squiddly August 15, 2007 Share August 15, 2007 Does anyone know if there's any type of contraption that will send an email if tank parameters go wonky? I was thinking about something to use in place of the alarm. An audible alarm plus an email or cell phone call would be great. Anyone got any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phisigs79 August 15, 2007 Share August 15, 2007 you need the serial and the aqua notes to do this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 15, 2007 Author Share August 15, 2007 you need the serial and the aqua notes to do this. There has to be another way. I can't run aqua notes on a mac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phisigs79 August 15, 2007 Share August 15, 2007 pretty sure its the only way. You need it hooked up to something that it can communicate with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 15, 2007 Author Share August 15, 2007 pretty sure its the only way. You need it hooked up to something that it can communicate with. I was hoping for something with bluetooth that would simply send out an alert, without having to send the parameters (I know that my III pro emails me with all the tank parameters when it has a hiccup). It could be some "thing" that, when power is applied, it automatically sends the email or calls the cell phone or something. Yeah, it may not exist, but I want it anyway. Waaaa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 There's no embedded web server like you have on the III's so it has to be hooked up to a computer. Can't you have a DC4 hooked into the ALM plug but has the control cord hooked into the IIIpro? In the event of a hiccup, the ACjr ALM settings turns "ON" the DC4 and the control cord carries the message back to the IIIpro. I can make you a control cord and have had good success with 50' runs. $20 with correctly configured ends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandy7200 August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 Why not just get an expansion module and hook that up to your ACIII. I'm pretty sure that would be the easiest route and sell your ACjr, I bet you would be money ahead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 16, 2007 Author Share August 16, 2007 Why not just get an expansion module and hook that up to your ACIII. I'm pretty sure that would be the easiest route and sell your ACjr, I bet you would be money ahead. Because I figured it would be a lot easier to do it this way rather than running wires across a huge room to control tanks on opposite ends of the room. I just now saw the expansion module. I'm not totally sure how that would actually work, or how that might be 100x more confusing. I wasn't aware you could run cord as long as flowerseller said could be run. Does anyone have the expansion module now and are using it? There's no embedded web server like you have on the III's so it has to be hooked up to a computer. Can't you have a DC4 hooked into the ALM plug but has the control cord hooked into the IIIpro? In the event of a hiccup, the ACjr ALM settings turns "ON" the DC4 and the control cord carries the message back to the IIIpro. I can make you a control cord and have had good success with 50' runs. $20 with correctly configured ends. D'uh... I had no idea you could run a control cord that far. Looking at the new module, the 174.95 is more than I paid for my Jr. And the DC4 is 125.00. Ouchie. I was so hoping there would be an easy way out..... Argh.. why does this have to be so complicated? I'll definitely buy a cord from you, flowerseller, if I can figure out how to justify the additional 125 or 175 cost. Somebody buy my 120 already :-). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandy7200 August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 OK, try this then: Plug a extension cord into a outlet on your acjr and define it as the alarm. Then run that to your ACIII. Define the acIII programing to send an alert if that plug is ON. I am not sure neptune supports conditional programming like this but it only cost and extension cord to find out, and maybe playing with the programming on the ACIII for a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 16, 2007 Author Share August 16, 2007 OK, try this then: Plug a extension cord into a outlet on your acjr and define it as the alarm. Then run that to your ACIII. Define the acIII programing to send an alert if that plug is ON. I am not sure neptune supports conditional programming like this but it only cost and extension cord to find out, and maybe playing with the programming on the ACIII for a bit. Hmmmm... Makes sense. I'll give it a try tomorrow after I've slept off spending the day programming the Jr. Works great, less filling :-). The seahorses are happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 OK, try this then: Plug a extension cord into a outlet on your acjr and define it as the alarm. Then run that to your ACIII. Define the acIII programing to send an alert if that plug is ON. I am not sure neptune supports conditional programming like this but it only cost and extension cord to find out, and maybe playing with the programming on the ACIII for a bit. What would you plug it into on the IIIpro if it's plugged into the ACjr at the other end? You need to have something for the IIIpro to sense. I thought the X1000 was simply about probe expansions and digital inputs like webcams etc. If the DC4 outlets are "ON' but have no power to them then their off and can't send a message. Once the ALM outlet comes on and "powers" the DC4 actually making it "ON", the IIIpro should sense this via the control cord and then send a message. Plus you'll only have a thin little phone cord running around which you can hide. BTW, Mine is a theory and I have not tested this, but, it appears it will cover all the requirements except paying for itself. I believe it will work but you will get the IIIpro's condtions and you will need to be up on your programing of the IIIpro to allow this to "act" as an ALM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandy7200 August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 What would you plug it into on the IIIpro if it's plugged into the ACjr at the other end? You need to have something for the IIIpro to sense. I thought the X1000 was simply about probe expansions and digital inputs like webcams etc. If the DC4 outlets are "ON' but have no power to them then their off and can't send a message. Once the ALM outlet comes on and "powers" the DC4 actually making it "ON", the IIIpro should sense this via the control cord and then send a message. Plus you'll only have a thin little phone cord running around which you can hide. BTW, Mine is a theory and I have not tested this, but, it appears it will cover all the requirements except paying for itself. I believe it will work but you will get the IIIpro's condtions and you will need to be up on your programing of the IIIpro to allow this to "act" as an ALM Dunno, I guess you could plug one of your DC8's into it and reverse the command so alarm on acjr is always on and then OFF for the actual alarm.....can you send a email if one of the DC8's go out? Maybe a socket expansion would be a better alt. to plug the end of the ACjr extention cord into with the same programming. The key to the whole thing (powercord or phone cord with dc4 or socket expansion) is if conditional programming is allowed in the interface. Can it sense when a plug is or is not energized? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhoch August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 Only the unit itself will know if there is a power failure... there is no communication from a dc8/dc4 back to ANY of the control units... So if a circut trips where your dc4 is plugged in the controller unit will know nothing about it. The best way to go is an AC III or an AC III pro for email notifications. The expansions are great and bascially give you the ability to monitor parameters and a 2nd location (I have one on my 40 gallon frag... and a 2nd one as a redundancy on my main tank as well). Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 16, 2007 Author Share August 16, 2007 (edited) Only the unit itself will know if there is a power failure... there is no communication from a dc8/dc4 back to ANY of the control units... So if a circut trips where your dc4 is plugged in the controller unit will know nothing about it. The best way to go is an AC III or an AC III pro for email notifications. The expansions are great and bascially give you the ability to monitor parameters and a 2nd location (I have one on my 40 gallon frag... and a 2nd one as a redundancy on my main tank as well). Dave I have one ACIII Pro and one AC Jr. Theoretically, I don't see where if one tells the Jr. that if alarm state exists, turn on socket on DC8 attached to AC Jr., which would then be plugged into DC8 on III Pro, and if III Pro's socket is on, then alarm and send email. If that makes any sense at all.... Or I may just be out of luck on that front unless there is an X10 module of some sort that, when triggered, fires off an email or an alarm that can be plugged into the Jr's DC8. Edited August 16, 2007 by squiddly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhoch August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 There should be (at least there is with the III) a statment: If ALM THEN <do something like turn a plug off> But I don't know of a way to go from there to telling another unit something. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yauger August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 There has to be another way. I can't run aqua notes on a mac. run this application Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebO...;nplm=TN831LL/A It is the best of both worlds... I'm sure you will love it... I do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 16, 2007 Author Share August 16, 2007 run this application Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebO...;nplm=TN831LL/A It is the best of both worlds... I'm sure you will love it... I do Then there would be the other problem of trying to find some kind of a serial cable that would work with modern macs. There's also something just plain wrong about having to lobotomize my mac with windows. I would have to buy not only Parallels, but a version of Windows which I'm not sure I could ever bring myself to do. Oh the pain.... but thanks for the suggestion :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yauger August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 Then there would be the other problem of trying to find some kind of a serial cable that would work with modern macs. There's also something just plain wrong about having to lobotomize my mac with windows. I would have to buy not only Parallels, but a version of Windows which I'm not sure I could ever bring myself to do. Oh the pain.... but thanks for the suggestion :-) There is a modern conversion for serial cables, also I have a legit copy of widows 2000 which in my opinion is the most stable Microsoft OS to date. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerseller August 16, 2007 Share August 16, 2007 Only the unit itself will know if there is a power failure... there is no communication from a dc8/dc4 back to ANY of the control units...So if a circut trips where your dc4 is plugged in the controller unit will know nothing about it. Dave That's the missing part I couldn't think of. Once it tells the switch to come on, it thinks it's on until it tells it to turn off, then it thinks it's off. Dave's right in that it does not send a message back, just to it. Fun thinking about it working around it though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman August 18, 2007 Share August 18, 2007 You have a wireless hub/router somewhere? Just buy a cheap used computer, put a wireless nic on it and put it behind the tank, use the wireless connection to the network instead of a long wire. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly August 18, 2007 Author Share August 18, 2007 You have a wireless hub/router somewhere? Just buy a cheap used computer, put a wireless nic on it and put it behind the tank, use the wireless connection to the network instead of a long wire. bob I have never been able to get the III to communicate via wireless. My whole house is wireless, but the III just plain refuses. Never got it going. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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