Thunderbirds are go…

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Paul in Essex
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Paul in Essex »

Davey246 wrote: Fri Dec 03, 2021 6:35 pm Not really - I was heavily involved with BCSS, including articles in the journal unil maybe 15 years ago. Then life went tits-up and I have not rejoined.

I know what I am talking about, otherwise I do not talk. Quite simple. So far as heating etc, is concerned, there is an article in past jounals by me and a colaborator who asked for my help. I also spent quite some while in industrial heating/ventilation etc. I also build (egg) incubators that make this sort of thing look very, very amateur.

The Inkbird stuff is so amateurish that it gets listed as Inkbird but carries the logo Ink Bird.........................
Yes, it is patently clear you know what you're talking about. What isn't quite so clear is why you are being so unpleasant - I guess you choose to be that way.
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Davey246
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Davey246 »

Paul in Essex wrote: Fri Dec 03, 2021 8:22 pm Yes, it is patently clear you know what you're talking about. What isn't quite so clear is why you are being so unpleasant - I guess you choose to be that way.
You are confused again - unpleasant as opposed to factual. Unpleasant because I point out the flaws in what has become commonly accepted gospel truth perhaps? Unpleasant because of the way in which you choose to read and interpret what I write? What I have written is unemotional and basic facts.

My whole life has been based in science and that means writing on subjects like this as a string of bare truths, simple facts. Maybe if I flowered it up it would be more digestible? Not going to happen though, for sure :wink: :smile:
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Stuart
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Stuart »

My Inkbird thermostats are ITC-308, currently £33 at Amazon, I've just checked on them and the current temperature shows the same as on my old type mercury max/min thermometers which I've had for ages so it looks like they're both wrong.

Stuart
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Paul in Essex
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Paul in Essex »

That's because you are either 'blind, or at least the very easily led/bamboozled/conned/confused' Stuart. Whichever is appropriate. Just like the rest of us poor mortals. :lol:
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Mike P
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Mike P »

Ok thanks Stuart. I must say of the 6 or so mim maxes I have dotted around the place some are somewhat wayward….or more accurate! I have had to carry out maintenance on some of the very old ones as the plastic has become very brittle with age. When I emptied my fathers greenhouses I salvaged the 1970’s one finding them a lot easier to read than the modern non mercury ones…..
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el48tel
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by el48tel »

I think I'd trust a mercury min-max rather than an alcohol one, but neither respond favourably should they become knocked and the thread broken.
I'm intrigued to learn where the adjustable bimetallic strips are located in my InkBird and KK-Moon kits. I seem to recall from the specification that the sensors are semiconductor.
I would love to know what some of our forefathers would say, since they probably bothered with neither thermometry methods, favouring how the air felt, and opening doors and vents accordingly.
Endeavouring to grow Aylostera, Echinocereus, Echinopsis, Gymnocalycium, Matucana, Rebutia, and Sulcorebutia. Fallen out of love with Lithops and aggravated by Aeoniums.
Currently being wooed by Haworthia, attempting hybridisation, and enticed by Mesembs.
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Pattock
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Pattock »

Davey246 wrote: Fri Dec 03, 2021 4:59 pm
A thermostat that is switching 5-6 times per hour is very likely a joke in terms of temperature control.
Is that too often or not often enough?

I would have thought that once every ten minutes was about right. Any more often and the heater fan would not be on long enough to mix the air thoroughly in the space to be heated. Any less often and the temperature in chilly corners could swing too far.

I have soldered the cable from a case fan to a phone charger but anything more complicated than that would be beyond me. I prefer to buy my temperature controllers ready-made with a warranty. The plants seem fine.
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el48tel
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by el48tel »

Pattock wrote: Sat Dec 04, 2021 2:38 pm
Davey246 wrote: Fri Dec 03, 2021 4:59 pm
A thermostat that is switching 5-6 times per hour is very likely a joke in terms of temperature control.
Is that too often or not often enough?

I would have thought that once every ten minutes was about right. Any more often and the heater fan would not be on long enough to mix the air thoroughly in the space to be heated. Any less often and the temperature in chilly corners could swing too far.

I have soldered the cable from a case fan to a phone charger but anything more complicated than that would be beyond me. I prefer to buy my temperature controllers ready-made with a warranty. The plants seem fine.
Since the InkBird and KKMoon (other names and labels are available) are designed to maintain microbrewery and reptilian (and other micro environments) where close temperatures are essential, I would think that the size of the time interval was an irrelevancy. I would think that maintaining the environment at as near to the specified temperature, was more important. But then .... I'm a mortal too. So Pattock ... I'm with you on that.
Endeavouring to grow Aylostera, Echinocereus, Echinopsis, Gymnocalycium, Matucana, Rebutia, and Sulcorebutia. Fallen out of love with Lithops and aggravated by Aeoniums.
Currently being wooed by Haworthia, attempting hybridisation, and enticed by Mesembs.
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Stuart
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by Stuart »

I've set all my Inkbirds to come on at 3.5C and switch off at 5.5C. I've not timed how long it takes to raise the temperature on the staging level by 2C or how long it takes the greenhouses to cool down again again to turn them on again but the heaters are rarely on for long when I'm in the greenhouse and the heating bills seem quite reasonable. All electric heaters have a differential but the built in ones seem to be much higher than the control capabilities set by the Inkbirds. I could have set the differential at 1C but the current setting seems to work OK. Most other greenhouse heaters seem to have a much higher differential, it's OK to come on at 4C but not if it doesn't turn off until 8 or 9C and I'm using unnecessary electricity. If the Inkbirds have any drawbacks, it's that they can't be used for heaters over 2kw and I take them out of the greenhouse during the summer as I don't know how the plastic casing would stand up to strong sunlight. If they're made from the same polypropylene as BEF pots then there wouldn't be a problem.

Stuart
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habanerocat
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Re: Thunderbirds are go…

Post by habanerocat »

The app on the wifi version gives you a historical temperature trend chart which gives a fairly good indication as to how your system is performing.
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