only problem I have is that you can’t see the level of the tank and there are no warnings or alarms if for some reason the pump is not working or if there is no water.

    #1073

    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Hi, Thanks for all the inputs, unfortunately I don’t have the knowlede or time to do what you are suggesting, but thank you very much for the replies and suggestions.

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OpenGarage Forums Comments, Suggestions, Requests Using OpenGarage as Water Tank Level Sensor