So this weekend had a couple of advancements in the eHERMS build.
I received a TON of stainless parts for plumbing purposes on friday. It was a bulk classifieds purchase, so I still need to sort through and take some pics.
I also ordered a second set of contact blocks for my control panel switches. The plan, as it stands, is to use 1 set per switch for the Manual/Auto leds when the switch is turned that way, so that I can run them directly off the 12 volt source.
The reason for this is that when trying to power the Relays for the pumps with an LED and resistor in line droped the voltage enough that the relay wouldn't trip. Lesson learned. Thats one of the amazing things about these switches, you can continue to add contact blocks to infinity. As a reminder, here are the switches:
The yellow part at the back is a contact block, and is removable or stackable... neat stuff.
as well, I didn't point out specifically the relay's I'm using for the pumps:
These are from the
brewtroller store and work great with the brewtroller system, or with others.
If I haven't mentioned it much before, I am using the BrewTroller for this build. If you haven't checked out this platform yet, you should take a look...
http://www.brewtroller.com
I believe there are a lot of misconceptions about this setup.... its not as techy/DIY dependant as a lot of folks think. If your considering PID controls and making a control panel that way, then you REALLY do have all the skills needed! I know BCS is popular right now here on HBT, but its really not any harder to setup a brewtroller. Feel free to ask if you have any questions!!
I also placed an order this morning for panel mount cat 5e jacks that will work with the thick plastic of these electrical boxes (I hope). I'll post pics once I get them.
The actual WORK done this weekend was on the secondary box housing all the 240v items. Specifically the SSRs, outlets, distribution block and fuses for the heating elements.
It still needs the incomming power hole cut and cord secured. And, I noticed this morning that one of the wires seperated from the spade connector. Gotta re-crimp and heat shrink that connection.
As well, one of the cat 5e jacks will be in this box. My plan is to use cat 5 to run the signal cable for the SSRs.
There it is right now.... Ask any questions you might have!