Outs No Power

[oakbarn]

I finally got around to wiring the BCS 462. I have no voltage on any of the "Outs" when Asserted and none on the 5 vdc terminal. Bad Board or solution?

[oakbarn]

I tried a Hard Reset and now cannot connect to the BCS.

I put in a different router and it is doing something odd with the IP Address now.

My computer will not connect using that IP Address.

[JonW]

This comes down to good old "Networking 101". You cannot connect to the BCS because your computer is on a different subnet than the BCS. Which subnet is the new router giving out DHCP addresses for? It's either 192.168.1.x range or the 192.168.0.x range? Either the BCS or the PC is hard-coded with the address shown or one of the devices hasn't been reset since installing the router so that it is on the same subnet. I would first try restarting both the BCS and the PC to see if you're both getting IP addresses on the same subnet. If you're adventurous, you could add a secondary IP to your PC to also be on the 192.168.0.x subnet and it will work.

[oakbarn]

I should have said it just assigned that weird address. I tried 3 different routers and computers and it always said 192.168.0.63 for the BCS will all the routers were 192.168.1.1

I looked at netstat -a and the routers were correct. I have no other issues with my network other than the BCS. It has always come up before with a 192.168.1.xx address.

Obviously it will not connect to the 192.168.0.63 because of the Zero instead of a One. I think I have to deal with Brewers Hardware with this.

[brahn]

192.168.0.63 is also the default static IP address, so if the BCS was set to static IP but you didn't set an IP address it would get that address. It will also go to that address if it does not get a response from a DHCP server before the timeout period.

There are a couple options. You can direct connect your PC to the BCS. You will need to manually set the IP address on your ethernet device to something in the same subset, e.g. 192.168.0.61. I would recommend disabling any other network devices such as a WiFi adapter while you do this. Then you can connect to the device normally and fix the network settings.

Alternatively, you can try resetting the unit to defaults by holding down the reset button for 15s, but beware that you will lose all your settings. Hopefully you backed them up.

[oakbarn]

I did not see that it was the default "direct connect" IP. So basically it is not accepting a DHCP address as I see it. It was seeming to work fine, then I could not get the "Outs" to work. I did a 15 second "Hard Reset" and that is when it lost my own static IP. I have always been able to find it. As I said, I tried several different configurations of computers and routers and it would never get the DHCP to work. On some of the configurations the BCS finder would work and find the BCS at the 192.160.0.63. I am sending back to Brewers Hardware so they can have a look. I might have shorted something when connecting the wiring somehow as all seemed fine before I actually started to put wires on the BCS. I had never checked the voltage on the "Outs" or the "5vdc" pin, but the Expansion Ports worked fine (the only ones I had wired to before). Hopefully it is something simple. I have already ordered a 2nd one anyway and it will be here late Saturday.

I have completed my wiring and doubled checked to make sure I have labeled all the wires correctly. I have tested all the SSRs with a 9 volt battery over the wiring and all looks ready.

I have played with the UI quite a bit and think I have a very good idea of "Settings" and "Editing Processes". I have documented what each Button, Dropdown List box, Radio Buttons and Check Boxes do in "System Settings" and "Edit Processes", and how they are inter-related. That is the reason I would love to have a beta of the 4.0 so as to update my documents. That was the reason I was asking so many questions as the Wiki is quite light on that. I had no idea what a PID really was, and although I have a "beginners" idea now, I am sure once I get it up and running, more questions will surface. Both you and John W have been very helpful.

I am also getting a 9 gal electric Brew Kettle to use as a HLT for just Mash. I will continue to be generally Propane, but I think I can get finer control with an element.

I am hoping that the smaller mass ( 9 gal vs 30 gals) will make it easier to control. My biggest issue when doing it manually was overshooting. With the larger mass (normally about 15 to 20 gals), I had to add cooling water rather than wait for it to cool by itself.