ebay aquarium temp controller build

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So, what's the fitting you used on the power cord? I was looking at Lowe's yesterday and couldn't find anything that suited my OCD. I'm not even sure what they're called so I can do a search.

Thanks.

When I get home, I'll take a pic of the bag for the cord restraint for you. I couldn't find them on their website either.
 
Question about making a removable probe:

Ultimately, I want to mount a jack onto the surface of my controller box so I can connect and disconnect the probe any time. This leads me to ask if the following scenerio is possible:

Can I just cut the cable that attaches the probe to the STC-1000 somewhere in the middle, crimp on some RJ-11 jacks, and use an old phone cord to connect the probe to the box? Would the only limiting factor be any additional resistance on the line changing the perceived temp at the probe?

I've attached a simple schematic to illustrate what I'm talking about.

Thanks! I love this thread! :D

Probe_Schematic.jpg
 
That should work just fine.
for the short distance that we're running these probes, it's unlikely to see much added resistance in something like that.
You can always test the probe in a glass of water full of ice to see how accurate it is also. Try it with and without the phone cord if you want to see if it's making a difference.
My guess would be very minimal if any.
 
That should work just fine.
for the short distance that we're running these probes, it's unlikely to see much added resistance in something like that.
You can always test the probe in a glass of water full of ice to see how accurate it is also. Try it with and without the phone cord if you want to see if it's making a difference.
My guess would be very minimal if any.

Yeah I'd definitely check the temperature using another thermometer and adjust accordingly.

M_C
 
I'm in need of some wiring help. I have my controller wired up as near as I can guess, but I keep getting an alarm. I have an STC 1000, but I'm only wiring it to cool. I have my hot wire coming into port 1 and 7, my neutral into port 2 and onto the neutral terminal of an outlet, another lead coming out of port 8 and connecting to the hot terminal of the outlet, and the ground from my power wire to the ground on the outlet. I have a 1/8" headphone jack wired into ports 3 and 4, and my sensor is plugged into that.

Any ideas why I'm getting an alarm? Do I need to bridge the hot circuits or something?

Thanks!!
 
I'm in need of some wiring help. I have my controller wired up as near as I can guess, but I keep getting an alarm. I have an STC 1000, but I'm only wiring it to cool. I have my hot wire coming into port 1 and 7, my neutral into port 2 and onto the neutral terminal of an outlet, another lead coming out of port 8 and connecting to the hot terminal of the outlet, and the ground from my power wire to the ground on the outlet. I have a 1/8" headphone jack wired into ports 3 and 4, and my sensor is plugged into that.

Any ideas why I'm getting an alarm? Do I need to bridge the hot circuits or something?

Thanks!!

oops, spoke too soon. Turns out, the headphone jack wasn't wired up right. When I eliminated it and just wired the probe right into the controller, everything worked. Cold beer, here I come!!!
 
what was your total cost?

Haven't tallied up receipts, honestly. I've been gathering parts here and there for a while now...

I'd guess someplace near $50

I already had the SJO cable, wire and a plug end lying around though.

The items I bought would be:
STC-1000 about $25
4x4x4 box $7
amber neon lamp $1.99
red neon lamp $1.99
1/8" mono panel mount jack $1.99
1/8" mono plug end $1.99
receptacle $2
cord restraint $2
terminal strips (2) $2

I did buy an IEC cable plug so I could use a computer cord to plug into it also, but decided that I didn't feel like cutting anymore square holes than I had to.
Ultimately I'm quite happy with the cord restraint I used, even with my OCD ;)

For anyone looking to build this... I'd advise against using 12ga wire like I did. I used 12ga stranded and I had to thin it down some to get it into the STC-1000 terminals. I did tin all of the wire ends with solder though...
I might dig into it and do it all in 14ga at some point, but knowing me, if it's working and not ugly, I probably won't.
 
krazydave said:
Haven't tallied up receipts, honestly. I've been gathering parts here and there for a while now...

I'd guess someplace near $50

I already had the SJO cable, wire and a plug end lying around though.

The items I bought would be:
STC-1000 about $25
4x4x4 box $7
amber neon lamp $1.99
red neon lamp $1.99
1/8" mono panel mount jack $1.99
1/8" mono plug end $1.99
receptacle $2
cord restraint $2
terminal strips (2) $2

I did buy an IEC cable plug so I could use a computer cord to plug into it also, but decided that I didn't feel like cutting anymore square holes than I had to.
Ultimately I'm quite happy with the cord restraint I used, even with my OCD ;)

For anyone looking to build this... I'd advise against using 12ga wire like I did. I used 12ga stranded and I had to thin it down some to get it into the STC-1000 terminals. I did tin all of the wire ends with solder though...
I might dig into it and do it all in 14ga at some point, but knowing me, if it's working and not ugly, I probably won't.

I'm using an IEC cable as well... the box will have no cables coming out whatsoever. And I have an idea to really satisfy my OCD, which I'll show once I get it all together.

I had yet another idea which would take the box to the tidiest and simplest it could possibly be, but ultimately it didn't satisfy my design goal of having the box able to be instantly used with anything I choose, not just my current setup.
 
Just got back from a lunchtime trek to Home Depot. I checked out the 4x4x4 box like krazydave used, but the small size of it kind of freaked me out. I can't imagine working inside that space! So, I opted for the 6x6x4. Also picked up a couple other bits and pieces - I still need to make a quick stop by Radio Shack and another discount store for the remaining bits, but I think I'll be all set to go once the STC shows up.

krazydave - your list mentions terminal strips. Is there any reason, beyond neatness, to use those rather than just wirenutting together a few pigtails?
 
Nope, no reason I see that you couldn't just use wire nuts. Just keep in mind that you could be wire nutting 4 or 5 wires together in one wire nut.
If I were to re-do it, I would probably just use wire nuts also...
 
Just got back from a lunchtime trek to Home Depot. I checked out the 4x4x4 box like krazydave used, but the small size of it kind of freaked me out. I can't imagine working inside that space! So, I opted for the 6x6x4. Also picked up a couple other bits and pieces - I still need to make a quick stop by Radio Shack and another discount store for the remaining bits, but I think I'll be all set to go once the STC shows up.

krazydave - your list mentions terminal strips. Is there any reason, beyond neatness, to use those rather than just wirenutting together a few pigtails?

Lol, mine are in 4x4x2 boxes with room to spare, so the idea of a 6x6x4 seems crazy big to me. I did skip the pilot lights a lot of people are adding though, and it would be a really tight fit with them. The display on the controller already has them, and I didn't see any need for the redundancy. No problem using wire nuts, I used them without any issues.
 
The only reason I put pilot lights is so I could tell from a quick glance across my garage if it's heating or cooling. But yeah, without those I could've mashed everything into a 4x4x2 box.
Would've been forced to use 14ga wire for certain though!
 
The only reason I put pilot lights is so I could tell from a quick glance across my garage if it's heating or cooling. But yeah, without those I could've mashed everything into a 4x4x2 box.
Would've been forced to use 14ga wire for certain though!

Ah, I see. I had wondered why so many people were adding additioanl pilot lights. My ferm chamber is in a small room, so I can see the pilot lights on the display even from across the room.
 
So, I picked up most of the remaining bits and pieces on the way home from work today, so I should be set to start putting things together when the STC arrives!

I thought about what krazydave said about wire-nutting together so many wires, and picked up a couple barrier strips to put this all together, and I've got a couple questions: 1) Just to be certain, barrier strips are the same as terminal strips, right? 2) Assuming 1 is correct, how exactly does one go about wiring up such a strip? Do I just use a bunch of short lengths of wire on one side of the strip to gang several of the terminals together? Is there some sort of jumper that I just missed grabbing at the Shack?

Also, I really dig how krazydave used the 1/8" mono jacks to connect his temp probe, but looking at those pieces at Radio Shack - particularly as one who has never soldered electronics - intimidated me right out of stealing that idea, so it looks like my probe will be hard wired.
 
So, I picked up most of the remaining bits and pieces on the way home from work today, so I should be set to start putting things together when the STC arrives!

I thought about what krazydave said about wire-nutting together so many wires, and picked up a couple barrier strips to put this all together, and I've got a couple questions: 1) Just to be certain, barrier strips are the same as terminal strips, right? 2) Assuming 1 is correct, how exactly does one go about wiring up such a strip? Do I just use a bunch of short lengths of wire on one side of the strip to gang several of the terminals together? Is there some sort of jumper that I just missed grabbing at the Shack?

Also, I really dig how krazydave used the 1/8" mono jacks to connect his temp probe, but looking at those pieces at Radio Shack - particularly as one who has never soldered electronics - intimidated me right out of stealing that idea, so it looks like my probe will be hard wired.

Yes, you missed the jumper strip. Look to the left of where you found the terminal strips at RS. I'm not certain what a barrier strip is, but I would guess that it is specifically different than a grounding bar in that it is insulated from whatever metal cabinet it is installed in. The jumper strip is simply a continuous strip that mates with the terminals. I suppose you could cut the strip in parts if you wanted to isolate two or more terminals.

I use the larger 1/4" mono phone jacks from RS. They are fairly easy to work with and solder up.
 
I guess the biggest thing that got me about the 1/8 mono jacks, other than their size, was the fact that they had three leads on them. If I've got two wires going from the probe into the jack, then what do I need three leads for on the jack?

In short, I'm relatively certain I know when I'm in over my head. ;)
 
I guess the biggest thing that got me about the 1/8 mono jacks, other than their size, was the fact that they had three leads on them. If I've got two wires going from the probe into the jack, then what do I need three leads for on the jack?

In short, I'm relatively certain I know when I'm in over my head. ;)

You could just do what I did... just wire the probe to the controller and duct tape some extra length to the inside of the box :tank:
 
Don't be too intimidated by soldering. A jack is the perfect thing to learn with.
Just put some solder on both the wire and the jack first, then all you have to do is hold em together to heat up the solder and remove the heat.
And since the radio shack jacks come in 2 packs, it's a perfect thing to try.
Just remember that heat travels quick through that metal, so be careful what you hold on to as you solder.

As for the 3 terminals, looks are deceiving there. If you look where the leads go, you'll realize that one of them isn't really connected to anything that'll touch your mono plug.
If you have a continuity tester, you can also plug the jack and plug together and find out which ones actually connect.
 
Well, I have been following this thread for a while now. I have a Sierra Madre Extract kit from NB that needs to be brewed, and my basement temp is in the low 70's, so I finally ordered the ebay controller, and will get my mini-fridge back from my girlfriend this weekend (she used it at college, has been sitting in her garage for a year now), and hopefully find some foam board.

I will need it in the winter anyway, we heat with a woodstove and our basement temperature is fluctuating all the time.
 
I guess the biggest thing that got me about the 1/8 mono jacks, other than their size, was the fact that they had three leads on them. If I've got two wires going from the probe into the jack, then what do I need three leads for on the jack?

In short, I'm relatively certain I know when I'm in over my head. ;)

If the 1/8" jack has three leads, it is not mono. It is stereo.

The sections are known as tip, ring and sleeve, starting from the pointy end of the plug. All you need is two of those. Use the same two on the jack and you will be fine. For example, wire the center conductor to the tip and the shield to the sleeve. Do not connect anything to the middle or ring.

You could also look for the true mono (two conductor) plug and jack in either 1/8" or 1/4"

Other examples of two conductor jacks and plugs are the kind used for cell phone power supplies. You should be able to find those DC connectors at Radio Shack.

For any of those connectors, I would suggest using, at a minimum, electrical tape to isolate the conductors from each other. A better choice would be to use a small section of heat shrink tubing. Put the heat shrink tubing on first and try to isolate it from the heat of the soldering. Then use a heat gun or hair dryer to shrink the tubing over the soldered connection to make sure the two wires can never short.
 
If the 1/8" jack has three leads, it is not mono. It is stereo.

The sections are known as tip, ring and sleeve, starting from the pointy end of the plug. All you need is two of those. Use the same two on the jack and you will be fine. For example, wire the center conductor to the tip and the shield to the sleeve. Do not connect anything to the middle or ring.

You could also look for the true mono (two conductor) plug and jack in either 1/8" or 1/4"

Other examples of two conductor jacks and plugs are the kind used for cell phone power supplies. You should be able to find those DC connectors at Radio Shack.

For any of those connectors, I would suggest using, at a minimum, electrical tape to isolate the conductors from each other. A better choice would be to use a small section of heat shrink tubing. Put the heat shrink tubing on first and try to isolate it from the heat of the soldering. Then use a heat gun or hair dryer to shrink the tubing over the soldered connection to make sure the two wires can never short.

Actually, the Radio Shack 1/8" mono jacks do have 3 things that look like solder points. But they are mono and one is connected to nothing. I can assure you that it's not stereo, though.

I do agree though that those DC barrel connectors would work ideal for this also. Those were my first choice...
I did see a female connector at the store I was buying everything from, but couldn't find it's mate. So I gave up and just went with the mono headphone jack instead.
 
My apologies.

The jack you are writing about must look like this:

Sku-005585.jpg


rather than this:

RadioShack-274-251.jpg


The first photo has three solder tabs for input, output and common. It is used so when a plug is inserted in the jack it will interrupt the signal and just send it to the plug.

The second is from the Radio Shack website and shows a mono 1/8" jack with just two solder connections.

If what you have is completely different, then I apologize again. I haven't been in a Radio Shack in ages. Most of those sorts of connectors I order from Mouser.com or PartsExpress.com
 
The one I have from Radio Shack looks like the second... But the tip connector has a hole in it like you're supposed to be soldering to it. I didn't though because you can see that the solder point on the front (in the picture) is connected to the same thing.

For someone who's new to soldering connectors like this though, it can easily seem like there are three solder points when looking at them in the package.

Thanks for the photos by the way!
 
OK, that all seems to make a little more sense. Maybe I'll give it a shot after all - but I think I'll likely use 1/4" jacks.

If I do so, would there be anything stopping me from simply cutting the jack off an old dead set of head phones, then splicing that onto the probe itself?
 
OK, that all seems to make a little more sense. Maybe I'll give it a shot after all - but I think I'll likely use 1/4" jacks.

If I do so, would there be anything stopping me from simply cutting the jack off an old dead set of head phones, then splicing that onto the probe itself?

You can use 1/4", but just keep in mind that such a small wire won't crimp in to the plug end as well, so there's a better chance that it may pull out over time.
 
Wait - is that a probe, or just a sleeve for you to insert a probe into?

Just a sleeve. Should be pretty easy to make your own.
  1. Get a piece of SS tubing
  2. Put some flux in the end that will become the bottom
  3. Crimp it
  4. Drop a bit of solder down inside
  5. Take a torch to it to melt the solder, the flux should help draw it into the crimp.
 
Just a sleeve. Should be pretty easy to make your own.

If you want a VERY high quality thermowell, take a look at what is available at Brewers Hardware

Brewers Hardware Thermowell

"Made from 304 stainless steel, these thermowells are made using the same process as my stainless steel temperature probe ends. The end is spun shut and then sealed with a TIG weld. The entire body is then polished for easy cleaning and the perfect sanitary surface. Other thermowells on the market are just crimped closed and then sealed with a weld, leaving a jagged rough surface. I've even seen a few that they didn't even bother to clean the markings off the tubing"!

$14.00 for a welded and sanitary polished 16" thermowell is worth every penny IMHO.

I do own and use one of them.
 
If you want a VERY high quality thermowell, take a look at what is available at Brewers Hardware

Brewers Hardware Thermowell

"Made from 304 stainless steel, these thermowells are made using the same process as my stainless steel temperature probe ends. The end is spun shut and then sealed with a TIG weld. The entire body is then polished for easy cleaning and the perfect sanitary surface. Other thermowells on the market are just crimped closed and then sealed with a weld, leaving a jagged rough surface. I've even seen a few that they didn't even bother to clean the markings off the tubing"!

$14.00 for a welded and sanitary polished 16" thermowell is worth every penny IMHO.

I do own and use one of them.

Fixed the link for you: http://www.brewershardware.com/16-Stainless-Steel-Thermowell.html

Yeah $14 is reasonable. The SS part is cheap, the manpower adds to it.

M_C
 
I finished building mine yesterday and I'm trying to test it. I plugged a lamp into the heat outlet. I've got the target temp (F1) set to 30. The room temp is 24.3 and the differential (F2) is set to 0.5. I'm getting 120v across terminals 1 and 2. Nothing across 5 and 6. I even disconnected the wires from 5 and 6 in case I had something wired wrong. Nothing.

Below terminals 1 and 2 it reads "Power Supply 110VAC" so I have the right unit. Am I doing something wrong?
 
I finished building mine yesterday and I'm trying to test it. I plugged a lamp into the heat outlet. I've got the target temp (F1) set to 30. The room temp is 24.3 and the differential (F2) is set to 0.5. I'm getting 120v across terminals 1 and 2. Nothing across 5 and 6. I even disconnected the wires from 5 and 6 in case I had something wired wrong. Nothing.

Below terminals 1 and 2 it reads "Power Supply 110VAC" so I have the right unit. Am I doing something wrong?

Have you got 120V going into either 5 or 6?
 
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