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In order to turn aerators on or off or to monitor
their power availability or power usage, an aerator controller is
needed. Aerator controllers do not normally turn aerators on or
off on their own, but rather only do so upon receiving the command
from an OscarDad or an OscarMom. (The only exception here is if
communications is lost and ‘failsafe’ kicks in).
The aerator controller works by attaching to the
start coil of your motor power relay which can also be operated
by an ‘On-Off-Auto’ switch. This means then that your
aerator must have a motor power relay installed that has enough
capacity to turn your aerator off and on. The aerator controller
also senses if power is present and available to the aerator and
senses the amps that are being drawn by the aerator. All of this
information is then made available to the OscarDad or OscarMom.
Aerator controllers communicate with OscarDad or
OscarMom either directly through a wire or by a radio depending
on the proximity to OscarDad or OscarMom. If the aerator controller
is remote and alone, then a wireless radio is used otherwise it
is wired directly to an OscarDad or another aerator controller that
has an attached radio.
Because of the wide variation of aerator and power
configurations that are possible, Oscar offers several options or
alternatives for aerator controllers. They all basically operate
the same and do the same job, but offer better economies based upon
power distribution at the pond. These aerator options are:
- AC-3 Aerator Controller - This option is an add-on
printed circuit that plugs into an OscarDad and it will handle
up to 3 aerators. Therefore to select this option, you must have
an available OscarDad and you can use only one per OscarDad. The
benefit of this option is that you take advantage of the common
cabinet, power and communications that are already available in
the OscarDad. This saves money.
- AC-4 Aerator Controller - This is the newest member
of the Oscar aerator controller family and it allows you to install
the aerator controller directly into your existing or new power
cabinets. This controller will handle up to 4 aerators and is
housed in a water tight box which can be mounted in your power
panel. Also, the AC-4 has the option to include an integral radio
so that the cost of an external radio, if one is needed, is minimized.
Communications to this controller can be ‘cascaded’
to other controllers or to an OscarDad.
- AC-8 Aerator Controller - This controller is typically
housed in its own weather proof cabinet and can handle up to 8
aerators. If needed, the AC-8 can use an external radio or it
can communicate with other AC-8’s, AC-4’s or an OscarDad
using local hard wire communications.
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