960-0001-20 iGrowSeries 100 Installation and User Manual 5
Before you Begin
Temperature Control
With the iPonic 600
TM
you can program a cooling temperature target called a “Cool Setpoint” and a heating
temperature target called a “Heat Setpoint”. The temperature range between these two targets is called the
“Normal” temperature range. If the hydroponic grow room temperature is within the Normal temperature band
usually none of the cooling or heating equipment is on. However, some circulation fans (often called horizontal
air flow (HAF) fans) may be active to maintain air movement within the hydroponic environment.
Whenever the temperature within the hydroponic facility moves above the cool setpoint, or below the heat
setpoint (falls outside the Normal temperature range) the iPonic 600
TM
will enter cooling or heating stages to
bring it back in line. With the iPonic 600
TM
you can program up to six cooling and two heating stages. These
stages go from Cool 1 to Cool 6 and Heat 1 to Heat 2. Cool 1 and Heat 1 are the least aggressive with Cool 6
and Heat 2 the most aggressive. In your program you will determine what equipment you want to be active in
each of the stages.
When the air temperature in the hydroponic facility rises above the Cool Setpoint, the system enters the first
stage of cooling, referred to as Cool 1. If the temperature continues to rise, the system will enter the second
stage, Cool 2, then the third stage, Cool 3 and so forth. At each increasing cooling stage, more cooling will be
brought to attempt to bring the air temperature below the cool setpoint and within the target “Normal”
temperature range. Heating works the same way.
In considering the difference between each heating and cooling stage there is a variable increment in the
program which is the number of degrees between each heating and cooling stage called the “Stage Separation”
or „Stage Width”. Whenever the temperature rises 1
degree above the cool setpoint (70
0
) then the iPonic 600
TM
will activate the appropriate equipment to bring the hydroponic facility to the normal temperature range. If the
temperature rises 2 degrees above the cool setpoint then the controller will be active in C2 cooling stage. The
same goes for the heating stage when the temperature drops below the heating setpoints. In Figure 2.1, there
is an example with four cooling stages and two heating stages.
Deadbands
If the temperature is below the cool setpoint and rises into the first stage of cooling, some cooling equipment will
be turned on. This may then lower the temperature and bring it into the normal range. In order to keep the
equipment from oscillating, a “Deadband” is employed when the temperature is between stages. In Figure 2.1
the dead band is set at 1 degree so that when the hydroponic facility is attempting to return to Normal
temperature from C4 to C3 the controller will use a deadband of 1 degree to keep the equipment from oscillating
off and on. Now, when the temperature drops below the cool setpoint, the system remains in the Cool 1 stage
until the temperature drops below the Cool Deadband. The concepts that we described for cooling operate in
the same manner for heating.
Setpoint
You will be able to use up to 3 setpoints in a 24 hour time period. Within each day Setpoints are based on time
and temperature to produce an ideal environment. By placing setpoints during different times of the day you
can regulate the temperature within a range for target temperatures and humidity. When a setpoint is in effect
at a certain time length the controller will activate the necessary equipment in heating and cool stages to bring
the environment back to Norm. The same applies when the humidity rises or falls beyond the target low/high
setpoint. When one or more setpoints are used the second or subsequent setpoints will become the active
setpoint at the start time and the previous setpoint will end.
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