Setting up Auto Water Changes - Lots of help required - Totally confused :(

OK, so Ive been battling with trying to get a AWC setup and for the life of me I cant get it to work
Ive looked at the manuals and tried to look online in these forums, but it just seems to be very confusing for me :confused:

Ultimately what I need to be able to do is:

Turn off Skimmer [S10]
turn Off return pump [S1]
wait 3 minutes (for water to settle and levels to settle)
active pump/solenoid valve to drain approx 40ltrs [S12]
fill 40ltrs using pump from natural salt water tank [S3]
turn on return pump [S1]
wait 3 minutes
turn on skimmer [S10]

Set schedule for weekly change

Sockets 1-12 are being currently used for device control.

Because of the level changes in the sump when the RTN pump is off I need to place my float levels quite high, so I cant use the above for ATO, only water changes

Can anyone guide me thru this?
Ive tried following various tutorials including the beta video tutorial, but it doesnt explain the pauses/ delays and each time Im trying this I seem to be unsuccessful, especially in the area of turning off the devices and waiting before proceeding, and I just end up draining my water away and wasting water.

Thanks for everyones time and help, its greatly appreciated

I really wish there was some better guides available from GHL for this type of thing, surely I'm not the only one totally confused with this process? (or maybe I am!)

I think this is a very special procedure you want to achieve here - of course we can't have a how-to-manual for every possible setup

our manuals cover the basic function and use of the several ProfiLux features, like AWC (in section level control) or timers

It is not clear for me if this all should be timer-controlled or if a level-sensor should be involved (if so - how)?

if no sensor is involved than just adjust some of the timers

e.g. timer 1 for skimmer, timer 2 for return pump etc. with overlapping time frames

Matthias

what Mattrees is trying to achieve is basic water change but he has found a common hurdle.

The biggest hurdle faced is the fact AWC can not be performed accurately until the sump level has stabilized from water draining back from the tank to the sump when the return pump is off, so there needs to be a "timed wait" function built in so the AWC does not start draining sump water before the tank water has not yet fully drained back down.

Mattrees - the delay on for the skimmer is not too hard just use programmable logic using delay on function.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by aqua_digital

Matthias

what Mattrees is trying to achieve is basic water change but he has found a common hurdle.

The biggest hurdle faced is the fact AWC can not be performed accurately until the sump level has stabilized from water draining back from the tank to the sump when the return pump is off, so there needs to be a "timed wait" function built in so the AWC does not start draining sump water before the tank water has not yet fully drained back down.

Mattrees - the delay on for the skimmer is not too hard just use programmable logic using delay on function.

---

Thats exactly right aqua_digital, thanks
I didnt think it was a 'very special procedure' :)

Is there a good guide to follow for this step by step, I really dont find this system very easy to setup, and I kinda really need to get this setup so I can get my regular water changes in check.
Thanks again for everyones time.

Not yet, we have built a GHL demo system in our home for such purposes but first I must get the system stable and stop adding parts ;)

The most effective way of stopping return pump back drain is to use a non return valve, having said that mine split in half due to the 5 meters of vertical back pressure, showering my basement with oceans finest water!

An official GHL software manual only for these important features would be the best option as it can be changed when firmware gets updates. But until then at some point this year I will do a manual, but it wont be soon.

Looking forward to the tutorial for this!

I've been thinking about setting up AWC, but can *not* figure out how to accomplish it, with only 2 Level sensors and one needed for ATO.

I guess I could put the "drain water" on a timer, after testing how long it takes to empty the appropriate amount of water, and put the second level sensor at the water line to be reached, when the return/skimmer pumps are off.

But setting it all up in the Profilux, involving programmable logik, is above me.

it is not that complicated

use the level control mode "AWO and ATO"

use one socket for drainig, one for filling water during ATO and one for filling water during AWC

please read the new manual

With the changing water level in the sump (return and skimmer pump turned off), you can't use the same level sensor for ATO and AWC.

I have a large sump (150g rubbermaid stock tank) but I run my AWC while the whole system is completely up running. I use the two level sensors with one tied to the auto top off, set up just like aqua_digital's tutorial.
Been working great for months. I change about 4 gallons, once daily.

I wish I could do that, but my sump is too small to keep everything running and be able to discard a decent amount of water.
My tank is a 60G cube, and the sump is as large as I can get in there.
The return pump compartment is pretty small and the pump would run dry within a minute.
Maybe I need to knock out some baffles, and just put the skimmer in the refugium part.
The sump is a cube, too, and currently divided through the middle, and then one half divided in half again.
Fuge is in the large half, and the skimmer and return pump each in a quarter.