Starting from scratch

Aqua Man · Feb 2, 2022

I know nothing about coding. Not even sure where to begin. I do have a PI and have managed to get an OS installed, once I figured out what OS stood for!

Picked up a kit from Freenove on Amazon that looked like it might help me learn the basics. Still a bit overwhelmed but determined to play around with it.

Im so new to all of this, I’m not sure what questions I should ask to get going. I do have a basic knowledge of a circuit. Other learning has been super slow because I’m not familiar with the tech jargon yet.

Is there a book or website that lays all this stuff out for a Noob like me??

GPIO = general purpose in out
Ok, none of the pins are labeled! How does one know where to plug in a component?!

As always, thank you for your time!

Projects with Sam · Feb 2, 2022

There is a ton of information out there. I work through some tutorials when I am just starting out on a new thing. I haven't started with the Pi yet or I'd recommend one. I'm mainly messing around with Arduino but the Robo-tank/Reef-Pi guys may be able to help you. Currently I'm trying to make a small PH monitor that puts a little graph on a small screen. The Pi is much better hardware so most of this is plug and play.
Good luck!

Aqua Man · Feb 2, 2022

Tons of information.

I bet there is a YouTube tutorial. Is there a good recommendation?

Ranjib · Feb 2, 2022

The very first post on the main reef-pi thread has links for adafruit guides. I’ll recommend following the, in order , as relevant to your build

reef-pi :: An opensource reef tank controller based on Raspberry Pi.

Welcome to the development thread of reef-pi, an open-source, affordable, modular DIY reef-tank controller based on Raspberry Pi. If you are trying to build a reef-pi controller, please check out the build guides linked below. You can use this thread to seek help and to stay updated with the...

www.reef2reef.com

You can search for raspberry pi pinout for a visual guide of the gpio, like this one

Simple Guide to the Raspberry Pi GPIO Header - Raspberry Pi Spy

The Raspberry Pi's GPIO header provides power and General Purpose Input Output pins. The header either has 26 or 40 pins depending on model.

www.raspberrypi-spy.co.uk

dedragon · Feb 2, 2022

How to install reef-pi

Hi, over the last couple years I've been using a script I made up to install reef-pi as there's quite a few steps and easy to miss 1wire, I2C or whatever. In 95% of the cases it worked great and made things easy for people but it wasn't perfect which is why I never shared it directly. A couple...

www.reef2reef.com

This is pretty simple information for installing reef pi.

I am also do not understand coding much and the pin guidelines are a bit hard to follow. I am really hoping either I or someone else can start a thread with a basic tutorial including products that work and exactly where to plug them in (like pH, ato, power, etc) and easier instructions like just download and install (with links) and allow some of our more tech savvy reefers to give us the simplest solution to getting into the reefpi game. Please let me know if there already is a simple guide as well but most of the threads look super long and have changed over the years as people have been working on updates

Projects with Sam · Feb 2, 2022

You may want to look into some already made, off the shelf stuff like Robo Tank to install reef-pi onto. There are a few others out there that come pre-built. They may be more the speed you are expecting.
For me todo the Arduino stuff, I had to google a bunch of things, do a ton of reading, and I still blew out a few Arduino nanos and its still not done quite right. The DIY approach takes patience and persistence, and a lot of googling.
I wish I were in a better spot to help you get started.

Aqua Man · Feb 6, 2022

Ranjib said:
You can search for raspberry pi pinout for a visual guide of the gpio, like this one

Thank you for that, very helpful.

Which probes for temp are people using?
The ones I saw on the Adafruit guide have metal tips. Not fan of metal in my tanks.

Projects with Sam said:
DIY approach takes patience and persistence, and a lot of googling.

I agree. I’m willing to put in the time. Looking for links to narrow down all the googling! I can usually find answers to a question, if I know what the question is!!

Projects with Sam · Feb 6, 2022

I got this super inexpensive one to test with and have found its actually pretty decent once I narrowed in on the calibration.

its 1/2 the price of the rest so I had to try it. That being said, I bet the Texas Instruments ones are pretty accurate/good quality.