I'm kind of new here, so excuse me you've already got this idea.
Here is the most basic Hoselock automatic timer (~$50-60 / 30 UKP);
Here's the pro digital version (~$80-90 / 46 UKP);
Okay, go to the dump, rip the top off a washing machine and look for where the hoses come in at the back, where you'll find the electronically controlled solenoids that let the water in;
There'll be black rubber hoses attached on the inside and one solenoid may feed more than one internal hose, or two might be mounted together in one block. There's usually three. Whatever, remove them.
Notice that they have a hose barb almost exactly the same diameter as garden hose and that the screw thread on the back happens to be the same size as is found on garden hose taps. Buy one of these, screw it on;
For the built in hose barb, it's not a super tight fit like the normal hydroponic barbs, so for this one connection I'd coat it in epoxy and grip the shit out of it with ziplocks behind the barb.
The valve has the added plus of featuring a built in water filter.
They're designed to handle higher than mains water pressure with years and years of sharp, water tight switching on a daily basis, so they could easily be used for things like switching on and off drip irrigators, mains fed misters or refilling tanks. Never seen one fail, whatever you get from a dumped machine will probably still work fine and the chances of all three having broken is next to zero.
There's usually some molded bracket as part of the valve so you can screw or epoxy into into one of those electronic project boxes or a mains enclosure from the hardware store.
The solenoids are opened by 110 / 240v respectively (whichever you live in). The electronics is as complicated as connecting the two wires to the live and neutral (NOT EARTH) of a plug socket. It's AC, so there's no + or - to think about.
Plug it into a timer (or just connect it to the multiway your light is on) and you're done - as close to free as it's going to get.
Here is the most basic Hoselock automatic timer (~$50-60 / 30 UKP);
Here's the pro digital version (~$80-90 / 46 UKP);
Okay, go to the dump, rip the top off a washing machine and look for where the hoses come in at the back, where you'll find the electronically controlled solenoids that let the water in;
There'll be black rubber hoses attached on the inside and one solenoid may feed more than one internal hose, or two might be mounted together in one block. There's usually three. Whatever, remove them.
Notice that they have a hose barb almost exactly the same diameter as garden hose and that the screw thread on the back happens to be the same size as is found on garden hose taps. Buy one of these, screw it on;
For the built in hose barb, it's not a super tight fit like the normal hydroponic barbs, so for this one connection I'd coat it in epoxy and grip the shit out of it with ziplocks behind the barb.
The valve has the added plus of featuring a built in water filter.
They're designed to handle higher than mains water pressure with years and years of sharp, water tight switching on a daily basis, so they could easily be used for things like switching on and off drip irrigators, mains fed misters or refilling tanks. Never seen one fail, whatever you get from a dumped machine will probably still work fine and the chances of all three having broken is next to zero.
There's usually some molded bracket as part of the valve so you can screw or epoxy into into one of those electronic project boxes or a mains enclosure from the hardware store.
The solenoids are opened by 110 / 240v respectively (whichever you live in). The electronics is as complicated as connecting the two wires to the live and neutral (NOT EARTH) of a plug socket. It's AC, so there's no + or - to think about.
Plug it into a timer (or just connect it to the multiway your light is on) and you're done - as close to free as it's going to get.
