Pentair RS-485 Connections within automation panel

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liddown

liddown

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Oct 23, 2018
21
Sun Lakes, AZ
Hi All,

I have a question for you Pentair Automation experts... I am on a venture to update my Pool/Spa time clock to full automation. I am wanting to go with the Pentair EasyTouch/IntelliTouch system. I do have a new (one year old )Intelliflo pump which I would like to interface with the panel using the RS-485 "smart" control connection. I also notice that some of the Spa controls, wireless adapters, and more importantly the ScreenLogic2 pieces also seem to connect to the RS-485 connection... If that is the case it looks like the EasyTouch is out as it only has one connection. The IntelliTouch i7 & i9 both appear to have two RS-485 connections... So, am I correct that if I want ScreenLogic2 and full control of my Intelliflo pump that my only choice is and IntelliTouch i7 or i9?


Thanks in advance for any education you can provide this Noob!
 
An Easytouch (either 8 or 4 relay system) with a built in SWCG power (IC40? - need size of pool) and Screenlogic2 will suffice with only one pump.

Fill out your signature and post a picture of your equipment pad for others to chime in on.
 
Even simpler than the expansion board, you can simply make a "pigtail" cable to connect to the com port, and connect as many devices as you like to the pigtail. In other words, one com port can handle all your devices wired in parallel.
 
This is how I handled that issue (as did my ET installer). There is a recommended limit to how many wires you can cram into any one hole of that connector, but it's more than one. As long as all the wires are making a good electrical connection, every thing will work. The more wires you cram in, the iffier that becomes. Personally, I would solder and/or wire-nut wires together, then run one into the connector, before I'd pay $60 for a $3 part!

I have an indoor controller which I hardwired to my ScreenLogic interface, and then ran a wire from there to the ET. I also have a pump, a SWG and an IntellipH wired up, too. So that's one set of wires at the indoor controller, two sets at the ScreenLogic interface, and three sets at the ET, all jammed into one connector at each device. The SWG connects to the IpH, which then runs on to the ET. I don't know how many devices you can run off of one ET, but they can all be connected to one port, as long as the connection is sound, electrically.

Or, yes, buy the part and that'll solve it the Pentair-way...

Welcome to TFP. Come for the electrical advice, stay for the water balancing advice. If you haven't already, check out what we do here, you'll be glad you did!
 
lid,

Do you plan to get a SWCG? If so, the EasyTouch with built in Salt System Power supply, also has two additional RS-485 ports..

I too recommend connecting all the RS-485 inputs together with wire nuts or solder and then just running small jumper wires to the RS-485 port itself.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
More importantly... liddown -

It sounds like you're doing some research and due diligence. That's me, normally, but for my pool stuff I skipped that and trusted my pool guy. Huuuuuge mistake. I now have an expensive automation controller that doesn't fit my needs. And I ended up with boxes all over my wall, not knowing there could have been one, clean-looking box for everything. You want what Jim is recommending (post #6), all in one. DO NOT purchase an EasyTouch PSL4 or PL4, they are hobbled by Pentair to provide a cheaper alternative, but they are woefully inadequate, even for a simple pool like mine, and they don't contain your breakers or your transformers or anything else.

Do what I should have: plot out exactly what you want to automate, after understanding fully what is possible, then "add a few" for the things you haven't thought of yet, and then buy the controller that can handle it all. For example, if mine had the capability, I could have connected the landscape lighting, the bug zapper, the bistro lights, etc. It's not just about the pool equipment, you can automate your whole yard, and run it all from your phone. Now some of that can be better handled by Home Automation, but the point is: visualize your entire setup, now and in the future (as much as you can), and buy the gear that best fits your need. Don't find out later that you bought the wrong pool controller, as I have.
 

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Thanks Dirk... Completely agree... After looking at the different manufacturers and their capabilities, I had landed on the ET8 giving me some additional relays to play with. The original 10K gallon saltwater pool and spa are really on a time clock and manual switches (there are automated valves for Spa operation), a Minimax Plus 400 Heater, and a very large Pentair Cartridge Filter. ?There is a pump for a water feature, the spa pump, and of course the filter pump Intelliflo VS (which was just replaced before I bought the house). The salt system was also replaced with a new Hayward controller and T-Cell... I know I can switch over to Hayward and use an interface for the VS pump to select four speeds, but I am thinking that the Pentair automation systems are better on the integration and remote control side.... But YES research is the key... I suspect that Pentair would prefer for me to hire a "trained" pool expert, thus my having to dig to get the right specs... I had not realized that RS-485 was a common buss architecture, so life and decisions just got a lot easier :)
 
Well, common buss to Pentair gear, not the other brands. Bummer about the Hayward T-Cell. The Pentair SWGs are controllable by the ET. Something to sort out while you plan.

It's the ET8 I should have purchased, but not so much for the relays. I have a separate breaker box, which I hate, and a separate transformer box. Yech. But it's the scheduling that I'm mostly short on. I can only have four programmed pump speeds, and four schedules (which include the egg timers, so four total). I could make use of a dozen schedules/egg timers. Familiarize yourself about egg timers, and then see if you can determine how many schedules and timers you might want, and which brands and models can deliver.

You can keep it simple, or go hog wild. I'm a hog:

Filter speed (once or twice a day/night)
Skimmer speed (once or twice a day/night)
Cleaner speed
Solar speed
Heater speed
Freeze-protection speed

Plus schedules for each and egg timers for skimmer, cleaner and heater. Plus a schedule and an egg timer for the light.

That's over a dozen schedules and egg timers just for the pool, not counting what I could use in my yard. And I don't have a spa, so add for that if you do.

Now, my pool runs fine with two schedules, one for filter mode, one for cleaner mode, and an egg timer for skimmer mode. So three total. So technically the ET "L" series does have a user base. I'm just not one of them...
 
Don't forget about the new IntelliCenter. Just released. I think Pentair designed it for people who can't quite figure out how to spend enough money on Pentair's older systems! ;)
 
the intellitouch gives you "features", which basically makes 1 button press do multiple things (only the i7/9/10 have this, i5 does not)... so you could have a button labeled "let her rip" and it could turn on the pool waterfall, fire up the spa, set your intellibrite to orange, start the fountain, and shoot off a cannon if you felt like it. i think it's overrated.

i've got an intellitouch i5 that came with the house... the intellitouch indoor controller is way easier to use than the easytouch 4-line display but i like that the easy touch has a redundant display at the outdoor panel. screenlogic is the easiest way to program either system
 
The IntelliTouch can control the T cell and I believe the EasyTouch can as well.

I have an IT and a T cell on my own pool and the two integrate nicely. Both are controlled by ScreenLogic.

The macro capability of the IT is a nice thing to have as well.
 
bdavis466 said:
The IntelliTouch can control the T cell and I believe the EasyTouch can as well.

I have an IT and a T cell on my own pool and the two integrate nicely. Both are controlled by ScreenLogic.
Click to expand...

Oh, my bad, I didn't know that. Thanks. So that's good news for the OP!
 
Hi Brian,

Thanks...!

Do you happen to have any wiring info or source for connecting a T-Cell to and IntelliTouch?





bdavis466 said:
The IntelliTouch can control the T cell and I believe the EasyTouch can as well.

I have an IT and a T cell on my own pool and the two integrate nicely. Both are controlled by ScreenLogic.

The macro capability of the IT is a nice thing to have as well.
Click to expand...
 

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