[CAUT] Topping up the tank

[Don]

Hi Mark,

Look for a Christmas tree low water beeper and flashing light and have an
on/off switch. They are sold at Home Hardware for $4.99 Canadian, use 2 AAA
batteries.  

At 02:21 PM 6/7/2006 -0500, you wrote:
>Hi Stan,
>
>we're not needing precise, so much as simple and convenient.
>
>Seeing we can't expect students to be on-call for 70 blinking lites, it is
>very simple to instruct them to "pour until the trickling sound stops"....
>it's that easy, and I don't think we need to change a thing!
>
>However, as students have pointed out, at some pianos the "trickling" is
>easier to hear than others.
>
>So, what I really, really would be interested in, is the simplest way to
>make the trickling sound just a little louder. (maybe like the ABS vent
>stack through the guest-room closet at the lake... okay maybe not that
>much!)
>
>I was even thinking about those tiny metal bells the "well-informed"
>tourists wear to keep the bears away  :>) , why not tie a pair of those to
>the end of the filler hose?
>
>If I try this, I'll let you know.
>
>As for how high to fill the tank?
>
>In fall when we re-install the tanks, the students are asked to make sure
>the slit in every filler tube is about 1" below the clamp, that will be the
>level where the trickling sound stops.
>
>Of course, if they want to tempt fate and risk over-filling, then I like
>Fred's idea just fine.
>
>Mark Cramer,
>Brandon University
>
>
>PS Hey man, let's play some golf!
>
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>-----Original Message-----
>From: caut-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces at ptg.org]On Behalf Of
>Stan Kroeker
>Sent: Wednesday, June 07, 2006 1:40 PM
>To: College and University Technicians
>Subject: [CAUT] Topping up the tank
>
>
>Fred, Mark,
>
>Employing the 'aural' method of water depth sensing, will the end of
>trickling sound always result in a precise depth in the reservoir?
>Of course, this depends on the length of tubing in the reservoir but
>can you simply add a measured amount of water after the sound stops?
>ie:   trickling sound stops:   add exactly one-half litre more to
>bring level within 1 cm of top?   Or ... perhaps this measured amount
>could correlate to the moment the light stops blinking?
>
>If this works (the reservoir would have to be perfectly level, of
>course), you could simply mark a line on the watering can to indicate
>the 'top-up' amount.  How close to the top of the tank do you dare to
>fill, Fred?
>
>Regards,
>
>Stan Kroeker
>
>On Jun 6, 2006, at 3:47 PM, Fred Sturm wrote:
>
>> Hi Mark,
>>     I can hear the end of the trickling sound okay, but I like to
>> "push the envelope" and add another half a liter or so beyond, to
>> take care of the last day of those two weeks between fillings
>> during dry periods. Me, I have no help and have to fill the darned
>> things myself. Once every two weeks I can handle.
>>     It's a matter of learning how much water to add beyond the
>> point where the sound diminishes to nothing, and the precise timing
>> of the end of the trickle noise. Of course, this depends on the end
>> of the tube (its setting in relationship to the top/bottom of the
>> tank) being consistent from piano to piano. I overfilled precisely
>> two times (we have hard water, so it left plenty of evidence in the
>> form of minerals). Fine enough for me, but if you are training
>> student help, you'll want something more concrete.
>>     There are plenty of possibilities, including installing one of
>> those beepers at just the right level (probes set at just below the
>> target water level), with a switch in its cord. Turn the switch on
>> so it is beeping when you start to fill, then stop adding water
>> when it stops beeping. And remember to switch it off now, to avoid
>> annoying the sensitive ears of the piano prof between services <G>.
>> Regards,
>> Fred Sturm
>> University of New Mexico
>> fssturm at unm.edu
>>
>>
>>
>> On Jun 6, 2006, at 1:20 PM, Mark Cramer wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Question: Since you listen to the (faint) trickling sound when
>>> filling
>>> tanks, how hard should it be to make the filling process "noisier"
>>> i.e.: add
>>> somthing that rattles around at the end of the tube... ?
>>>
>>> or for that matter, why not a simple float that rises with the
>>> "tide" until
>>> it blocks the end of the filler tube?
>>>
>>> We really should be able to solve this thing.
>>>
>>> best regards,
>>> Mark Cramer,
>>> Brandon University
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: caut-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces at ptg.org]On Behalf Of
>>> Fred Sturm
>>> Sent: Tuesday, June 06, 2006 9:36 AM
>>> To: College and University Technicians
>>> Subject: [CAUT] Undercover - hooks and grommets
>>>
>>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>     Here are some pictures, as promised earlier, of my method of
>>> attaching an undercover, using hooks and grommets. It's the first
>>> such installation I ever did, and is an "under the beams"
>>> installation (before the new tanks which fit between beams), and with
>>> 48" (50w) rod (extends beyond the fabric - a neater job can be had
>>> with 38w, less wrinkling of fabric). Took me less than an hour to
>>> install, and really doesn't look too bad. I am better at it now, and
>>> can make a neater job of it for a fancy living room. This is in a
>>> faculty studio, and not at all in view. I was experimenting, and the
>>> grommets were added after a trial with tape, staples, and a hole. I
>>> find now that, with grommet squeezing pliers, I can just use the
>>> grommet to hold the fabric (create the "hem" and attach to the hook),
>>> and don't need the reinforcement of tape. The grommets in the picture
>>> were applied using a hammer, with punch and shaped anvil. The results
>>> were not very consistent, and it was much more time-consuming than
>>> pliers. $15 for the pliers was well worth the expense.
>>>     Besides ease of installation. what I like about this system is
>>> ease
>>> of removal and replacement. Literally seconds to get it out of the
>>> way to service the tank and pads, and seconds to replace it. The
>>> observant among you might notice the tell-tale signs of over-filling
>>> the tank. I listen to the fill noise more carefully now. I manage to
>>> get two weeks between filling by maxing almost to the top of the
>>> tank.
>>>     If anyone has questions, I'll do my best to answer, or perhaps
>>> take
>>> some different pictures. This was a hard set up for photography, as
>>> it is rather cramped (two B's next to each other), but it's the only
>>> undercover I have ready access to. The others I have installed are in
>>> private clients' homes.
>>> Regards,
>>> Fred Sturm
>>> University of New Mexico
>>> fssturm at unm.edu
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
>
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>

Regards,
Don Rose, B.Mus., A.M.U.S., A.MUS., R.P.T.
Non calor sed umor est qui nobis incommodat

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