Once you have all of your addresses (I have 5 in my case) you may want to label each sensor with coloured tape, a post it, or a giant flashing light. This ensures that you will remember which one goes where. To wire these guys up is pretty simple, how you choose to make it pretty is up to you. For the basics, hook power up to power, ground to ground and data to data, on top of this you will need to run a 4.7kohm resistor in between power and data as well, Pretty simple stuff. If you are running multiples, it is a good idea to make yourself a circuit board that will distribute all of your wires down to one connection to go back to the main board. Now you have it built, time to make it pretty.

In my case I want a modular and easily replaceable way to connect temp sensors to a sensor box. This way if one fails, isn’t needed or I need more they are plug and play when it comes time to the physical install. To do this I have enlisted the help of a very common connector, the TRS connector. A TRS connector is also what is commonly known as a headphone jack, while in a headphone the wires are used as left, right and ground. In my case they will be power, data and ground. Nice and simple and it keeps it pretty. TRS connectors are also ideal because of the extremely low cost and wide selection of options. Now I just need to find some nice 3 conductor wire to run to the sensors, and a nice way to waterproof them.

The code (that someone else smarter than me made) that is available actually brings light to how simple it is to program one of these bad boys (or five) into your controller.

// This Arduino sketch reads DS18B20 “1-Wire” digital
// temperature sensors.
// Tutorial:
// http://www.hacktronics.com/Tutorials/arduino-1-wire-tutorial.html

#include <OneWire.h>
#include <DallasTemperature.h>
#include <LiquidCrystal.h>

// Connections:
// rs (LCD pin 4) to Arduino pin 12
// rw (LCD pin 5) to Arduino pin 11
// enable (LCD pin 6) to Arduino pin 10
// LCD pin 15 to Arduino pin 13
// LCD pins d4, d5, d6, d7 to Arduino pins 5, 4, 3, 2
LiquidCrystal lcd(12, 11, 10, 5, 4, 3, 2);

int backLight = 13; // pin 13 will control the backlight

// Data wire is plugged into pin 8 on the Arduino
#define ONE_WIRE_BUS 8

// Setup a oneWire instance to communicate with any OneWire devices
OneWire oneWire(ONE_WIRE_BUS);

// Pass our oneWire reference to Dallas Temperature.
DallasTemperature sensors(&oneWire);

// Assign the addresses of your 1-Wire temp sensors.
// See the tutorial on how to obtain these addresses:
// http://www.hacktronics.com/Tutorials/arduino-1-wire-address-finder.html

DeviceAddress insideThermometer = { 0×28, 0x3C, 0xF2, 0xA7, 0×02, 0×00, 0×00, 0xCB };
DeviceAddress outsideThermometer = { 0×28, 0×20, 0×04, 0xA8, 0×02, 0×00, 0×00, 0x4D };

Add more here if you want more than two sensors

void setup(void)
{
// Start up the library
sensors.begin();
// set the resolution to 10 bit (good enough?)
sensors.setResolution(insideThermometer, 10);
sensors.setResolution(outsideThermometer, 10);

Dont forget to add another line here for more sensors

pinMode(backLight, OUTPUT);
digitalWrite(backLight, HIGH); // turn backlight on. Replace ‘HIGH’ with ‘LOW’ to turn it off.
lcd.begin(16,2); // columns, rows. use 16,2 for a 16×2 LCD, etc.
lcd.clear(); // start with a blank screen
}

void printTemperature(DeviceAddress deviceAddress)
{
float tempC = sensors.getTempC(deviceAddress);
if (tempC == -127.00) {
lcd.print(“Error”);
} else {
lcd.print(tempC);
lcd.print(“/”);
lcd.print(DallasTemperature::toFahrenheit(tempC));
}
}

void loop(void)
{
delay(2000);
sensors.requestTemperatures();
lcd.setCursor(0,0);
lcd.print(“In: “);
printTemperature(insideThermometer);
lcd.setCursor(0,1);
lcd.print(“Out: “);
printTemperature(outsideThermometer);

again, duplicate these to display more on screen. 
}

I also recommend changing the name of all of the sensors so that you can easily identify where they go. I would like to think that there will be an easier way of adding sensors at some point, but I dont have my hopes up just yet.

-Float switch x4

-Temp sensor x6

-ENC28j60 ethernet module x1

-DS1307 Real time clock x1

-1/4w resistors (1k, 10k, 100k) x100 of each

-atmega 1280-16au x1

-5v 8 channel relay board x1

-HD44780 20×4 LCD x1

-2N2222 transistor x10

-PH Probe x1

-Opto isolated relay board x2

-10 contact idc socket connector x4

-10 pin shrouded male header x1

-BNC female panel mount x5

-10 conductor ribbon cable 5Meters

-piezo buzzer x1

-assortment of hex standoffs for mounting

-50x 3w 20k white

-50x 3w 455nm RB

-16x aluminium pcb (holds 6leds each)

-16 ft 1.5×3/4 aluminium U channel

-6ft 3/4″ aluminium L channel

-solder down ATX connectors

-5x bread board

-a piss ton of male and female pin headers

-solder down 10k pot’s

Features List

SENSORS

Temp

-Sump

-Auto shut off heater if too high, Sound siren

-indicator light for siren

-Lights

-Temp per strip, auto shut off if too high, control fans to regulate temperature, siren if too high

-indicator light for siren

PH

-Sump

-Monitor, Siren if too high/low

-indicator light for siren

Salinity

-Sump

-Monitor, Siren if too high/low

-indicator light for siren

Water levels

-Sump low

-activate top up for x seconds or until top sensor trigger

-Sump high

-deactivate top up

-Sump emerg level

-deactivate protein skimmer, sound siren

-indicator light for siren

-ATO bucket

-siren if too low, kill top up function

-indicator light for siren

*MEDICATION PUMPS

Iodine

-activate for x seconds daily at x time

-manual override button for priming

Kalkwasser

-activate for x seconds daily at x time

-manual override button for priming

Extra 1

-to be determined

-manual override button for priming

Extra 2

-to be determined

-manual override button for priming

FEED BUTTON

kill all pumps/powerheads for 10 mins then restart

RESET BUTTON

resets system after siren

SILENCE BUTTON

silence alarm for 1 hour

AUTO TOP OFF

-when low, add water until full sensor or x minutes (in case of sensor failure)

-when high, kill pump from ato

-manual override button

*AUTO WATER CHANGE

-manual button to control

-Kill all pumps and power heads

-Auto drain for x minutes (drain to external drain line)

-Auto top up from saltwater source for x minutes(Pre mix barrel)

POWER CONTROL MODULE

-Switched outputs (10A)

-Heater

-Lights

-Pump

-Powerheads

-Skimmer

-Refugium Light

-ATO Pump

-Non switched outputs

-GFO Pump

-Carbon Filter Pump

-Power supply for system (control panel, brain, etc…)

NETWORK OUTPUT

-Output to internet based source that will compile data into 24h, 1d and 30d graphs

-PH

-SALINITY

-Temp (tank/lights)

-Top up (water used)

-Dosing (various chems)

It wasn’t long before the internet gods helped me stumble across aquarium controllers. There are many well made, well featured systems on the market that will save me hours a week in testing, light controls, chemical dosing and water testing. Great! Sign me up! oh wait, they are over a thousand bucks by the time you are all set up. As a lowly retail worker, I can’t afford this. But this is where the internet gods shine again, I’ve now found a group of like minded (though significantly smarter than I) individuals that share my expense woes. These people are building their own controllers at a fraction of the cost. The catch, these builds are highly hands on as you will be building your own circuit boards, soldering your connections, writing your codes to program the unit, etc… Well this is going to be a lot of work, but hell, we will have fun with it and learn along the way. Heck, I might even learn a thing or two.

Well now it is time to write myself a list and figure out what the hell I want this thing to do for me.