Eheim autofeeder

Request new hardware or ideas for the controller
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lnevo
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Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

I found an old blackberry charger that is now modded with a mono jack and i wired up the relay to a mono port and its working :) now i just need my feeder. I actually want to see if i can find room inside the unit for the relay.
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

lnevo wrote:I actually want to see if i can find room inside the unit for the relay.
I found an old 5v wall wart today so I'll either have to make or buy a step down converter to get down to 3.3v. I wanted to keep it all in the battery compartment of the feeder but I don't think I'll get away with it if I use a converter. I'll pick up a small RadioShack project box to put everything in then run a cable up to the feeder.

Let us know if you manage to stuff it all in the feeder. I'd like to see how you do it.

~Charlie
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

If it can't fit, I'll just put the relay it into a project box and swap the jack for a plug on the extension cable I made. :)
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

I've been reading through the various mods and it should be easy enough to put the relay on a small board along with the components I need to bring the voltage down to 3.3v form 5v on the wall wart. I ordered a bunch of parts/pieces last week to build the projects from the book I'm reading and I'm just waiting for that to ship. I should have everything I need in that batch other than the relay. I'll pick up the relay from Radio Shack on the way home tonight.

Hopefully I can get this put together by next weekend and not turn my autofeeder into and expensive paperweight :)

~Charlie
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lnevo
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Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

Got my feeder today and got everything installed. Was no way to get it stuffed in without doing the battery mod. I put it all in a small take out plastic container. I'm just gonna grab a small project box tomorrow. I tested plugging it in and unplugging. It triggers immediately. Can't wait to get this hooked up.
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lnevo
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Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

Connected the feeder up today. Had to cut the clamp out a bit so i could attach it to the cross brace instead of the rim. Works like a charm. Its connected to my WC pump extension cord for now until I start on the revamp and my new code...

Here's some pics:
Image
Image
Image
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

All my electronics parts/pieces finally came in and I'm ready to get going in on this but I have a question before I start. From the PDF attached to the page in this link (http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum/diy ... pex-3.html) he is using the following items to convert his 5v DC wall wart to 3.2v DC to power the feeder.
  • Supply List for building 5-­‐3.2V Converter.
  • 1-­‐330 Ohm Resistor
  • 1-­‐470 Ohm Resistor
  • 1-­‐4.875"x2.5"x1.5" Project Box
  • 1-­‐Dual Mini Board (213 Hole)
  • 1-­‐LM317T Adj. Voltage Regulator
  • 4-­‐DC Power Plug (Size-­‐N)
  • 4-­‐Coaxial Power Jack (Size-­‐N)
  • 1-­‐5v Power supply from around the house
For those of you that used this method over keeping the batteries to power the feeder have you had any problems with this? I'm still very new to electronics and I understand the *very* basics of this and how/why it works but in my research for DC to DC step-down converters I've read on many sites using this method is not all that great and/or "clean". Is there anything inherently wrong with going this route?

~Charlie
rimai
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by rimai »

I think you are just fine with that voltage regulator.
Roberto.
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

I'll give it a shot. Thanks, Roberto!
Amos Poh
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Amos Poh »

Hi Piper and Inevo,

I recently brought a battery powered auto feeder and was thinking of powering it up via the ReefAngel instead of batteries also would be best if i can trigger a feed wirelessly.

Found this thread with lots of information but i am a idiot when it comes to electrical stuff. Possible to teach me what to buy and how to assemble?

1) power up the feeder using RA
2) trigger a feed wirelessly

Autofeeder is using 2x 1,5v AA battery

Thanks in advance :)
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

I only did the control part. I still rely on battery.

All you need are some audio mono ports and jacks, a small project box and a relay. Amos i believe you have the dc power expansion? If so you can connect a 12vdc relay right to that and when its powered on it completes the circuit. You wire the relay to the pins on the feeder button and it closes the circuit when you provide power to the relay which then feeds the fish. The mono ports are just to make everything look nice. If you do the battery replacement u might be able to put the relay inside the feeder.
Amos Poh
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Amos Poh »

Thanks Inevo :)

Did i mention iam a Idiot when it comes to electrical engineering :) lol.
I still dont get what to purchase and how to assemble it. yes i do have a power control expansion how can i use that to power the feeder?

Sorry for the noob questions
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

Power +/- goes to relay +/-

Relay output connects to pins ok manual button.

Done thats all you need. Now when you power on the outlet, the relay closes, fish get fed. I think the simplicity is whats getting in the way :)
Amos Poh
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Amos Poh »

lnevo wrote:Power +/- goes to relay +/-

Means Power of Feeder +/- Goes to power Control expansion +/-

Relay output connects to pins ok manual button.

Relay output connects to pins ok manual button? this part iam not sure

Done thats all you need. Now when you power on the outlet, the relay closes, fish get fed. I think the simplicity is whats getting in the way :)

Thanks for the patience by the way :lol:
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

Amos Poh wrote:
lnevo wrote:Power +/- goes to relay +/-

Means Power of Feeder +/- Goes to power Control expansion +/-
NO! The power is going to connect to a 12vdc relay that you will need from radio shack. The feeder is only 3v if you connect that directly to the feeder I'm not sure what will happen. I've only done the control part, not the battery replacement,

For the other part, you'll need to crack open the feeder and you'll see the button that you push (there are 2 of them) when you want to feed manually. You will need to solder wires to two of the pins and connect that to the output side of the relay. There's some links earlier in the thread with pictures and some other directions I had found (and didn't use for their circuit) that may make it clearer.
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

Hi Piper and Inevo,

I recently brought a battery powered auto feeder and was thinking of powering it up via the ReefAngel instead of batteries also would be best if i can trigger a feed wirelessly.

Found this thread with lots of information but i am a idiot when it comes to electrical stuff. Possible to teach me what to buy and how to assemble?

1) power up the feeder using RA
2) trigger a feed wirelessly

Autofeeder is using 2x 1,5v AA battery

Thanks in advance :)
What feeder did you get? Sounds like it might not be the Eheim feeder. If that's the case, you will need to open it up and figure out how to wire the relay to the button.

The easiest way is as Lee suggested and just use the RA to power the relay that triggers the button and just keep the batteries in the unit to power the it. I used an old 5v cell charger wall-wart to power my feeder but if you do that you need to use/make a voltage regulator to go from 5v (or whatever you have) to 3v. You can also find one cheap on-line: http://dx.com/p/mini-dc-4-40v-to-dc-1-5 ... ule-142488

If you use a 12v relay (http://dx.com/p/oje-sh-112dm-12v-5a-pow ... ack-141959) you can use your DC expansion to trigger it.

Image

Using the image above as an example, you would wire your DC expansion to pins one and two of the relay. You would wire pins 3 and 4 to the button on the feeder. When you apply power from the DC expansion to pins 1 and 2 of the relay it will trigger the relay closing (or completing) the circuit at pins 3 and 4 which would emulate a button press on the feeder. In newbie terms the relay is taking the place of the button on the feeder.

~Charlie
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

I should note that not all relays are the same. Some may have the pins in different locations and some may have more pins. You need to check the diagram and/or data sheet for your relay for proper wiring. Just make sure that if it is a 4 pin relay that it is "NO" or Normally Open. That means if there is no power to the relay it's open or not completing the circuit. Many of the relays you will find have 5 pins which will handle either case depending on how you wire it.

~Charlie
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

The 4 pin relay is sometimes referred to as SPST (single pole, single throw) relay.
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Sacohen
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Sacohen »

So how many volts is being sent to the feeder trigger.

From this link.
http://wamas.org/forums/blog/13/entry-4 ... ontroller/
it looks like the feeder is getting 12V off of the relay.

I'm wondering if I can do this using a 3V Walwart to replace the batteries and a 12V signal coming out of the Power Expansion Module.

If I set program the RA to only close the Power Expansion Module of a second then I shouldn't need the capacitor and resistor.
rimai
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by rimai »

If you are using a relay, like piper posted above, there is no voltage being sent to the feeder.
You are basically closing the relay contacts similar to what you would do manually on a button.
Roberto.
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

It depends on your relay. I used a 5v relay to trigger so I can use my I/O module. Other have used 12v relays. I would think a 12v relay with the DC power expansion would work just fine.

You will need ~3v to power the feeder though. I had a hard time finding a 3v wall wart so I used a 5v and a LM317T voltage regulator to get to 3.3v.
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Sacohen
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Sacohen »

You are closing the contact, thereby completing the circuit and letting voltage through to the feed button.

Each port on the Power Expansion Module is relay and would do the same thing that Piper did above.
Unless I'm missing something I don't see the reason to use the DC Expansion port to trigger a relay if we can just set the expansion port to be on for 1 second and then turn off.
rimai
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by rimai »

No, each port in the power control expansion module is not a relay. Each port has a driver that is capable of closing a relay or driving a small 12VDC motor.
You would still need the relay to close the contact of a relay to simulate a push button press.
Roberto.
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

That's not true. In the scenarios the 5V/12V relay is closing the circuit that the push-button woudl normally close. The RA relay or Power expansion port is only going to power the relay that closes the circuit. It's not feeding voltage to the button the way you described.
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

Lee explained that better than I did. Think of the relay as a pair of hands touching a wire from each side of the feeder button together which essentially bypasses the button. You need to power the relay to activate the hands though. 5v and 12v relays are cheap easy to come by. You'd obviously want to go with the 12v relay if you want to power it with your DC power expansion.

If you can find a 3v wall wart you can use that to replace the batteries in the feeder itself if you want to. Or just leave the batteries in there.

~Charlie
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Sacohen
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Sacohen »

Finding a 3v PS is not a problem. I found a link in another thread for one at Radio Shack and I just I'll get a small 12v DC relay and fit it into the are where the batteries would go and all should be fine.
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Sacohen
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Sacohen »

This is the Power Supply that was posted in another thread.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index ... Id=3802149

I'll connect it to the battery leads.

If I use that and this 12VDC/1A SPDT Micro Relay connected to the push button leads.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index ... Id=2062481

I should be OK.

I should be able to leave the actual push button connected in place and use that if I were at home and wanted to give an extra feeding, correct?
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lnevo
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by lnevo »

I cant see the pics but my push button still works and i use it all the time.
Piper
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by Piper »

Sacohen wrote:I should be able to leave the actual push button connected in place and use that if I were at home and wanted to give an extra feeding, correct?
Yep. Mine works that way too. I also tied it to a button via my I/O module that activates it as well. My feeder is in the far back corner of my canopy and hard to get to. I put a few buttons in a small enclosure that is Velcro's to the inside of the canopy door where it is easy to get to when you open it up to feed.
egadgetjnr
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Re: Eheim autofeeder

Post by egadgetjnr »

Piper wrote:
Sacohen wrote:I should be able to leave the actual push button connected in place and use that if I were at home and wanted to give an extra feeding, correct?
Yep. Mine works that way too. I also tied it to a button via my I/O module that activates it as well. My feeder is in the far back corner of my canopy and hard to get to. I put a few buttons in a small enclosure that is Velcro's to the inside of the canopy door where it is easy to get to when you open it up to feed.
Hey piper, how did you use it with you IO module? I want to do something similar for my ozone but at the moment only have it setup to power a 12v wall wart relay to trigger it on and off. Could you take some photos and possibly show some code on how you coded it? I just can't get my head around how you use the IO module to trigger the relay or switch.

Thanks
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