Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

[WSullivan]

Ok people!, here is the link to download the new and improved Step By Step Guide on installing and running a PID in a Silvia, it covers all the gear needed, including where to get it from, right through the full install and finishing off with tuning the PID to your liking, its about 30 pages long and around 38Mb, it is in a PDF format with heaps of pictures and information from start to finish

New link compliments of miamichillin99: http://www.mediafire.com/file/ygnhcnhaggzhbew

I hope you find it beneficial and will welcome any suggestions or problems.

cheers and enjoy!
WSully

[WSullivan]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Please let me know if youve downloaded it and if you have any questions about the guide, if you have any ideas on viable improvements. im keen to get some feedback on the guide.....
cheers ladies and gents
wsully

[sdg]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Hi Sully,

downloaded your excellent guide back in June; you made it look easy enough that I was immediately inspired to dive in! (like, "how hard can it be?"  : ). The emphasis on "no drilling or hacking" was a major selling point for me. So was rather hoping to be back with feedback/queries way before now. Alas its taking a while for our el-cheapo pid to swim here from China (grrr). (Picked one that seemed to match the one in the guide, but seems theres multiple suppliers of these things..)

At least now theyre actually claiming tove posted it, so hopes are high... well let you know how it goes  

But one immediate query, now I look thru it again -- hows the double-sided tape holding up? Silvia gets pretty warm...

Cheers, Simone

[WSullivan]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Hey simone!,
Im so glad you found the guide useful and are doing the mod yourself!, hope your pid comes soon!
As for the Double sided tape, the 3M stuff did not work too well, so i went to bunnings and got some heavy duty stuff, its black with a green removable backing, and about 20mm wide, it works a treat, rock solid! The problem with the 3M stuff was more me than the tape, i hold onto the PID enclosure when removing the PF, putting more pressure on it, but with the new tape.....not a problem, oh and also dont forget to heat shrink all your connections to the boiler wires to protect them well, i am going to add it to the guide, just havent gotten around to it yet, feel free to ask me any other questions along the way!
cheers
wsully

[sdg]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Woo-hoo! My slow boat from China has finally berthed! Project for tomorrow -- Silvia look out...

[sdg]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Whew -- done... (last night)... now tuning (1st attempt doesnt seem tove been entirely satisactory). Further comments will follow in a bit...  

<later> oh-oh -- looks like my co-conspirator is writing a full report    Ill leave him to it...

For my part (thatd currently be the coffee-making and drinking part) all seems to be going well -- Ill probably need to up my setpoint a little, and as noted in the guide the auto-tuned values dont quite cut it as regards recovery time; I could play with them further, OR I could go straight to the final values as sussed out by Warren -- decisions, decisions  :

Main changes -- the PID pictured in the guide can indeed be squeezed (just) into the next size down enclosure (so we did); the TC was attached under the LH brew thermostat screw (this was where I had it for gronking, as suggested in that thread), and it was deemed necessary to drill (eek!) one small hole in the panel that the SSR was attached to, to make totally sure it wouldnt move  :-?

Re the guide itself -- we had it open on the laptop next to proceedings; this works really well (can see the pix and save those forests!), but using a long doc for reference really appreciates bookmarks imho (I bookmarked the 9 steps in my copy; very handy)

And the distillation of the autotuning procedure for this PID was gold -- I am eternally grateful I didnt have to figure that out from the instruction sheet that came with it  

Excellent work Warren, and thanks!  [smiley=tekst-toppie.gif]

[PDP11]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Hi,

Would you like all my thoughts in their gory detail here, or maybe just mailed?

Regards,
Garry

[A_M]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Hi,

Would you like all my thoughts in their gory detail here, or maybe just mailed?

Regards,
Garry

I would suggest you e-mail all the issues etc as per the document and his addy..

Maybe post a summary here ?


For me... I am anal and while I do not have a pid or Silvia....

1: Year / Model needs to identified as there could be slight changes.

2: No Bookmarks :-?

3: No page numbers

4: No links to other resources :-/

5: No footer / header

6: Additional warnings need to be added / embedded in the footer as teh Electrical safety.

Even if you do all the work non energised... Before it is plugged in, it is required to be tested.. A short or other mistakes could just blow the cct... Worse case... We do not want to go there.

[PDP11]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Installation completed yesterday and we are currently tuning the PID. Ill skip the installation details/photos. The PID can be easily squeezed into the HB-6011 if you do things in the right sequence. There are a number of ways of improving electrical safety, found some errors in the current instructions, and have some suggestions. Ive sent my thoughts via email as suggested.

Regards,
Garry

[WSullivan]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

cheers for the feedback ppl, i will review the suggestions and change the guide as appropriate.

Although, as i stated at the start of the guide, i am far from an expert, this was my attempt to help people out and hopefully introduce new members to CS through a google search, there isnt too much specific info out there on this install, so ill try and figure out how to bookmark it, and put in page numbers and upload it again, your a hard crowd to please , with even more warnings about the bad things electricity can and will do

Thankyou Simone for the compliments, im glad i could help you out.

[A_M]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

cheers for the feedback ppl, i will review the suggestions and change the guide as appropriate.

Although, as i stated at the start of the guide, i am far from an expert, this was my attempt to help people out and hopefully introduce new members to CS through a google search, there isnt too much specific info out there on this install, so ill try and figure out how to bookmark it, and put in page numbers and upload it again, your a hard crowd to please , with even more warnings about the bad things electricity can and will do

Thankyou Simone for the compliments, im glad i could help you out.

Dont rush... A valiant effort and when ya pop over, bring the master doc on a usb stick..

You will be provided with some Apps training :-) Word and Adobe...

Now to find a guru in Access :-)

[WSullivan]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

no worries AM, cheers, hey whats teh go with the get together on the 9th, still all go go?

[A_M]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

no worries AM, cheers, hey whats teh go with the get together on the 9th, still all go go?

Yep... Why... Is there a problem ?

[WSullivan]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Nah AM, ill be there with bells on : and clothes

[PDP11]

Re: Step by Step Guide - Install PID in a Silvia.

Just put another thermocouple into Silvia at the same location as the PIDs thermocouple so we can capture readings on the laptop. With Silvia cold Ive noticed the PID reading a few degrees low compared to one of my Digital Multimeters. Maybe a problem with the reference junctions not being correct so leaving things to settle over the next couple of hours and Ill recheck with a couple of different DMMs.

Interested to know if anyone has seen PID temperature reading errors. Ive installed it into the smaller Jiffy box and there maybe a problem with the heat inside the plastic box causing temperature reading errors. A few Watts dissipated inside a small, insulated plastic box can be a significant temperature rise. Hope I dont have to drill holes for cooling. Although if the PID reference junction temperature is hot the reading should be high. Other possibilities are the thermocouple junction repair with ordinary Tin/Lead solder maybe wrong (dont know if the bead has to be silver soldered or something else special), or just a calibration problem and/or they dont bother to temperature compensate in a cheap Chinese PID.

All a bit of a mystery at the moment.

Regards,
Garry