My Project in Hollywood Maryland

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JoeSoMD
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon May 26, 2014 9:54 am

My Project in Hollywood Maryland

Post by JoeSoMD » Sat Aug 06, 2016 3:47 pm

I've been lazy in getting a picture of my GEM install posted to the forum. It's been running a couple of years now, but I never got around to dressing the cables or hooking up the Dash (which is mounted but not yet connected).

I love the product. The people at Brultech designed and built a beautiful product - "under the hood" looks absolutely first class. I'm not a computer or network guy either, and I found the documentation de-able with a couple of questions posted to the forum regarding things I didn't understand.

I'll post another photo when it's all done. I didn't trim the CT cables - I just stuffed them into a piece of flex conduit.

Thanks Brultech - love the product.

Sincerely,

Joe Kubinec
Hollywood, MD
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JoeSoMD
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon May 26, 2014 9:54 am

Re: My Project in Hollywood Maryland - More Pics - Better Ar

Post by JoeSoMD » Sat Nov 26, 2016 11:01 am

I finally got around to dressing the cables. I used 1-inch diameter PVC conduit and a 12 cubic inch right angle PVC J-box to seat the GEM on. Due to existing household elex cables, I had to offset the GEM and the J-box off the basement wall with some 2 x 4's to provide clearance for the PVC conduit. I intend to get all of the breakers monitored to the GEM, and didn't think that one of the holes Brultech provides at the base of the unit will provide a sufficient opening, so I cut another one. I matched the cut outs in the base of the GEM to the top of the PVC J-box, and also drilled a hole to allow access to the pushbutton reset at the base of the GEM. So the current transducer pairs run from inside of the electrical panel, through the PVC conduit, into the PVC J-box, then up into the GEM. I trimmed the length of the wire on the current transducers, but left some slack in the PVC J-box.

The install is robust and I think it is clean. I'll get the remaining channels installed as time allows. I have the mains and the major consumers being monitored now. I also have 1-wire temp sensors in the geothermal system that I want to wire into the system some day.

Love the dashbox. Gives easy access to the data. My next challenge will be to try to figure out how to get access via the web to it, so I will be coming to you guys for advice!!!
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JoeSoMD
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon May 26, 2014 9:54 am

Re: My Project in Hollywood Maryland

Post by JoeSoMD » Thu Dec 29, 2016 6:52 am

Here's a picture of all the CT wiring completed. I used 29 channels in the GEM. Two of the channels monitor two breakers each (I ganged lights and plugs in two rooms because I didn't need to differentiate draw).

I also am monitoring all of the breakers in an adjacent sub panel. I used 1/2" PVC conduit with some cable pull right angles for the CT cables.

Inside the main panel I used spiral wrap and split corrugated plastic sheathing to tidy the cables.

Next step is to pull temperature data from the geothermal system, which currently is monitored with something that the state of Maryland furnished a few years ago. The "state system" uses an ewise / open thermal 1-wire to Ethernet bridge. This box looks to be merely a rebrand of the Electronic Data Systems (Kentucky) product. Ewise does not exist anymore, and EDS does not support the product anymore as far as I can tell. But the GEM with Dashbox will take care of everything... the GEM is monitoring the power and has just enough 1-wire temperature inputs to deal with outside air temperature, 5-foot ground temperature, ground loop water in temp, ground loop water out temp, HVAC supply air temp, HVAC return air temp, hot water tank loop in temp, and hot water tank loop out temp - eight in all. So all will be good.

Thanks again to the Brultech people and to others on the forum like Teken who provided lots of great help and advice to a person that has limited background in any of this stuff! Love the Brultech GEM and Dashbox products.
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GEM, Dashbox, and a UPS
GEM, Dashbox, and a UPS
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CT wires are tagged with the breaker that they come from and the channel and terminal number that they connect to
CT wires are tagged with the breaker that they come from and the channel and terminal number that they connect to
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Conduit that dresses CT cables from the sub panel to the main panel
Conduit that dresses CT cables from the sub panel to the main panel
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