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Mark Liked His Tree Straight Up with a Twist
By Design News Staff -- Design News, January 9, 2005
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Mark likes his martinis dry, but never his Christmas trees. To avoid his tree turning into kindling prematurely, he created an automatic watering device that keeps it fresh and helps it last longer. His system pumps water from a 1-gal reservoir via a pump powered by a 12V dc power supply. Level sensors maintain the water level and provide overflow control. To avoid the risk of soggy Christmas presents, he suggests testing the system for water leaks in advance of use.
For Mark McCuller's complete instructions on how to build your own Electronic Christmas Tree Watering System, click here.
| Electronic Christmas Tree Watering System Parts List | ||
|---|---|---|
| Amt | Part Description | Allied Part # |
| 1 | Quad 2 input and gate | 568-3237 |
| 1 | 1N4148 diode | 263-1538 |
| 1 | Relay DK1A-5V | 788-0085 |
| 1 | 2N2222 transistors NPN | 248-1004 |
| 1 | Resistors 1K Ħ, 0.5W | 832-9016 |
| 1 | Protoboard 0.1�~ 0.1 inch spacing | 237-0119 |
| 1 | Power supply +12V dc and +5Vdc | 800-8071 |
| 3 | Level sensor switch | 908-1180 |
| 1 | Dip socket 14-pin | 512-4681 |
| 8 | Terminal block PCB mount | 607-7155 |
| Additional parts required: Automotive windshield water pump, plastic 1-gal reservoir, 12-ft plastic tubing, assorted bolts and nuts, metal supports for sensors, Styrofoam flat (1.5-inch balls), cable (see website for complete specs) |
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Talkback
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Where do you go to read the...
- 2006-25-12 10:06:48 EST -
The author obviously had lots of fun building this amazing tree watering system. An upside...
- 2006-13-12 06:13:04 EST -
Good idea. I used to use a gallon jug and a siphon tube to move the level-monitoring and...
- 2006-8-12 05:27:15 EST -
Good idea. I''ve used an extra large reservoir and a siphon tube for Christmas tree watering....
- 2006-7-12 08:02:40 EST
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