Hello,
I am new to the arduino world and to electronics in general. I built a solar radiator using beer cans but would like to use the capabilities of arduino to :
- test and show the temperatures at the inlet and outlet of the radiator,
- if the differential between the 2 measures is greater than say 10 deg celcius, get the controlling unit to activate a fan (running on 220V) to start in order to push the air through the radiator,
-if the sensor measuring the radiator outlet temperature is greater than 75 deg celcius, the unit should overide the previous instruction and activite the fan regardless, in order to prevent the entire radiator from burning.
2 questions : can arduino help with all this ? if so, where should I start ?
Yes, Arduino can help. Get some 18B20s and a resistor and toggle a LED, then get a relay board.
(It's "Celsius", BTW)
I'd second the yes, right up arduinos alley. as for where to start, myself, i break up bigger projects into smaller steps, master those, and then link the pieces together.
sounds like your "pieces" are:
- getting uno to do anything. start with blink
- reading temp sensors, accurately. that will take some time on analog inputs, and code normalization.
- some sort of display, like LCD will likely come into play - test by itself first
- basic code logic -if-else kind of stuff - making your arduino take action (output) based on what you want.
- controlling relays - havent done that, lots posted on topic, but its own learning area.
- put it all together!
P.S. if you need help on your project, I am an expert at emptying beer cans. glad to help.
yes, celsius indeed, apologies for typo. thks for advice. any chance for a little more guidance ....? I presume I'll also need a temperature display (x2), etc... Being new to electronics, it's what's hiding behind the "etc" that I need to find out.... and how to put it together.... Thanks for any help
get a starter kit. play around, get in trouble trying to master the building blocks - ask for more detailed help when you get there . most start kits come with an LCD display. you can make that display say what you want - like temp1=, temp2=, fan=off, etc.
not an endorsement, but this is the kit I got. plenty like this from lots of vendors, but for $25 bucks or so, you can get yourself into a whole lot of "fun trouble". the Uno, proto board and wires to play around, lcd, and a few sensors will get you on your way. might have to pick up the temp senors and relays separate, but i'd rec starting with getting a few of the basics working, then buy more.
Hi,
Take a look at Temperature sensing , relay control etc. on http://ArduinoInfo.Info
Temperature HERE: {These have been used in 100's of beer-brewing units!}
Relays, power control HERE:
And my self-serving suggestion for a Starter Kit: HERE:
DISCLAIMER: Mentioned stuff from my own shop...