Hi, Guys
New here and don't have any experience with PLC's. Do have electronics and electrical background, so that may help me. I can make machines do what I want with relays and switches but never got into using PLC's. So I was just looking for some advice.
What I would like to do is to control a 5000 gallon tank for my personal irrigation system with a PLC. Monitor the tank level and flow rates, turn valves on and off, start and stop the pump should a low level alarm triggers. Otherwise the pump is controlled by the irrigation timer.
I can buy a flowline controller to control the level of the tank with inputs from the high, medium and low level sensors. It would trigger a valve to start filling the tank when the water level gets down to the medium sensor and turn off the pump if the level should drop to the low sensor before the pump runs out of water. Then shut off the fill valve when the level reaches the high sensor.
But I wanted to take it one step further. I wanted to monitor the flow rates of the pump and the flow rate of the tank fill. Have the PLC then cycle the fill valve if the pump flow rate is less than the fill flow rate only if the pump is running.
Once my irrigation cycle is completed the PLC would count the fill rate until it reaches 300 gallons then shut off the valve for 2 hours and then start the process again, until the tank is full. So I don't over tax my well, since the well is a community well feeding 5 houses in my sub division.
So basically if the pump is running the tank will fill continuously, unless the pump is using water at a rate lower than the fill rate. Then it would cycle the fill rate. Once the pump shuts off the tank will fill at 300 gallon per cycles resting for 2 hours between cycles until the tank is full.
I was also thinking it would be nice to have the PLC giving me a read out of flows of each sensors, pump and valve status, tank levels on a monitor screen or HMI. Maybe I’m going a little over board here.
I know it’s getting a little complicated. The problem I have is not knowing what kind of PLC and modules I need also programming the PLC. I don't have access to software to program a controller. I don’t want to purchase software just for one job, so is there a simple solution. I can purchase the PLC and modules on Ebay so maybe it would not be to expensive to start with.
Would I be able to hire a firm for a small job like this, setting up the controller to read flows and do the programming if I wire everything myself? Or is there a way for me to do everything myself?
Anyone have any ideas?
New here and don't have any experience with PLC's. Do have electronics and electrical background, so that may help me. I can make machines do what I want with relays and switches but never got into using PLC's. So I was just looking for some advice.
What I would like to do is to control a 5000 gallon tank for my personal irrigation system with a PLC. Monitor the tank level and flow rates, turn valves on and off, start and stop the pump should a low level alarm triggers. Otherwise the pump is controlled by the irrigation timer.
I can buy a flowline controller to control the level of the tank with inputs from the high, medium and low level sensors. It would trigger a valve to start filling the tank when the water level gets down to the medium sensor and turn off the pump if the level should drop to the low sensor before the pump runs out of water. Then shut off the fill valve when the level reaches the high sensor.
But I wanted to take it one step further. I wanted to monitor the flow rates of the pump and the flow rate of the tank fill. Have the PLC then cycle the fill valve if the pump flow rate is less than the fill flow rate only if the pump is running.
Once my irrigation cycle is completed the PLC would count the fill rate until it reaches 300 gallons then shut off the valve for 2 hours and then start the process again, until the tank is full. So I don't over tax my well, since the well is a community well feeding 5 houses in my sub division.
So basically if the pump is running the tank will fill continuously, unless the pump is using water at a rate lower than the fill rate. Then it would cycle the fill rate. Once the pump shuts off the tank will fill at 300 gallon per cycles resting for 2 hours between cycles until the tank is full.
I was also thinking it would be nice to have the PLC giving me a read out of flows of each sensors, pump and valve status, tank levels on a monitor screen or HMI. Maybe I’m going a little over board here.
I know it’s getting a little complicated. The problem I have is not knowing what kind of PLC and modules I need also programming the PLC. I don't have access to software to program a controller. I don’t want to purchase software just for one job, so is there a simple solution. I can purchase the PLC and modules on Ebay so maybe it would not be to expensive to start with.
Would I be able to hire a firm for a small job like this, setting up the controller to read flows and do the programming if I wire everything myself? Or is there a way for me to do everything myself?
Anyone have any ideas?
