hi guys and gals, having installed a ton of aquamist kits, this was the first time i've seen this problem. it is also somewhat unlikely that anyone else has the problem, but i just wanted to get the info out there just in case.

situation:

a guys tank was leaking because i overtightened the float down. because it was leaking, the meth leaked to well below the "empty" point. however, the light never turned on on the guage to indicate that it was low. because he knew it was leaking, he called me right away, and he stayed off the boost which was smart.

after rectifying the float issue, i proceeded to see why the light wasn't turning on. the problem was at the connection of the float and the main harness. the pins in the connecter were not pushed in far enough to make contact (the pins on the main harness side were the ones not pressed in far enough). apparently if the connection is open, the light doesn't turn on (richard can chime in on this).

anyway, i think it is wise to make sure the float connection is secure, so if you have a new kit, or have never run the tank to the point where the low light turns on, i would check to make sure the pins here are touching. if not you may go to boost and not have any fuel.

because the pins in the connector i'm sure are put in by hand on an assembly line, its better to be safe then sorry and check if you have never seen the light turn on.

thanks!

 

Kevin, thanks for pointing out this problem.

The pins of the 2-way connector for the level sensor is indeed asembled manually - human error does occur, we will try to keep mistake to a minimum. We will continue to use the connector rather asking users to joint up the bare wires.

I will include extra lines on the test procedure on the user manual so that this part is tested before the system goes into full operation.

I have a question, if we reverse the wfs (water float sensor) operation where the circuit must be completed before the warning led goes out, would this be better or it causes other problems?

BTW, the latest HFS-xx is shipped with the v9 JB, where failsafe grace period is extended to ~400mS. You can sleep better from now.

 

hey richard, thanks for chiming in.

i was actually thinking the same thing about reversing the operation of the float sensor circuit. i didn't realize that if the sensor wasn't plugged in, the light would never turn on (or a short in the circuit). i would imagine the only way to change this is change the design of the float itself where the switch is closed when the float is up, and open circuit when the float is down.

 

As we speak, we are now shipping v9 boards, The wls no longer interfere with the failsafe, just switching the warning led on.

The v9 will have an 5V output to work directly with tephra's altmap patch. MAC valve is not longer required.

This is such a simple modification, allows you to run an alternative map as well as controlling the boost pressure.

Have you ever consider using the redundant stock BCV inplace of the MAC valve when MBC is used?

 

Richard, this is great news. Just in time for my 2D to HSF-5 upgrade .

 

The tephra "altmap" patch is greatest modification I have encountered over the years. It puts most of the third party piggyback ECU to shame.

Your upgrage will have the v9 board.

 

a very rare problem i'm sure, but having n/o or n/c as tank level
switching is "Six of one, half-dozen of the other"
better is open circuit is a fault
closed circuit is low level
but again its massive fail safe stuff again

 

Set aside user/component assembly fault, the flow sensor will detect an operational fault even the wls is not plugged in.

Human error is not easy to solve.

 

Kevin, so if I understood your post correctly, as long as users HAVE seen the low fluid indicator, they are OK?

 

This is why I just cut and solder everything on my installs. You can never be to carefull when installing an Aquamist system...

Evan Smith

 

Richard L, I've got a brand new, as yet uninstalled HFS-5 kit. Is there any way to upgrade to the v9 before install? Thanks for your reply.

 

Please let me know the serial number of the flow sensor. I need to check if you need to send the Gauge back to me also or not.

Richard

 

Richard - Quick question about this 5v output. How exactly will it function. Will it work like the gold plated contacts where it outputs 5v as soon as the system is turned on and then only drops out if the failsafe kicks in? Or will it only output a 5v signal once the flow sensor sees that meth is flowing inside the window.

I can see the merits for it working each way. It would be nice to only switch maps when the meth is actually flowing. But with that being said switching maps at ~20 psi of boost (average trigger point) is not a good idea as the sudden in change in timing would promote knock.

I think the best way would be for it to output 5v to switch maps once the system is turned on and then to only drop out if there is a failure.

 

Also Richard - might you be able to revise this wiring diagram

http://www.dsm-ezine.com/images/new_...put_evo9v2.bmp

to show how it would work with the DDS3, I am not familiar with zener diodes and I can't figure out if I would simply replace the positive source or if other changes need to be made.

Bump for update from Richard

 

good looks- running out of meth under boost could definatly ruin someones day,week,month even year!!