weary flicker
I have sump pump that discharges water from my crawl-space humidifier. Data I would like to collect:
a) when it's a running/pumping,
b)how much water it's ejecting.
Any specific recommendations on this?
I'm interested in the data, particularly (a), but I'm not so interested that I'm going to invest a lot of money in it.
tacit quiver
Depends what you already have available.
Simplest and cheapest power monitoring will depend on the exact setup, if the pump just plugs into a socket, then a smart plug would suffice to give you a power reading that can easily be turned into on/off. If it's wired in, then most "smart switches" that you can wire in line come with power monitoring. For a DIY solution then a CT clamp with an esp32 is probably about $10 from aliexpress
For flow monitoring, that's harder, most things you can interface with are expensive. I would treat it like a tank level (pressure or ultrasonic water height sensing) and work out flowrate from how the level is changing. Would go well with the DIY ct clamp as you could use the same ESP32 to measure the water level as the power. The downside of this is if the pump is running while the sump is being filled, it will slightly under-read flow
acoustic creek
Don't get a cheap smart plug for this. it WILL burn out, due to the inductive load.
I use Zooz Zen 15s to monitor and control my ACs, they are also rated for Sum pumps
vagrant zinc
I agree with @acoustic creek
I STRONGLY discourage you to use a smart plug for that if the plug fails - due to whatever reason - you will cause water damage. Happened to a coworker of mine - the plug didn't even fail, the relay was off after a power outage
weary flicker
If (and I think it is) plugged into an outlet, is there a better way to just monitor when it's on vs off (a current sensor that is not inline)?
weary flicker
I agree with <@156149779443875840>
I STRONGLY discourage you to use a smart plug...
You say you agree with Maxi1134 (who recommends a specific smart plug), but then strongly discourage the use of a smart plug. This confuses me. Please clarify. Thank you.
vagrant zinc
You say you agree with Maxi1134 (who recommends a specific smart plug), but then...
You're right, sorry. I was reading their message wrong and overlooked the word "cheap". My recommendation is to not get plugs with built-in relays for any critical appliance that needs power 24/7 like fridges, freezers and sump pumps.
I would recommend a relay-less plug like this: https://de.athom.tech/blank-1/no-relay-consumption-monitoring-eu-plug-for-esphome
Even if the electronics of the plug fail the sump pump still will be able to operate
gray otter
If (and I think it is) plugged into an outlet, is there a better way to just mon...
There are CT clamp power/energy monitoring systems that are not inline and have no effect on the pump being able to run. If the pump is on its own circuit, you could use something like iotawatt at the breaker panel to monitor the circuit, or something similar at the pump site if it is a shared circuit
tacit quiver
You could also look if the pump's water level trigger has extra contacts you can use to monitor it.
vagrant zinc
This also seems to qualify, right? https://www.amazon.com/Shelly-1-Channel-Autom...
yes, that one looks good
