My group and I are working to create a hot water saver using Arduino parts. I have figured out how to connect a regular heat sensor to the display screen and I am working towards getting a water sensor set up. But the trouble I am having is connecting the solenoid valve to the device. Does anyone have any tips or advice on how to connect this device? We are working with a RedBoard uno if that helps. Thanks!
What would really help is knowing what the specifications are for the valve and what you are connecting it to and what is the power supply for your project!
Post your annotated schematic showing what you have done so far we can probably fill in the missing spots.
You probably want to be using a zone valve controlled by a relay. But I'm with the others, it would help if you explained more what you're trying to do and how you're trying to do it.
This is the flat image of the connections
Vin is a power input, not an output. Also show the power source connection, I do not expect it to remain connected to a computer.
1 Like
I will try that thank you
Did you check the size and threads of the valve to be sure you can actually insert it into the hot water plumbing?
1 Like
We have not gotten that far into that thought yet. We have just tried to get all of our idea into one product. Which I know will not be a great idea if it does not end up fitting but for the school part of our project it just needs to get mostly working. I would like it to work all the way though. Thank you for bringing that up I did not take it into consideration when planning.
Ah! A little OJT will be shortly, in your future!
1 Like
Well we are just high school students doing this for an engineering project, so as we go on we are learning how the real world would work. Through every success and failure.
Remember FAIL is an acronym that is short for "Forwarded Action In Life". That will make it a good thing especially if something is learned from the experience.
1 Like
Thank you I really appreciate all of you guys' help. This is the first time for me to do this kind of project. But I am taking in everything for my future.
Can you talk about what kind of behavior your trying to achieve? "Hot water saver" is kind of a generic description.
We are trying to create a product that will connect to a shower head. It will have a built in thermometer that is displayed onto a screen. While its the water warms up, a solenoid will be closed for a slight trickle of water to be allowed through. Once the water hits a certain temperature then an alarm will go off and a button will need to be pressed for the solenoid to open and the sound to stop.
For right at the moment we have split the project into two parts, the solenoid and the thermometer. This way I can learn how the pieces work and how the code goes together.
Let's see if I understand that process correctly. Until the water warms up, only a trickle of water will flow. And how will the water ever get warm if only a trickle is flowing? How much time will you shower with just a trickle of cold water? Are you going to be the first in line to take the shower? That may be hours before there is enough warm trickle to be sensed by your produce.
1 Like
OK, that helps. I assume when you say "solenoid" you mean a solenoid-controlled valve. So the valve will have to be capable of three states -- off, full on and trickle on. It looks like you've chosen your valve, is it capable of three states? Most aren't, they're on-off devices. If the one you've chosen isn't capable of three states, you need to either choose a different one, or change your specification so it works with a two-state valve. The latter would be my recommendation, just run full-on until the water gets hot and then shut off.
The solenoid in the valve will have a requirement for electrical supply which will specify Volts and Amps. The pins on an Arduino can supply about 20 milliAmps (0.02 Amps) at either 5V or 3.3V depending on the board. If that's not enough -- and almost assuredly it isn't -- you need to use the pins to control a device that is capable of supplying that much power. That device will probably be a transistor or a relay depending on how much power it is. You also need a power supply capable of providing that power.
If you post the specs for your solenoid we can help more with the design.
Interesting idea but I do not believe it will work, it will actually use more hot water.
With the water running slow heat will be lost through the piping that would not have been lost had the water been running faster. The time for the shower to be ready will increase dramatically.
Running it full blast will cause it to heat up much faster and will use less water as less heat is lost during the warm up time (this is a very small amount). This is also the most inexpensive as placing a hand in the water stream will give a relative indication of the temperature and when it is warm enough to use.
A better solution is to use a thermostatic controlled valve that controls the water temperature. Using the hand insertions for testing will save time. This value temperature can be lowered a bit to save hot water as can a restriction in the line. This valve will basically run just hot until the water warms up. The actual valve design will control the max/min ratios.