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First build report

A project log for Watts Intelliflow timer

Timer based dummy load for washing machine valve

nick-sayerNick Sayer 09/18/2020 at 21:110 Comments

At first blush, the first iteration of the board - with just under 5 watts of dissipation does make an Intelliflow turn on. You have to give it time to turn off, though. Even unplugging the 5 volt wall wart doesn't make the power turn off right away. I believe this is because newer Intelliflows have a 15 minute timeout before they turn off.

~5 watts of dissipation, however, makes for a great deal of heat (and, of course, wasted energy). I am going to try to remove some of the resistors to see if the unit remains reliable without getting so hot.

EDIT: Wow, it turns out two watts is enough. Who knew the Intelliflow was so sensitive? Well, now it looks like even 5 watts isn't reliable. Going to have to do more work.

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