HOWTO - Make a BrewPi Fermentation Controller For Cheap

[Thorrak]

I am happy to read through the couple hundred pages since I last posted in this thread, but was hoping someone could let me know if I can just take the backup image I have of my SD card and load it up on a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B. Anything I should worry about?

Unfortunately, that sounds like the symptoms I had when my SD card died a few months ago. That sucks - my condolences.

Admittedly I haven't tried what you're talking about, but I have tried taking an SD card from a Raspberry Pi 2 and plugging it into a Raspberry Pi 3. Unfortunately, it didn't boot. There is probably a way to make it work, but I decided it was easier just to start from scratch in my case.

 

[day_trippr]

The SOC used on the RPi3 is a different architecture from the predecessor boards and requires different firmware, so you can't just pop a card from 2B to 3.

Not sure if there's a viable upgrade path like there was when moving from Model B to 2B. On that spin one could do the upgrade on the former then boot the same card on the latter.

In any case, the latest Apache2 requires a bit of adjustment to the BrewPi (and RaspberryPints) installation (basically, root the web kit at /var/www/html, or edit the Apache2 config file to change the default document folder back to /var/www like the old Apache2 version used). Otherwise BrewPi should work fine.

All that rambling aside, given the symptoms the likelihood of an SD card failure is high. And given the mere incremental performance increase proffered by the 3 versus the 2B, I don't think it's worth the move. Just buy 2 new SD cards and rebuild your kit.

If you install Raspian Jessie with the LXDE desktop, it comes with a desktop SD card cloning tool. Alternatively, if you install Raspbian Wheezy, install https://github.com/billw2/rpi-clone and you can live-clone from the command line.

Either way, keeping a clone SD card handy will pay off sooner than later...

Cheers!

 

[virgil1]

Thanks Thorrak and day_trippr! I figured the response would be quick, and I started reading as I waited. It sounds like I should try a new SD card anyhow first. There is a good chance that is the problem. I'll try all that before I buy a new RPi. I'll post my progress here!

 

[atoughram]

All that rambling aside, given the symptoms the likelihood of an SD card failure is high.

Exactly - I was having issues with my pi locking up - a quick trip to the store for a new SD card cleared things right up.

When you get your Pi running reliably, use Win32DiskImager to make a backup image and you'll be able to write it to a new SD card in minutes.

 

[day_trippr]

[...]When you get your Pi running reliably, use Win32DiskImager to make a backup image and you'll be able to write it to a new SD card in minutes.

Caution: win32diskimager does block-based blind copies of the entire volume and if the usable space (not the used space!) on the source card is even one block larger than the destination card it will not run.

Flash cards vary in usable size due to defects. I have around a dozen 16GB cards here and I guarantee no two are exactly the same usable size. And I ran into the problem above enough times to bag that approach and use the live-cloning route. Either the SD Card Copier built in to the latest LXDE or rpi-clone work perfectly (with 5 'Pi systems running here that's kinda important )

Finally, always shut down, swap cards, and boot on the clone.
An untested recovery is no insurance at all...

Cheers!

 

[FuzzeWuzze]

With the install script whats the point of cloning cards?
You flash jessie, expand filesystem, clone the github and run the installer and wait and your done. It takes hardly any time at all on a RPI2, so i'd imagine a RPI3 is even faster.

That said im still using the same SD card i was 2 years ago and its been imaged dozens of times as i updated the install instructions over the years so i got no idea what you guys are doing to yours

The only SD card ive killed is from my Kodi box, and you know when it died? After i tried reading the entire thing into a 16gb image file with Win32DiskImager. Needless to say i wont be doing that anymore.

 

[day_trippr]

Joking?
I have a hella lot more running on my wee 'Pi fleet than just BrewPi...

Cheers!

 

[numberspace]

Quick question, hoping to not sound to noobish, but how capable would this system be at monitoring multiple vessels?
Cheers

 

[CadiBrewer]

Quick question, hoping to not sound to noobish, but how capable would this system be at monitoring multiple vessels?
Cheers

I've got my system monitoring two vessels and others have theirs monitoring upwards of four. The catch is that you need one Uno for each instance, but they are all connected to one Pi (or laptop or whatever). Check out the brewpiwikia for detailed instructions on how to get it all working.

 

[day_trippr]

^exactly correct^.
And I'm one of those people running four BrewPi instances on one RPi2B. Works just fine.
BrewPi doesn't put hardly any load on the processor...

Cheers!

 

[riisefrutti]

I´m currently looking to expand my raspberry pi 3 and aurduino fridge controller to a complete controller.
I want to controll 2 x fermentation chambers and the fridge, both monitoring temperature and heat/cool.

Anyone on here who has done this or similar project? Need some inputs on it, and if someone has schematics I would appreciate it.

 

[day_trippr]

What are you using now for software to run your current setup?

Many of us BrewPi users are controlling multiple chambers using a single computer (RaspberryPi, decommissioned laptops, etc) connected to multiple Arduinos. You run a separate instance of the BrewPi kit for each chamber. I control four chambers from an RPi2B and four Uno R3 boards, works great, zero issues.

check out the wiki here: http://diybrewpi.wikia.com/wiki/DIYBrewPi_Wikia and see the section on multiple chambers...

Cheers!

[edit] ps: when you get to the section where you set up the symlinks for the multiple Arduinos, see my post here for a better mechanism...

 

[user 40839]

One caveat - the board does have headers for two LEDs that correspond to the heat and cool cycles as implemented by day_trippr in his build. I intend to put those on my next build with the switches. But since I didn't include them in the first build, I haven't tested the board for those LED headers yet. My apologies if anyone runs into trouble with those.

So since I happen to have a couple of blue and red leds lying around from something else, I of course have to throw all the bells and whistles in here.

Did anyone successfully hook these up? (My boards aren't finished being soldered up quite yet) I assume it's the obvious situation of connecting the relevant pin to the LED's positive leg, and a ground from the side headers to the negative? (In future builds be nice to run grounds next to them!)

 

[day_trippr]

I have





Cheers!

 

[user 40839]

Yeah, I had the LEDs running with my original one, based on the DIY shield. Is that good lookin' box running @CadiBrewer 's shield?

 

[riisefrutti]

I use brewpi 0.31 as software to run my setup.

How would it be to exchange the 2 channel SSR with a 6 or 8 channel SSR? Would the arduino be able to mange it? Or is it better to go with the multiple arduino setup?

What are you using now for software to run your current setup?

Many of us BrewPi users are controlling multiple chambers using a single computer (RaspberryPi, decommissioned laptops, etc) connected to multiple Arduinos. You run a separate instance of the BrewPi kit for each chamber. I control four chambers from an RPi2B and four Uno R3 boards, works great, zero issues.

check out the wiki here: http://diybrewpi.wikia.com/wiki/DIYBrewPi_Wikia and see the section on multiple chambers...

Cheers!

[edit] ps: when you get to the section where you set up the symlinks for the multiple Arduinos, see my post here for a better mechanism...

 

[ame]

I use brewpi 0.31 as software to run my setup.

How would it be to exchange the 2 channel SSR with a 6 or 8 channel SSR? Would the arduino be able to mange it? Or is it better to go with the multiple arduino setup?

Each Arduino will only control two relays (or SSRs). So, for multiple chambers you need multiple Arduinos.

You could try my Fuscus software, which replaces the Arduino with a Python script, then you can run multiple copies of it on the Pi and connect more relays to more GPIO pins on the Pi. However, I haven't actually tried it for multiple chambers (although it should work).

 

[panzo]

finally tested with some water....
some questions... is there any prefered settings for pid ?
the best option is to use it with fridge of beer contant or beer profile?
as i can see there is delay between cool and heat when the beer goes on the setting temperature the cool/heat keeps working for 1,5 minute and the temp decreased/increased about 6C more!!!

 

[wbarber69]

Actually the arduino can control up to 4 relays. but not in the configuration he wants. it will control a heating and cooling relay but it also has added control for a fan and a light controlled with a door switch.

 

[day_trippr]

Yeah, I had the LEDs running with my original one, based on the DIY shield. Is that good lookin' box running @CadiBrewer 's shield?

I built three of those, two with my original wired shield and that last one using the PCB version. They all work the same...

Cheers!

 

[riisefrutti]

Thank you!

So I guess ut would be better to go with multippel arduinos. Would It be done with only temp sensors?

Each Arduino will only control two relays (or SSRs). So, for multiple chambers you need multiple Arduinos.

You could try my Fuscus software, which replaces the Arduino with a Python script, then you can run multiple copies of it on the Pi and connect more relays to more GPIO pins on the Pi. However, I haven't actually tried it for multiple chambers (although it should work).

 

[day_trippr]

[...]So I guess ut would be better to go with multippel arduinos. Would It be done with only temp sensors?

Each Arduino needs at least two temperature probes, and some kind of actuator (relay or SSR) for Cool and/or Heat functions...

Cheers!

 

[virgil1]

Thanks Thorrak and day_trippr! I figured the response would be quick, and I started reading as I waited. It sounds like I should try a new SD card anyhow first. There is a good chance that is the problem. I'll try all that before I buy a new RPi. I'll post my progress here!

Put in a new SD card. I somehow managed to lose my wifi keyboard and mouse USB adapter(new one on the way), so I am doing it all without('headless'). I had to put a file in the /boot image partition called 'ssh' so when it booted up ssh was enabled. The latest image disables ssh by default for security reasons. Otherwise just running updates right now, no problems yet. Info on the 'security' on the new image and ssh:
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/a-security-update-for-raspbian-pixel/

 

[virgil1]

Put in a new SD card. I somehow managed to lose my wifi keyboard and mouse USB adapter(new one on the way), so I am doing it all without('headless'). I had to put a file in the /boot image partition called 'ssh' so when it booted up ssh was enabled. The latest image disables ssh by default for security reasons. Otherwise just running updates right now, no problems yet. Info on the 'security' on the new image and ssh:
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/a-security-update-for-raspbian-pixel/

All done. Works great. I used @lbussy steps. Thanks!
http://www.silverfoxcrafts.com/2016/10/brewpi-setting-up-raspberry-pi/
http://www.silverfoxcrafts.com/2016/10/brewpi-new-jessie-install/

Can someone give me a 'summary' of why I had to update to the 'legacy branch for the arduino?'. Do I need a new arduino? I see this in my std.err logs:
the newest version of BrewPi is not compatible with Arduino.

 

[Thorrak]

All done. Works great. I used @lbussy steps. Thanks!
http://www.silverfoxcrafts.com/2016/10/brewpi-setting-up-raspberry-pi/
http://www.silverfoxcrafts.com/2016/10/brewpi-new-jessie-install/

Can someone give me a 'summary' of why I had to update to the 'legacy branch for the arduino?'. Do I need a new arduino? I see this in my std.err logs:
the newest version of BrewPi is not compatible with Arduino.

Originally, BrewPi was built to use Arduinos - in part because they're cheap and plentiful. Part of why they're cheap and plentiful, however, is because they're not that powerful. The BrewPi firmware grew to consume all of the power an Arduino could provide, and eventually Elco decided to switch to developing for a more powerful device (the Spark).

Despite this switch, there are a ton of people out there who still had the Arduino-based version (or had built their own) so he decided to create a separate branch of the software that was effectively frozen as it was when he made the switch. This is the "legacy" branch. There are no further updates expected for the legacy branch so any newly developed features won't work with an arduino-based build.

 

[virgil1]

Originally, BrewPi was built to use Arduinos - in part because they're cheap and plentiful. Part of why they're cheap and plentiful, however, is because they're not that powerful. The BrewPi firmware grew to consume all of the power an Arduino could provide, and eventually Elco decided to switch to developing for a more powerful device (the Spark).

Despite this switch, there are a ton of people out there who still had the Arduino-based version (or had built their own) so he decided to create a separate branch of the software that was effectively frozen as it was when he made the switch. This is the "legacy" branch. There are no further updates expected for the legacy branch so any newly developed features won't work with an arduino-based build.

Thanks! I should have remembered that. I read through this thread start to finish over a year ago. Sounds like it's time for a refresher!

 

[Mojzis]

I'm sure this has been asked before, but is there an easy way to determine which sensor wires are ground, data, vcc?

It appears my flash of the arduino was successful, but temp probes aren't showing up. I followed the diagram and the diagram provided with my sensors. I used some very thin gauge to push into my arduino (didn't solder in) so I'm not 100% sure it's adequate.

It looks like the relays have shown up though.

Thanks in advance for any help

 

[Thorrak]

I'm sure this has been asked before, but is there an easy way to determine which sensor wires are ground, data, vcc?

Unfortunately, no. There is no standard for the wire colors in DS18b20 probes, so you're at the mercy of the manufacturer. Generally, black is ground, red is VCC, and yellow/white is data, but I've seen ones that have blue data lines as well.

It looks like the relays have shown up though.

Unfortunately, that doesn't mean much either (unless you're using OneWire relays). Because the relays are just controlled by pins on the Arduino the BrewPi controller assumes that the relay is there as long as the pin exists. Even if there was an issue, you wouldn't know.

 

[Mojzis]

Bummer, I figured as much. I guess I'll play around with the wiring and see what I can make happen.

 

[wbarber69]

You can use a multimeter to find the ground wire. basically set it up to read resistance. take 2 pairs of wires at a time and test resistance across them until you find a reading if it's negative then flip the pairs you have in your hands. once you get a positive reading take the wire that is connected to com on the multimeter and label it ground. you should be able to keep com and gnd connected and be able to get a resistance value from each of the 2 remaining wires. there is no standard value but you'll either get resistance or you won't. once you know what ground is then it's 50/50 as to what is data or vcc and thats as easy as hooking it up to see if it works and if it doesn't then swap.