kiwireef Posted April 23, 2004 Share Posted April 23, 2004 Hi there from Auckland, New Zealand. I read in one of your threads recently that there is someone here that sells some sort of float switch for topping off water. I have searched and couldn't find anywhere in the forum since. Can someone plse help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member Siput Posted April 23, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 23, 2004 Try Octopus Bay, one of the in-forum advertisers. Also search for TUBBY, which is the more professional looking but expensive variant. Cheeers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member porc Posted April 23, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 23, 2004 Try Octopus Bay, one of the in-forum advertisers. yup. it's in this latest thread.. http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/index.php?...opic=15530&st=0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member Cookiemunster Posted April 23, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 23, 2004 Try Octopus Bay, one of the in-forum advertisers. Also search for TUBBY, which is the more professional looking but expensive variant. Cheeers! Excuse me? Expensive? Ok I guess its expensive when it comes with 2 float switches, safety fuse and DC voltage passing thru float switches for safety. Its strange that paying for components is cheap and the completed unit is expensive. wow. If you just want the float switch pm me, its only $18 each. Alternatively you can view my thread at TUBBY Quote My Humble 4ft tank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gouldian Posted April 23, 2004 Share Posted April 23, 2004 Hi there from Auckland, New Zealand. I read in one of your threads recently that there is someone here that sells some sort of float switch for topping off water. I have searched and couldn't find anywhere in the forum since. Can someone plse help? Hi kiwireef, I strongly recomend Tubby, it is professional made by our fellow reefer cookiemunster. I am using it and find that it is safer than some top up device cuz the float switches operate on DC rather than AC. The contruction and circuitries are of very high quality as well. I am not sure cookiemunster ships to NZ but no harm sending him a PM. Cheers, Quote "Reefs, like forests, will only be protected in long term if they are appreciated" Dr. J.E.N. Veron Australian Institute of Marine Science -----------------------------------------------------------------------Member of:UEN: T08SS0098FPlease visit us here: http://www.facebook....uaristSocietySG Facebook Group: http://www.facebook....gid=34281892381 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member Domino Posted April 23, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 23, 2004 Hi there! You can get that type of switch in NZ from RS Components. the link below will take you to their site and there is a pic and the price: http://www.rsnewzealand.com/cgi-bin/bv/bro...stockNo=2889344 I used one of those (one of the cheaper ones) to make my simple topup. These are heavy duty switches that are meant to be used in harsh industrial environments. I use a 12V DC transformer to activate a relay. the switch is in series on the DC circuit that controls the relay. Very simple. the switch Normaly closed (N/C) can be changed to N open (N/O) (that's what you need) by flipping the floater around (you can actually hear the tic of the magnetic switch inside when you move the floater). When the floater will go too low, it will close the DC circuit which will activate the relay that will put the pump on. Try to find a good relay with higher cut-off voltage if possible. Motors are inductive circuits and when you cut the voltage suddenly, there is a counter voltage spike (very very short) that can fetch up to a 1000 volts when nominal voltage is 240V AC. So it creates an arc on the relay contacts that might cause damage and malfunction in time... having said that, I'm just using a cheap relay for the time being and it works so far... I hope this helps! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member Cookiemunster Posted April 23, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 23, 2004 Hi there! You can get that type of switch in NZ from RS Components. the link below will take you to their site and there is a pic and the price: http://www.rsnewzealand.com/cgi-bin/bv/bro...stockNo=2889344 I used one of those (one of the cheaper ones) to make my simple topup. These are heavy duty switches that are meant to be used in harsh industrial environments. I use a 12V DC transformer to activate a relay. the switch is in series on the DC circuit that controls the relay. Very simple. the switch Normaly closed (N/C) can be changed to N open (N/O) (that's what you need) by flipping the floater around (you can actually hear the tic of the magnetic switch inside when you move the floater). When the floater will go too low, it will close the DC circuit which will activate the relay that will put the pump on. Try to find a good relay with higher cut-off voltage if possible. Motors are inductive circuits and when you cut the voltage suddenly, there is a counter voltage spike (very very short) that can fetch up to a 1000 volts when nominal voltage is 240V AC. So it creates an arc on the relay contacts that might cause damage and malfunction in time... having said that, I'm just using a cheap relay for the time being and it works so far... I hope this helps! Well said Domino, yup I fully agree with Domino. He is right. Although using a good quality relay will make it last longer and prevent any accidents. Cheers Quote My Humble 4ft tank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahal's boat Posted April 23, 2004 Share Posted April 23, 2004 QUOTE (Siput @ Apr 23 2004, 01:05 PM) Try Octopus Bay, one of the in-forum advertisers. yup. it's in this latest thread.. http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/index.php?...opic=15530&st=0 THIS??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member salted fish Posted April 24, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 24, 2004 THIS??? Hi All, I think Auto Top up BOX is the safer than any other top up device cuz the float switches operate in either DC or AC. SF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahal's boat Posted April 24, 2004 Share Posted April 24, 2004 NO NEED POWER! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRC Member Siput Posted April 24, 2004 SRC Member Share Posted April 24, 2004 Excuse me? Expensive? Ok I guess its expensive when it comes with 2 float switches, safety fuse and DC voltage passing thru float switches for safety. Its strange that paying for components is cheap and the completed unit is expensive. wow. If you just want the float switch pm me, its only $18 each. Alternatively you can view my thread at TUBBY No offense, man, I did say it was more professional; expensive is a relative term and to me personally, it is...that is why for eg there are skimmers ranging from a few 10's of dollars to those in high hundreds; no one denies that the better equipment cost more in general...anyway, different strokes for different folk... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Achilles Tang Posted April 27, 2004 Share Posted April 27, 2004 TUBBY for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingFish Posted April 30, 2004 Share Posted April 30, 2004 I'm a satisfied user of the TUBBY too. Was away for 2 weeks and it did its job well. Simply put, you pay for what you get; quality and reliability No point saving that few dollars and compromise the thousand dollar setup and livestock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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