I know a few brewing buddies that would want to build the same thing, so I’m trying to keep it simple with minimal hardware required.
A float? Thanks, that’s an interesting angle - not thought of using a float. But I don’t have an IR sensor to hand.
Rather than using an IR sensor why not some conductive foil in the lid? The float rises to the top and completes the circuit. Although just getting the float in there is going to be tricky - the neck of the airlock is quite thin. Also evaporation could also affect this too.
I’ll evaluate the current design with regards to evaporation etc. I’d rather not make it more complex unless there’s good reason to. But thanks for bouncing these ideas, always nice to hear a different perspective!
I plan to place the wires on the bottom of the airlock, just where the air pushes against the U shape at the bottom. At that point, evaporation has little affect (unless the airlock is completely dry, and then there are no bubbles to measure.)