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Controlling an Indexing Valve

I'm building --trying to build-- a CHOP 2 system.

1- 1,400 gal tank
1- 100 gal sump
4- 4x8x1 ft grow beds.

I had 4.6 tons of Expanded Shale delivered this week (making me the only bag lot dealer in Hampton Roads that I know of...but that's another story)

I've ordered one of the 4-port indexing valves and now I've got to figure out how to control it.

The pump is 2400 gph waterfall pump, so I worry about switching such a large pump on and off to make the valve cycle, but the timer and wiring would be simple.

I've thought about a solenoid valve to the grow beds, something like you see in golf course and large sprinkler systems. But how to control the valve? Say, 30 mins on 2 mins off or whatever works for the beds, plus some "hold time" between cycles.

I'd really like a mechanical on off valve that counts turns of a water wheel to open and close the system.

Any ideas? How --exactly-- are other people doing this?

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by TCLynx on February 14, 2012 at 5:35pm

If your pump is strong enough to work with a solenoid valve then you could control the indexing valve that way (however I worry a little that if you have enough pressure going to the solenoid to operate it, that you will be choking back the pump when the solenoid closes.)

Anyway, controlling a solenoid valve can be really rather easy. Simply get the wall wart transformer that matches the voltage and amperage to operate the solenoid and plug it into a timer.

Those mechanical valves might work where they will switch between flow going to the valve and flow going back to the fish tank or something but those are probably a little trickier to control since they would need voltage applied in the correct direction for a proper period of time to move the valve but not keep the motor trying to run beyond the appropriate step.

I am running one indexing valve system that is a simple system with the fish tank in ground and the pump pumping up to grow beds in sequence through the indexing valve. The pump is on a timer to run for 9 minutes and off for one minute. It is a smaller pump and a modified indexing valve to work with that small pump.

I have in the past also set up an indexing valve to work on gravity flow from a fish tank in a CHIFT PIST system but the real challenge there is having a valve that can control the flow to the valve under gravity pressure situations. Perhaps one of those motorized valve would work but I was never up to paying $400 dollars for one without even knowing how to control it. I had a home made automated valve but the electronics eventually got fried when a bug got into it.

Permalink Reply by rick kennerly on February 14, 2012 at 6:01pm

TCL, thanks. Got schematics for that valve controller?

Permalink Reply by Rob Torcellini on February 14, 2012 at 6:33pm

You could use one of these timers. They time from 1 second to 999 minutes. http://www.bigelowbrook.com/Products/IXTimer/IXTimer.aspx

TC sells them on her site too! http://www.aquaponiclynx.com/products/controllers-and-timers/bigelo...

Permalink Reply by TCLynx on February 14, 2012 at 6:38pm

Which valve controller are you looking for rick?

If it's just a timer for a solenoid, then a simple repeat cycle timer or 15 minute increment timer might work and as Rob pointed out, we got some really nice timers that can also do some extra stuff like even temperature control.

As for a controller for the motorized valve, no, I don't have schematics for those cause I don't really know how they would work since I've never used them.

For info on the home made valve and controller I did, here is the like to a blog post about it.

http://www.aquaponiclynx.com/low-pressure-automated-valve

Permalink Reply by rick kennerly on February 15, 2012 at 4:03am

Arrgh! feel like I'm bleeding money on this project. If I'd wanted to go broke we'd still be small boat cruising, so I'm trying to avoid expensive fixes...again ;->

"Which valve controller are you looking for rick?"

I hadn't gotten that far yet. Figured the controller/timer would probably dictate which valve I got. I'm open to suggestions.

Permalink Reply by TCLynx on February 15, 2012 at 6:16am

Which size valve did you order?

You could always get a solenoid irrigation valve and try it with your pump to see if you have enough pressure. I think most of the larger solenoids need either 6 or 10 psi differential. So do you have the pump curve for your pump? How high will it pump? I think 6 psi is equal to just under 14 feet of head and 10 psi is just over 23 feet.

I've heard there are three way pool valves out there that you can get a motorized actuator for for under $100 but I don't know how I would control those either.

Permalink Reply by rick kennerly on February 15, 2012 at 6:26am

"Which size valve did you order?"

1 inch.

Permalink Reply by TCLynx on February 15, 2012 at 6:39am

Well a 1" irrigation solenoid isn't going to cost that much (if you can find a threaded one you might even be able to return it if it doesn't work) and the wall wart power transformer isn't too costly either (however if you have to cut the end off the transformer to wire it to the solenoid you won't be able to return it.) The timer could be anything from a 15 minute increment timer (pretty cheap) up to a repeat cycle timer or one of Rob's controllers ($75-200 range.)

So you would probably need to plumb from the pump and have a T, one side goes to the solenoid and the other side needs to go up high (high enough that the solenoid will have enough pressure to operate so depending on the solenoid it would either be probably 15 feet above the solenoid or 24 feet above the solenoid) before branching over to the fish tank. This will cost more in plumbing (assuming your pump can handle the head) but would probably be the cheapest in valves and controls.