cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/45847124
For quite a while I had been longing to measure the waterlevel in my well.
The first attempt with a HC-SR04 failed due to distance (4 meter deep well) and problems of how to mount it in the well. Then I came across the JSN-SR04 sensor. It’s all running on an esp2866 (I found it to have better wifi than the esp32). Several parts re-used from old projects. Added small solar panel to keep it all self contained. Data is sent to homeassistant (mqtt) and a bit of log/debug data to syslog.
Due to circumstances had it been lying on my desk quite a while, but finally, today I was able to install it!
I screwed a drainpipe cap to the lid of the well and mounted the sensor in another. A simple pipe connector in between works like a charm.
I use a bubbler line in my cistern. It has a small air pump that turns on to force air out at the bottom of the tank, and the pressure is measured with an MPX5010. I use the same system on my HERMS brewbot to get liquid level in the kettles, and it’s accurate to about .1L in a 50L kettle.
I read about those but decided this is the easiest way without any mechanicals. Also a pump needs more energy than ultrasound which is an important factor since i have no power there and rely on batteries an solar cell to recharge those