Trident modifications

[Emac909]

So I’ve been pondering and idea in my head all this weekend. Friday night while I was at work I got a notification that my trident was out of reagent A. I get up the next morning and swap out the reagent A and it was still a quarter the way full. My thought was wtf I have to waste all this reagent!
So my thought is what if I can over ride the stock trident reagent fill programming by using a BOB, switches, and some virtual outlet programming.
So I have two ideas.
One I could use float switches and make custom acrylic reagent containers. That would be some what sealable, to eliminate evaporation out of the reagent container. Then use VO and programming to make the trident override the stock fill programming. So that the trident would still test even if the programming says the reagent is empty. But then when the float switch gets triggered it would notify my and turn off that test.
The second idea is to use pressure sensitive switches (like these)

And install them in the bottom on the stock trident tray. I’d have to instead a tiny spring and a plate and figure out the exact tension the spring would need when the reagent is about empty. So that when the reagent is just about empty it opens the switch. Then I’d use the same programming as the other idea.

Idk if many of you know this but the trident does have an advanced programming function like outlets. Did you know that if you really wanted to you could have the trident test once a day. Twice a day would be a better option so that you don’t waste a bottle of reagent A. If you did twice a day programming a 2 month refill kit would last 4 months. Shh don’t let Neptune find out they might get pissed by me sharing this secret.
I can prove it here’s my current trident programming.
Alk only testing

Full trident testing

All I would need to do is delete the 4th line and move the times around on both tests.

 

[jaxcarnage]

It would be nice if Trident just updates the software. When I see the notification I just reset it and give it another week. The only thing I have to remember is adding a reminder on my calendar

 

[jaxcarnage]

Did you set up a VO on the trident

 

[Emac909]

Did you set up a VO on the trident

the VOs would act as switch type outlets that would allow my to override the stock refill shutoff. So no I have not setup any VOs on the trident.

It would be nice if Trident just updates the software. When I see the notification I just reset it and give it another week. The only thing I have to remember is adding a reminder on my calendar

yea for sure. But I’m horrible at remembering things this is why I try to automate everything.

 

[Emac909]

Ok so I tried designing a pressure plate reagents setup. The idea was when the reagents got near empty it would lift a plate that the reagents where sitting on and notify me and apex when that reagent was empty. Well unfortunately I wasn’t able to design something that would be able to sit in the standard trident unit. It was way to thick and the reagents would have been able to fit in the unit.
So I went old school. I installed 3” float switches in each reagent. These switches are wired to a breakout box. I also installed a float switch in my waste collection container and then it fills I get a notification and it shuts off trident and the skimmer.

 

[CoffBoss]

How is this mod working out so far? I’m guessing you haven’t emptied the bottles yet but any feedback otherwise?

I haven’t incorporated a breakout for the digital inputs yet but I’ve been thinking about things I want to add to the apex, this seems like it might make the list.

out of curiosity could you not just use the 1/4 of reagent that is left in the next bottle though? Rather than needing extra switches just combine with the next and deal with the high “empty” level

 

[Emac909]

How to modify the scheduling on trident

First off you can’t not modify the schedule through fusion. You have to log into the IP address back door.

Secondly you need to know what address your trident is on. This is easy to find in fusion when you click on trident in fusion it will direct you to the control screen. The address is on this page.

So there’s to different programs that run in the trident. One is an alk only program and the other is the full test (alk, cal, mag) program. Both of these problems will need to be modified in order to control trident completely.

Side note I ran my trident for 2 months before I modified the testing program. I payed attention to the patterns of alk. I did notice that my alk would climb at night and decrease during the day. Because I run a calcium reactor I was getting the increase at night. So I modified the pH of the calcium reactor during the night. At night the pH of my CalRX goes to pH7.50. Knowing that my tank isn’t consuming at night I decided to eliminate any testing at night. So my first test is at 8am and this is a full test. Then 6 hours later at 2pm I did the alk only test. These two test put my calcium reactor in the desired melt rate range to keep my alk in between 9.5-10dkh. Yea that’s right I made you sit and read my boring programming note

So now to the nitty gritty

Like I said you need to know your address of the trident cause you will replace the XX with that number

Here’s the address for full trident test

http://apex.local/apex/config/outputs/XX_3

See the XX after outlets replace those XX with the address

Here’s the alk only test.

http://apex.local/apex/config/outputs/XX_4

Same as before replace the XX with the address

Now for programming the original trident programming is an OSC code something like this
If osc xxx:xx/xxx:xx/xxx:xx then on
If you what to keep the osc coding and modify the timing to your needs then be my guest. But you do not need to keep the osc coding. I changed mine to the time coding. Mine goes like so
Full trident is
Set off
If time 08:00 to 08:01 then on

Alk only is
Set off
If time 14:00 to 14:01 then on

The trident only needs to turn on for one min to run the full test. You do not need it to stay on for the length of the entire test.

Now I must snap you all away

 

[Emac909]

To add you have to be logged into apex IP address before cut coping the links I provided. If you try to before logging in you will get an error message

 

[Jimbo327]

For those without a Trident, what exactly are you trying to do?

 

[BgFish]

For those without a Trident, what exactly are you trying to do?

so the trident is pre-programmed to test Alk 4x per day and Mag/cal twice a Day. Within the givin program that is your only option. What Emac has done is figure out a work around and reprogram the trident to test less often thus saving reagent.

super cool.

 

[Jimbo327]

That's crazy there isn't an user setting to select the number of tests per day. They really trying to push reagent sales. 4x per day seems excessive, especially on an established tank.

 

[Emac909]

so the trident is pre-programmed to test Alk 4x per day and Mag/cal twice a Day. Within the givin program that is your only option. What Emac has done is figure out a work around and reprogram the trident to test less often thus saving reagent.

super cool.

I would like to clarify that I didn’t find this. I did find the info on R2R. I will admit the gentleman that did post the info on R2R did explain the info in a technical way. So sense I’m just a dumba$$ truck driver I just dumbed down the info so it makes it easier for all of us the benefit from this hack.

 

[Emac909]

That's crazy there isn't an user setting to select the number of tests per day. They really trying to push reagent sales. 4x per day seems excessive, especially on an established tank.

The stock trident testing schedule is something like 4,6,8,10, and 16 times a day testing.
You do need to do testing by 2s tho. Because in a 2 month reagent pack you get 2 bottles of A and 1 of each on B & C. When the trident does a full test it uses a little of each reagent A,B, and C. If you only did full tests then after 2 months you would have an extra bottle of A left over. So by doing an equal amount of full and alk only tests you use up that second bottle of reagent A.
I only do 1 full test and 1 alk test a day. This is cause my calcium reactor is dependent on the alk to put the reactor in the proper pH melt rate. But there is a way to even do less then 2 tests a day. If people really wanted to make the reagents last. They could use the DOW (day of the week) coding to spread the testing out. But I’d feel the reagents my go bad if you stretch them out to fare in time.