Matho's controller

[matho]

Update:
I decided to go ahead & brew with the Brauduino today. Instaed of starting with cold water & waiting for it to get to temp I started with hot tap water which was 55c so it didn't have far to go to reach my desired mash in temp of 68.

Once it reached 68c the mash in timer started to count down! After the set time of 5 minutes it prompted to Add Malt.

So there must be a problem somewhere with the ramp time setting, if it takes too long to reach the set temp coz you started with 20c water then it gets confused (that's my technical jargon)

Really not sure how to fix it but at least there's a way around it

Will let ya know how the brew day goes

there shouldn't be a problem with the amount of time it takes to reach the set temperature, as I said it could be a problem with the ds18b20 read, one wrong read above the set temp will start the timer counting down, I have never experienced a wrong read but a guy in the US did but it ended up being a dicky connection. I could make it so there needs to be 2 consecutive reads above the set temp before the counter starts. Let me know if it happens again.

Just had to unplug it

Everything was going perfectly, until the end of the last stage.

I had a mashout @ 78c for 10mins & at the end of the countdown it just displayed Pump Rest. I thought it would last 2mins like the other rests but after 20mins of staring at the LCD waiting for it to change and seeing no rise in temp on the Brewmometer I unplugged it & have plugged the elements in directly to get it to boil

Edak, I have a feeling I'm gonna need you're coding expertise again

That problem should have been fixed with the latest code https://github.com/mathoaus/braumiser-controller/blob/master/brauduino2.ino


cheers steve

 

[Edak]

I have had MANY problems with wrong reads and I have not been able to track it down. I can see that the CRC checks all fail and it would not resume correctly unless the sensor power was removed. It could be heat related so I put in some ventilation holes into the box (non-ideal for cleaning!). The other thing I have done (untested) is to monitor for this condition and have the arduino power down the sensor for a second then power it back up. I will find out soon.

Glenn, it's hard to tell when I will be brewing next. I am working weekends recently so it will probably be an evening some time.

 

[tynian]

Hey Guys,

I have just tested my new pump along with the suppression circuit. All works well except for one thing, the pump will only run when I have the heater on as well. I suspect I have misread the wiring diag in Mathos docs. Can anyone give me any clues as to the correct wiring for the pump control?

Cheers
Rob

 

[matho]

Hey Guys,

I have just tested my new pump along with the suppression circuit. All works well except for one thing, the pump will only run when I have the heater on as well. I suspect I have misread the wiring diag in Mathos docs. Can anyone give me any clues as to the correct wiring for the pump control?

Cheers
Rob

sounds like you got the pump active connected to the wrong side of the SSR, going off the last page of the build PDF http://aussiehomebrewer.com/index.php?app=core&module=attach&section=attach&attach_rel_module=post&attach_id=54981. from the 240 in plug you should have one wire going to the SSR, one going to the 12v supply and one going to one of the pump terminal, the active of the pump connected to the other pump terminal. Both the earth and the neutral of the pump outlet should be connected directly to the 240v input connector. If you can show us a pic I'm sure we will be able to work it out.

cheers steve

 

[tynian]

Thanks Steve.

That did the trick. I had just misunderstood the connection to the active from the load rather than the ssr.

Looks like my suppression circuit isn't quite right though. Will have to see what is going on with it.

Cheers
Rob

 

[matho]

here is the RS parts list for those how want to order more kits

View attachment parts list.pdf

you will need to order a 16 X 2 lcd screen too

cheers steve

 

[lael]

here is the RS parts list for those how want to order more kits

parts list.pdf

you will need to order a 16 X 2 lcd screen too

cheers steve

Thanks Steve!

 

[matho]

for those who are making up new boards I have changed the PCB to include RC snubber circuit across the relay contacts and have moved the LEDS so the you won't need to solder leads on them



Seeed studio has changed the way you order PCB's, you used to have to get an order number and put that order number on the PCB silkscreen which meant you needed to produce new gerber files for each order, now you don't need a order number so I have made up the gerber files need to make the new PCB 'braumiser v2.1'

View attachment 60419

cheers steve

 

[bigbanko]

for those who are making up new boards I have changed the PCB to include RC snubber circuit across the relay contacts and have moved the LEDS so the you won't need to solder leads on them

brauduinov3 board.png

Seeed studio has changed the way you order PCB's, you used to have to get an order number and put that order number on the PCB silkscreen which meant you needed to produce new gerber files for each order, now you don't need a order number so I have made up the gerber files need to make the new PCB 'braumiser v2.1'

brauduinov3.zip

cheers steve

Hi Steve

Forgive my ignorance, but what is the RC snubber circuit used for, or what is it's purpose.

Thanks

 

[matho]

to try and reduce the interference caused by switching a AC pump, it seems that the EMI produced by switching was scrambling the LCD screen.

the extra parts are a 100nF metallised Polypropylene Capacitor and a 100 ohm 1/2 w resistor

cheers steve

 

[matho]

I was just reviewing the gerber files and noticed an error, I have deleted the zip but for those that have downloaded it please don't use it as there is no ground connection between the pump transistor emitter and GND and there is a short between the pump transistor collector and GND. I have fixed the problem and attached a new zip

View attachment brauduinov3.zip

cheers steve

 

[matho]

Too true, as long as she works I'm happy.

Running a test with it right now. Looks like I've fudged the pump wiring somewhere along the line, it's not working at all & the LED is not on. I'll re-read the instructions again

A couple of questions:

What have others got their window size set to? Mine is at 500, but I think that might be too low. It's holding temp perfectly, but the Red LED is blinking at a rate of about 2 per second. Just wondering if that's putting stress on the element?

At the Mash In stage it beeped & told me to Add Malt but way before the set temp was reached.
From the instructions:

the first step is always the MashIn stage, after the set temperature has been reached the timer will start to count down. At the end of the MashIn stage the unit will prompt for the malt to be added and will wait for a confirm or a quit.

I had the Mash In temp set at 68, but it had only reached approx' 35 degress when it prompted me to add the malt. Is this an error or should I have waited for the strike water to reach temp before starting the program?

Hey Breakbeer,

I have been looking into the problem you have been having, unfortunately I have misplaced my temp sensor lead for my unit so I couldn't test it out but I have changed the code so the temperature needs to be at or above the set temperature for over 3 seconds before it starts to countdown. I have bench tested it but not in a real life situation so I'm not going to push it to github until it has been tested

View attachment brauduino2test.txt

if you could check it out to see if it works, just change the .txt to .ino and load it up to the arduino

cheers steve

 

[breakbeer]

Thanks for going to that effort Steve! I've enlisted Edak to help me with the coding so hopefully I'll catch up with him soon. I'll definitely report back with the results

Cheers!

 

[voodoobrew]

Just wondering if there were any left over PCB's going spare? Or whether there were plans to do another run. I'm looking to build an arduino-based system and this looks like an excellent start to interfacing all the necessary hardware.

 

[claudiobr74]

Hi Steve,

Do you have this new PCB with snubber in eagle files?


cheers,

Claudio

 

[matho]

Hi Steve,

Do you have this new PCB with snubber in eagle files?


cheers,

Claudio

Sure mate,


View attachment brauduino snubber.zip

cheers steve

 

[real_beer]

hey real_beer, the chips are fairly rugged and handling them with out earthing yourself shouldn't fry them. To me it sounds like the tranistors are not right but I can't tell without actually having the unit. I would say the screen needs the contast adjusted ( the trimpot) but I would expect both the lines to be dark not just one. I don't have much time at the moment and I know your a long way away but if you get stuck post it back to me and I'll fix it for you.

cheers

Steve,

Thanks for all your help checking the boards over. I bought & added the 100nF metallised Polypropylene Capacitor and a 100 ohm 1/2 w resistor to control the EMI & everthing works great now. Just have to get an element & I'll be able to finish the build.

cheers

 

[matho]

That is great to hear tony

 

[matho]

Hey Breakbeer,

I have been looking into the problem you have been having, unfortunately I have misplaced my temp sensor lead for my unit so I couldn't test it out but I have changed the code so the temperature needs to be at or above the set temperature for over 3 seconds before it starts to countdown. I have bench tested it but not in a real life situation so I'm not going to push it to github until it has been tested

brauduino2test.txt

if you could check it out to see if it works, just change the .txt to .ino and load it up to the arduino

cheers steve

I tested it this arvo and it looks like it worked well, of course I wasn't getting any read errors to start with.
cheers steve

 

[Sam England]

Evening Matho & Breakbeer,
Just thought I'd let you know that I had the same issue as Breakbeer on the weekend. I'd set mash-in for 40deg and then 20 mins at 50 etc. The temp got to 27deg from 22 deg and then prompted for add malt. I added the malt anyway and kicked it off again. It then started the countdown for the protein rest at 38deg. Once it got to 50deg everything ran smoothly for the 67, 72 and 78 degree steps. I hadn't seen this issue on the first couple of water only runs.

Other than these minor issues (which you seem to be on top of anyway) it's a great system and a hell of a lot easier than constantly monitoring temps like I used to. I'll hopefully post some pics of the system tonight when I get home. I managed to make a voile top filter plate which worked well with 4.85kg grain bill in a stout. I'm sure some of the other tight arses like me out there might be interested!!

Thanks again for your work on this one Matho.

Cheers,
BB