Julian's Postbag: #76 - Ideal Humidity Christmas

[@sparkyprojects]

There is little point in having one sensor in the probe and the other in the display, you want to read both in the same location, this is done so you can work out the dew point.

[@lostname605]

Always looking forward to the postbag videos! I really enjoy buying cheap stuff from ebay myself :D

[@donaldfilbert4832]

Me too !! Tho - I am not entirely sure why - laugh !!!

[@lostname605]

Just like Julian it`s sometimes hard for me to explain why I added a cheap item to an order :D (My latest treasure: A calculator watch in fabulous orange, just because it was 0.60€ :p )

[@Noryev1]

The LED Christmas project is really cool and I would love to see a live build! Thanks so much Julian!

[@GadgetAddict]

I bought that same christmas tree kit haha! I'm looking forward to putting it together :)

[@bwack]

I like the christmas tree. If you make that video I'll definitively watch it in the holidays :)

[@guitarman513]

Love the postbag episodes - I feel like its Christmas morning every time. Keep them up!

[@robfenwitch7403]

I like the BME280 sensor and I had a lot of fun writing a library for it. If memory serves, those pads next to the sensor can be used to change the I2C address between 0x76 and 0x77.

[@MatthewFryer]

The 2 extra pins on the SHT30 are to change the I2C address (AD) and to trigger an interrupt on a microcontroller (AL), Tie the AD pin to Vin to change the address from 0x44 to 0x45. Details for setting up alerts to trigger interrupts can be found in the data sheet.

[@DiyintheGhetto]

I would love to see that live Christmas video Julian :)

[@phreapersoonlijk]

I'm in for it too !

[@maicod]

Phrea Nix me too

[@douro20]

Bosch also makes the BME680 which has all the functions of the BME280 but with the addition of a combustible gas sensor.

[@JulianIlett]

That's mad :)

[@douro20]

They are made for environmental monitoring systems.

[@mariaselectronics3888]

Awesome!

[@tomtenberge]

i love your chrismas tree special video idea! DO IT!

[@karllaun2427]

I got the tree kit with the "colorful flash" LEDs. As I recall, it uses the same PCBs as the red/green. As a result, the resistor and capacitor values were not silkscreened on the board. Took a bit of research to find an actual parts list.

[@ChrisFredriksson]

Yes!! Please do a full length build video of the Christmas tree with Christmas music! Would be awesome!! =D Oh and this video, as always, great! =D

[@mbaker335]

To abuse an old proverb. "Man with one sensor always knows what the temperature and humidity is. man with two sensors never sure" Or to put it another way the max number of sensors you should ever own is 1.

[@sarah1390]

I actually just built two of those Christmas trees. Though one came with changing rgb lights and then I believe the other one with gallium arsenide LEDs. Like the rgb one but the other one the greens barely light with 5v but work better with a 9v battery but doesn't come with that connector. The one that I had that worked better on 9v was an eqkit. Also another piece of advice on the build is keep enough length on the capacitors to bend them over otherwise the capacitors will hit each other and you will have a tough time getting the boards together. Learned that the hard way and in the end had to mount one on the opposite side as I had already cut the leads.

[@JulianIlett]

Thanks for the capacitor advice - I'll watch out for that :)

[@CornishMiner]

Christmas music, mince pies and soldering fumes. Festive heaven :D

[@spikeydapikey1483]

I used the 3528 5050 RGB LED Strip 3 Keys controller for mood lights behind my tv, along with a three way splitter and some 5V USB powered RGB strips. Nice, simple and cheap :)

[@GadgetBoy]

You could always use some thick enameled wire and cross the wires over for vcc and ground.

[@NicholasAarons]

Great Video Julian. Keep up the great work. Nick.

[@chrisleech1565]

We do love our Alice then. Just ordered the DIY Xmas Tree for fun. I thought the quality of the PCB's looked very good

[@davidcoghill8612]

That tree actually looks better quality than the similar Velleman kits I used to buy.

[@tonysansom]

David C I've seen those Velleman kits & the prices are mental. You won't catch me buying them!

[@davidcoghill8612]

I was young and naive, and had a maplins staff discount.

[@superdau]

Funny thing is that on the ebay image both the GND holes of the LT "ideal diode" are the same size. Don't know if that's to your liking though, because they are both smaller than the IN/OUT one and not all four the same. You also not only got "more hole". the one you got also has more components. That (the small mismatches between picture and product) is a really annoying thing. Often I want a very specific version, sometimes for simple reasons like a certain hole pattern, but more often because there are different revisions of the same thing that fixed/introduced problems. Btw. you can point on ebay images, if you click the small picture (opens a big version that stays open).

[@reepomanius5636]

Christmas themed real time build with minced pies!!!! Bring it on Julian!!! Please...

[@geraldjustprojects]

what i would recommend is use the arduino mini with the 3.3v 150mA regulator. low quiescent current. Then attach both the oled and the sensor to the 3.3v out the arduino. Vin to the battery. the ssd13306 have i believe a shutdown mode were they can go into low power mode. As the same with the sensor, although milage may vary with diff sensors. This will save you from using any logic level shifters due to the fact that 95% of oled screens although you can run the i2c logic lines with 5v. Most boards dont have proper level shifting and the datasheet says it should run on 3.3v same with the power lines. But it all depends on the oled pcb.

[@pauls0416]

I like that you're so into Christmas :)

[@arcadeuk]

Interesting video, as I've recently bought a bunch of humidity sensors for evaluation, as I am sick of the inconsistencies of the DHT11/DHT22 el cheapo ones that everyone uses. I have high hopes for the Bosch sensors

[@FPVSlacker]

Some of those devices can be light sensitive. Especially the one with a barometer. Use a flashlight to rule out light sensitivity if you are getting odd results.

[@jounivoipio6383]

I'd love to watch the real time christmas tree assembling! Would it be a live video with a little interaction with us viewers? May we expect some puppet perfomance in between? :D

[@followthetrawler]

I've ordered the tree kit from Alice - would love you to do the kit build live :)

[@ethanlaplanche2678]

hey Julian, i was wondering if you could do a video on lipos? and charging them in projects? thanks ☺ love your videos

[@beicel]

+Julian Ilett Those two Si7021 and HTU21D are almost the same in 99.9%, although how I see you requesting data very fast, and the sensor will overheat, the sensor normal response time is about 17s regarding Si7021, the HTU21D response time is 5s, but for the BME280 the response time is 1s! ;)

[@JulianIlett]

That's interesting, I didn't see that in the data sheet. Maybe that's why the humidity readings are so high.

[@beicel]

There you go, the whole elaboration of the sensors, just go down to the comparison table at the middle of the page! ;) www.kandrsmith.org/RJS/Misc/Hygrometers/calib_many.html or Just look closer on the page 7 in the datasheet "Response Time" is 17-18s for the Si7021 sensor! www.silabs.com/Support%20Documents%2FTechnicalDocs%2FSi7021-A20.pdf

[@JulianIlett]

Wow, that's a lot of data - I'll get reading :)

[@beicel]

Anyway, I have BME280 and SI7021 in the same room and the BME280 reading is 10-13% less humidity level, but the temperature measurement is okay, it's about 1-3 Celsius difference, so, I don't know which one to trust, some users says that the BME280 readings are suspiciously weird and also cost 2x more than SI7021 or HTU21D!

[@nor4277]

Any chance you will do a Christmas tree video ,since I got the same kit,which would be a blessing for me and I am sure others if we could follow along with your video..since the Chinese never have much if any directions.

[@Ed19601]

BME280/bmp280 is a rather confusing identification as the BME and the BMP are different sensors. The BMP280 doesnt read humidity. I'd be pretty reluctant to order that, not knowing if I get the rght one :-)

[@doffer987]

Yeah! Another video!

[@GiantLew1]

for the pic tutorials. have you looked into mikroc? I really liked the ide and (I thought) it is supporting the piccit

[@billconiston8091]

just ordered an xmas tree, who can resist! Julian - what are the nylon pegs you have on your boards called/link? they look really handy to avoid shorts, Thanks

[@BrownBabyJesus]

I'm down for ordering a tree kit and building it together with you live xmas day.. just putting that out there. #buildalongwithjulian #xmasedition

[@thulinp]

I want one too. Alice must love Julian.

[@Neffers_UK]

Been shopping round, there's a bucket load of sellers with them, all with the same estimated delivery date 09/12 - 12/01. Ordered 2 as cheap as possible for shits n giggles. I opted for the "7 colour" type (the 2 pin auto colour LEDs). I just hope they arrive before next year lol. They are also on banggod, of course. www.banggood.com/Christmas-Tree-LED-Flash-Kit-3D-DIY-Electronic-Learning-Kit-p-1007523.html?rmmds=search

[@iPelaaja1]

BrownBabyJesus I actually think of buying one or two too, just for the parts and soldering practise :)

[@jeffbluejets2626]

Did you ever do any project with the BMP280..??

[@himselfe]

I think your life would be much easier if you modularise your project. I.e an a generalised arduino display project, set up in a way where you have a baseline project to build off whenever you need a display in a project, and then it's just a case of adding the new module and adding some of the code in a modular fashion.

[@BradleyHerbst]

Would you be able to do the display and temp sensor project with an esp8266 instead of the pro mini?

[@lizardofoz5329]

My second Arduino project. Unfortunately the agony continues, though with some hard won insight. Trust no one, When you dht 11 is labeled one way on the front, flip it over and look at the traces. This only took a day. But now comes the display. Adafruit sketch for ic2 hello world says the address is 0, by default. Adafruit's own address list elsewhere gives it as 0x20-27 depending on jumpers shorted et al. Adafruit's ic2 scanner gives it as 0x38. None of these worked. Tried different Uno and the same nothing. Now waiting for additional displays. Knowing the score now I don't feel so irate, but the physical effects of repetitive stress damage are taking up time in between attempts. I guess this is what minge and munge mean Julian?

[@alanwarren7884]

Hi Julian, Is your PIC code for interfacing to the BME280 sensor available ?!

[@ikkepic]

What is the green solar thing you are building?

[@JulianIlett]

It's a robot dinosaur thing :)

[@JulianIlett]

www.ebay.com/itm/-/181904469365

[@-yeme-]

has that led tape controller taken 7 months to arrive?

[@JulianIlett]

No, it just sat at the bottom of my bin for that time.

[@-yeme-]

ah ok

[@MichaelBeeny]

May I ask which screen capture software you use?

[@JulianIlett]

I'm now using OBS.

[@robwgeorge]

+1 Vote for Christmas tree build with music, mince pies, eggnog, stories about Julian's favorite Christmas gifts from your childhood and puppets. Similar to your walkie talkie build.

[@JulianIlett]

+1 vote here too :)

[@Itnecap]

Hi Julian do you know the M590E module ? It's a 2$ GSM module I found on Ali

[@maxximumb]

Wish you mentioned the live build, we could all have bought the same kit and mince pies and had a build-a-long.

[@Firecul]

Live stream build-a-long that's an idea.

[@KrX3D]

Hi Julian Ilett, i also bought a coule of those LED Mini controller Dimmer, from different sellers. But i got with all of them one problem. If i use them with 4m white LEDs after like 20/30 minutes they start blinking and when i power them off for some minutes they work again for 20/30 minutes. i get that problem also wth some RGB led controllers. could it be a problem with tempreture? but they arent really hot. do you have an idea?

[@astrixistheman]

Could you live steam the Christmas tree build? just a suggestion... I would recommend using OBS

[@mitropoulosilias]

WHY I LOVE YOUR POSTBAGS SO MUCH??? because i buy same stuff!! Electronics and shit..

[@muh1h1]

It appears like you have forgotten to edit in the overlays in the endcard :)

[@JulianIlett]

It's done now, but KZbin seem to have changed the maximum length to 20 seconds - so it's all out of sync again :/

[@johansamuelsson2056]

What kind of storage box are you using for the pickit stuff? Looks like it might be just what I'm looking for.

[@adrianchung2840]

I think it came from Wilkos www.wilko.com/tool-bags-boxes+storage/wilko-medium-organizer-clear/invt/0343092

[@johansamuelsson2056]

Looks good but UK shipping only. My search continues.

[@Klonkiller361]

buy the RGB Led Strip from Banggood, they are very cheap there atm

[@Wavefront101]

Or just drive your own led module with it, the remote control versions are better, and only around $2 shipped for the controller.

[@caroman6761]

What exactly is the best use of he bought diodes?

[@Anvilshock]

Where's our Christmas tree assembly stream??

[@gazzaka]

so what are you aiming to do? Reduce humidity or increase it? And why?

[@JulianIlett]

Reduce it - the UK gets very damp in winter.

[@gazzaka]

Yea a friend has a caravan in Devon, notoriously damp :-(

[@alexandrepro.d28]

I love your video !!

[@pauls0416]

Do you order electronics every day?

[@JulianIlett]

No, not everyday.

[@chartle1]

So for the RGB controller you say you bought it in April. Did it take 6+ months to get here or has it been sitting in the Mailbag box for that long?

[@JulianIlett]

Sitting in the Postbag bin :)

[@chartle1]

Good ok back to finishing the video and eating lunch.

[@maicod]

Julian Ilett the exact same bin that I have (albeit another mesh colour) which I use for its intended purpose ;-)

[@Ggddsdddhhhhy6fv]

Why so many humidity sensors? You planning a project?

[@OrbitalSP2]

I have issues with 18650's and powerbanks...

[@johnbouttell5827]

Super nice

[@JonByrne]

So did you wait 6 months to open it the LED controller or did it take 6 months to arrive. Also why don't you do the kit build Live!

[@JulianIlett]

I've been thinking of doing a live show for a while - maybe I will :)

[@JonByrne]

Julian Ilett i might order a tree too then so u can solder along. If only you had done this video yesterday I did a big order from Alice.

[@JonByrne]

Julian Ilett on another topic the screen capture and picture in picture looked great today.

[@TheDutyPaid]

What is your delivery time like from our friends in the far east?

[@-yeme-]

for ages my chinese ebay orders consistently took 2-3 weeks with a few arriving quicker in 8-10 days but recently (since september) Ive had several take much longer

[@_Piers_]

Yeah, I noticed the same. Over the summer, delivery was about 10 days, but now its gone back to several weeks.

[@TheDutyPaid]

Strange one with me, I ordered some keycaps from Hong Kong. waited about 3 months and they came through the door and was sent from an address about a 5 minute walk away from my house.

[@TheDutyPaid]

Jason Birch I think it was the people in Hong Kong waited till there was a large number of UK orders, shipped over a case of the item to someone in the UK and they sent out from local.

[@TheDutyPaid]

Just an update, I ordered a LED VU meter kit on the 11/11 and got my parcel today. The only trouble is that they sent me a Japanese style school uniform instead. God knows who ever packs such items got them mixed up. I have contacted them and know waiting to see what they will do.

[@rialtho_the_magnificent]

What's the deal with humidity?

[@madbstard1]

I'd say that thanks to this video, Alices sales of the Christmas Trees has skyrocketed.......9 sold in the last hour. And I'm one of them lol

[@AdamWelchUK]

madbstard1 Just a shame it won't arrive until January! ;-p

[@madbstard1]

I know :( But says eta is 7th - 29th Dec. Mind you I'm waiting for something else from HK - dispatched 18th last month and it's still not here. Well, I'll have a year to put the tree together lol

[@AdamWelchUK]

Well best of luck. Hopefully it'll be here for this Christmas.

[@blitzmeister3356]

Or you order the tree fom banggood (www.banggood.com/Christmas-Tree-LED-Flash-Kit-3D-DIY-Electronic-Learning-Kit-p-1007523.html?p=PJ0611757128201409C4) and select "Priority Direct Mail" as shipping method, it should arrive in approx. 10 days.

[@madbstard1]

Dammit! Had put an order in with BG a few days ago. But find they take just as long to deliver.

[@nomadic_rider42]

Alice forever

[@SkookumChoocher]

Hi Julian, some time ago, I found a very interesting and detailed article about comparing several humidity sensor types and about measuring their real precision/creating calibration curves (the (im)precision of some of the sensors was quite surprising). I think the article(s) might be of some interest to you: www.kandrsmith.org/rjs/misc/hygrometers/calib_dht22_dht11_sht71.html www.kandrsmith.org/rjs/misc/hygrometers/calib_dht22.html

[@ovalwingnut]

Thanks for the "ride along". Videos are ALWAYS INTERESTING. I'm exposed to boards etc that I would have never known about. I'm basically living my life vicariously though your EE (Electron Exploits) :O) p.s. Can't believe how these items can be sold for such low-P (did I say that right?:) Cheers [So. Ca. USA]

[@kyoudaiken]

:( I personally found blue much more beautiful than red and green.

[@minecrafter9099]

Why you like so much buying from alice?

[@JulianIlett]

If I can find a lower price, I'll buy elsewhere - but Alice always seems to be competitively priced.

[@minecrafter9099]

ok, thanks :) great videos BTW :D

[@sylvainlazare1114]

Thanks Julian for your great video. For your sensor project you may like to consider and review this type of rechargeable 9V ZNTER (www.banggood.com/ZNTER-S19-9V-400mAh-USB-Rechargeable-9V-Lipo-Battery-p-1070703.html?rmmds=search) based on a boost controled Lipo. This one or other similar brand hold the voltage quite well when in charge.

[@JulianIlett]

Thanks Sylvain - I think Banggood have sent me one of those.

[@SilverGreen93]

why would you use mplab 8 !? it makes no sense. Mplab X is way better and easier to use/configure.

[@ThatGuy-nv2wo]

....Puppets?

[@JulianIlett]

Sorry, not today :(

[@ThatGuy-nv2wo]

Julian Ilett Aww, are they sick?

[@JulianIlett]

I'm sick of them.

[@ThatGuy-nv2wo]

Julian Ilett D: Don't burn them

[@thulinp]

Needs a video of their unfortunate demise.

[@ArcAiN6]

Alice1101983 is your go-to ebay vendor eh?

[@coldfinger459sub0]

Thanks for the climate sensors in combination with Arduino my business and tails indoor climate control and I'm not satisfied with the components and systems that are sold open Leah on the commercial market I would like to be able to develop my own with redundancy sensors built inside using Arduino to develop my own system