OT Re: [basicstamps] maintenance alert for humidifier elements
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Posts: 46,084
On the other foot, you may be able to dispense with the Stamp if you can
adapt the water level switch found in most clothes washing machines.
In the console area of those machines you will find a small diameter
tube that goes to a diaphragm switch. One side of the diaphragm (with
the tube) senses water level and the other side senses atmospheric
pressure.
If you can locate the atmospheric vent and instead of venting to
atmosphere you rig a tubing nipple to it, you have just made a
differential air pressure switch.
All the ones I've seen are adjustable (adjuster is in the center) and
many can be picked up free of charge on trash night. They should be
adjustable to a usable range of the differential air pressures found in
a humidifier. If the pressures are to high for the range of the switch,
merely provide a calibrated bleed in the high pressure side (for powered
humidifiers) or the vacuum side (for non-powered humidifiers), or both.
If this is to be connected to an inductive buzzer, remember to put a
cap, across the switch contacts to reduce arcing.
Don Denhardt wrote:
>
> If instead of humidifier filter, you meant to state humidifier element
> the following may interest you.
>
> Hi Greg,
>
> As you had mentioned furnace, I assume you are referring to a humidifier
> that is not freestanding but attached to the heating system of your
> home.
>
> Perhaps a more worthwhile endeavor would be to sense the differential
> air pressure on both sides of the humidifier element. This will alert
> you when it needs to be changed or cleaned with muriatic acid. This
> will work on both powered and non-powered humidifiers.
>
> Powered humidifiers instal in the hot air duct (plenum chamber) above
> the furnace and have their own blower to move hot air through the
> element. Non-powered humidifiers use the air pressure created by the
> furnace blower to shunt some of the hot air from the plenum chamber to
> the blower intake and need no supplemental blower.
>
> Most of the yearly replacement/cleaning schedules have you
> replacing/cleaning an element long overdue for maintenance. Many of the
> folks that dream up these schedules do not consider things like total
> dissolved solids in the water supply, regional outside air temps and
> relative humidity, etc....
>
> In lieu of a fixed schedule, humidifier element maintenance schedules
> may vary throughout the year as total dissolved solids in the water
> supply change seasonally (provided that you are using a municipal water
> supply).
>
> As the season shifts from a light duty heating cycles to more frequent
> cycling the humidifier performance can rapidly decay. Drafting, or the
> amount of cold air replacing the interior humidified furnace combustion
> air going up the stack can place tremendous loads on the humidifier.
>
> The colder the outside air temperature the lower the relative humidity
> of the draft air once heated to 72DegF. So the outside air temperature,
> it's relative humidity and the amount of drafting through the home can
> vary a great deal in different areas of the country.
>
> Where in some areas yearly maintenance is sufficient, other areas need
> monthly maintenance for the humidifier to maintain a comfortable
> environment.
>
> A Stamp humidifier maintenance alert system may not be such a bad idea
> after all. Especially if mid heating season you have been developing
> dry skin problems and are zapping the cat and your computer.
>
> Don
>
> Greg Reyneke wrote:
> >
> > Greetings Stampers
> >
> > I've been lurking a long time and learning a lot.
> >
> > I'm ready to build a project for my furnace to remind me to change the
1-year filter on my humidifier.
> > I'd like to have a simple circuit that I could reset with a pushbutton that
simply sounds a buzzer/flashes an LED after 1 year.
> >
> > I've been scouring Google, but I can't find anything to steer me in the
right direction.
> >
> > Any ideas ??
> >
> > Thanks a lot
> >
> > Greg
> >
> > [noparse][[/noparse]Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
> > To UNSUBSCRIBE, just send mail to:
> > basicstamps-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> > from the same email address that you subscribed. Text in the Subject and
Body of the message will be ignored.
> >
> >
> > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
> To UNSUBSCRIBE, just send mail to:
> basicstamps-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> from the same email address that you subscribed. Text in the Subject and Body
of the message will be ignored.
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
adapt the water level switch found in most clothes washing machines.
In the console area of those machines you will find a small diameter
tube that goes to a diaphragm switch. One side of the diaphragm (with
the tube) senses water level and the other side senses atmospheric
pressure.
If you can locate the atmospheric vent and instead of venting to
atmosphere you rig a tubing nipple to it, you have just made a
differential air pressure switch.
All the ones I've seen are adjustable (adjuster is in the center) and
many can be picked up free of charge on trash night. They should be
adjustable to a usable range of the differential air pressures found in
a humidifier. If the pressures are to high for the range of the switch,
merely provide a calibrated bleed in the high pressure side (for powered
humidifiers) or the vacuum side (for non-powered humidifiers), or both.
If this is to be connected to an inductive buzzer, remember to put a
cap, across the switch contacts to reduce arcing.
Don Denhardt wrote:
>
> If instead of humidifier filter, you meant to state humidifier element
> the following may interest you.
>
> Hi Greg,
>
> As you had mentioned furnace, I assume you are referring to a humidifier
> that is not freestanding but attached to the heating system of your
> home.
>
> Perhaps a more worthwhile endeavor would be to sense the differential
> air pressure on both sides of the humidifier element. This will alert
> you when it needs to be changed or cleaned with muriatic acid. This
> will work on both powered and non-powered humidifiers.
>
> Powered humidifiers instal in the hot air duct (plenum chamber) above
> the furnace and have their own blower to move hot air through the
> element. Non-powered humidifiers use the air pressure created by the
> furnace blower to shunt some of the hot air from the plenum chamber to
> the blower intake and need no supplemental blower.
>
> Most of the yearly replacement/cleaning schedules have you
> replacing/cleaning an element long overdue for maintenance. Many of the
> folks that dream up these schedules do not consider things like total
> dissolved solids in the water supply, regional outside air temps and
> relative humidity, etc....
>
> In lieu of a fixed schedule, humidifier element maintenance schedules
> may vary throughout the year as total dissolved solids in the water
> supply change seasonally (provided that you are using a municipal water
> supply).
>
> As the season shifts from a light duty heating cycles to more frequent
> cycling the humidifier performance can rapidly decay. Drafting, or the
> amount of cold air replacing the interior humidified furnace combustion
> air going up the stack can place tremendous loads on the humidifier.
>
> The colder the outside air temperature the lower the relative humidity
> of the draft air once heated to 72DegF. So the outside air temperature,
> it's relative humidity and the amount of drafting through the home can
> vary a great deal in different areas of the country.
>
> Where in some areas yearly maintenance is sufficient, other areas need
> monthly maintenance for the humidifier to maintain a comfortable
> environment.
>
> A Stamp humidifier maintenance alert system may not be such a bad idea
> after all. Especially if mid heating season you have been developing
> dry skin problems and are zapping the cat and your computer.
>
> Don
>
> Greg Reyneke wrote:
> >
> > Greetings Stampers
> >
> > I've been lurking a long time and learning a lot.
> >
> > I'm ready to build a project for my furnace to remind me to change the
1-year filter on my humidifier.
> > I'd like to have a simple circuit that I could reset with a pushbutton that
simply sounds a buzzer/flashes an LED after 1 year.
> >
> > I've been scouring Google, but I can't find anything to steer me in the
right direction.
> >
> > Any ideas ??
> >
> > Thanks a lot
> >
> > Greg
> >
> > [noparse][[/noparse]Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
> > To UNSUBSCRIBE, just send mail to:
> > basicstamps-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> > from the same email address that you subscribed. Text in the Subject and
Body of the message will be ignored.
> >
> >
> > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
> To UNSUBSCRIBE, just send mail to:
> basicstamps-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> from the same email address that you subscribed. Text in the Subject and Body
of the message will be ignored.
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/