I need a way to shut off an appliance if it’s dumping water too fast for the drain, because reasons. I have a [[http://www.getfloodstop.com/][Floodstop]] for another appliance, it works well but it’s pricey, and works with the water line instead of power, which is what I need. Tight space constraints prevent me from using something like [[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00988NOV2][this]]. Guess that means I have to make it myself…
- Ideas
- disable water or power?
- DIY float switch, integrated into standpipe
- plumbing fixture to attach to standpipe
- Version 1 Ultimately, the simplest, cheapest thing won:
-
Attach a tee fixture to the standpipe, as a makeshift overflow fitting. This was harder than it sounds, because
- The 50-year-old cast-iron standpipe is a nonstandard size. There is no great way to attach modern PVC to this. Companies like [[https://www.fernco.com/plumbing/flexible-couplings][Fernco]] make flexible fittings for exactly this purpose, but getting the size right is critical - if it’s not watertight, it doesn’t work.
- There is very little vertical space in the drain box. Of course I could enlarge it, but if I’m going to start hacking at the drywall then that opens up a bunch other options for dealing with this. I want to leave the drywall as it is, for now.
-
Overflow drains into a bucket with a float switch attached.
-
Float switch connects to a relay.
So if the drain backs up, it overflows into the bucket, lifting the switch, triggering the relay, shutting off the appliance.
** Final parts list:
- Tee fitting ($12)
- 2" PVC ($.25 ?)
- 2" to 3/4" barb fitting ($.50 ?)
- 3/4" hose ($10)
- bucket ($3)
- float switch ($1.50)
- relay ($25)
- miscellaneous wire, connectors, etc
Total materials cost: about $50
Total labor time: less than one hour
Total design time: way too much
Worth it? Who knows.
- Pictures
[[file:0-simple-drain.jpg]]
/How it looked before I started/
[[file:1-fixture-ideas.jpg]]
/Everything I could find at the hardware store that might work/
[[file:2-rubber-fixture-plan.jpg]]
/A better option, from a local shop, and the other fittings to get it to drain to the bucket/
[[file:3-drain-bucket-setup.jpg]]
/The overflow setup/
[[file:4-full-setup.jpg]]
/The full setup/
[[file:5-relay-setup.jpg]]
/The relay setup/
[[file:6-hose-sizes.jpg]]
/Hose size comparison/