Wednesday, November 26, 2014

The One!

This is the sensor that works the best! Its the Original Microstream OF05ZAT in Blue!

The RED One is FAKE!

This one (in blue) has 2174 Pulses per Liter and is accurate as hell! In the Picture you can see the fake red one. Its quite larger than the original but useless!


26 comments:

  1. Dear MaleBuffy,
    the APP file was expired.

    Can you upload the new link?

    Thank you very much!
    Best regards.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi,

    thanks for the Info. Updated the post with the new link!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you!
    In the next days I'll buy all the materials.

    Happy new year!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good luck.

    If you need any help, give me a shout.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello, do you have a link to build the fuel monitor and the arduino code because I don't see it online anymore. Thanks a lot

      Delete
  5. Does it impede the flow at all? I'd like to fit something similar to my motorbike but it has carbs rather than fuel injection - not sure if that makes any difference...

    ReplyDelete
  6. My boat has a two Stoke carb outboard. It is not an injection outboard so you should not have a problem.

    Moreover an outboard burns more than 50 liters per hour, so for a motorbike application there should be no problem with the fuel flow.

    It all depends on the fuel flow sensor you are going to use though.

    ReplyDelete
  7. It looks like the "Red Box" sensor is using a cheap chinese water-flow sensor in an enclosure. Great project & thanks for the good write up - cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi malebuffy - I wanted to do your project also, so I purchased a Microstream OF05ZAT-A0 ( the blue one ) and it just arrived today.
    I went to look it up, here:

    https://www.aichitokei.co.jp/eng/products_and_services/micro_stream/zat.html

    where, at the bottom of the page, it mentions "Gasoline, Sodium hydroxide (Caustic soda), Hydrogen peroxide solution (Oxydol), and Hydrochloric acid are not applicable."

    What do you think, you are using with gasoline, correct?
    thx

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hello,

    I know it says that in the datasheet. However, I contacted them via email and they confirmed that the sensor is also used with gasoline. It has something to do with certification.

    Please contact them yourself before using it with gasoline and do so at your own risk.

    I should probably mention it on the blog too.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thanks MaleBuffy, that is all I was looking for. I will get a fire extinguisher to carry along. Everyone must take responsibility for their own actions.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi, Where did you find and buy the blue microstream sensor?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hmm im not having much luck. Only found one, used..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well that's the only one available. A new one costs about 350$ US which isn't worth the trouble.

      So the 35$ for the used one is actually a bargain!

      Delete
    2. That explains a lot..
      Thanks for the clarification :), bought me one of those now.

      Delete
    3. where can I buy the blue original sensor?

      Delete
    4. Hi,

      the original sensor costs about 200 USD new. You will have to search for a used on ebay. Usually about 30 USD. If you cant find one, I still have 4.

      Delete
    5. Hello! If you still have one, I am so much interested! I am going to do the same project with no BT. Just a nokia 5210 display to mount it on my rib's consol! Thanks!

      Delete
    6. Yes I still have one. If you can wait until October, I will be in Greece and probably can ship it to you cheap.

      Delete
  13. Very interesting. I found your blog when searching information on the sensor. I had the exact same idea, but for a diesel boat. It is a little more complicated since a (big) part of the fuel entering the injection pump is sent back to the fuel tank. You need two flow sensors, one on each circuit and do the subtraction in the controller. I initially planned to use the "fake" Chinese sensor (OF05ZAT). The Biotech one could also be an option. Now, although the OF05ZAT does not supply the same amount of pulses as the genuine sensor, would you strongly discourage its use in my situation? What is important for the Diesel case is that the IN and OUT sensors must have consistent outputs, if not fully accurate, as the measurements will be subtracted.
    Would appreciate your advice.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello,

      yes you are right. You need two sensors. I actually made one for a friend. For the return channel, this cheqp wont wont since it isnti accurate enough. It has a too low count per ml and this isn't even eniuen for the main channel. There are however other sensors that would they just have to be very sensitive.

      Delete
  14. Thank you.
    I did not find that many sensors with the appropriate sensitivity. Did you use the genuine OF05ZAT for the diesel flow meter (impossible to find at a reasonable price) or something else?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I used the blue OF05ZAT but you could use the FCH-M-POM-LC 6 MM from BIO-TECH if its available where you live.

      I bought about 6 sensors back then so I had enough. Glad I did :)

      Delete
    2. I looked at that one on a German site, but it was saying "for air flow measurement". Now I looked closer to the manufacturer data sheet and it appears it works with other fluids, including fuel. It is based on a moving turbine, which is supposed to be less accurate than the OF05ZAT. 24 Euro is not as cheap as the fake sensor, but this brand looks serious. Sensitivity is good and accuracy reasonable on paper.
      Thank you. I will probably try this one.

      Delete
  15. Hi Habib,
    I would like to do same with my diesel boat motors.
    Could you pls let me know if you been successfull with sensors ( wich one you used ? )
    Tks

    ReplyDelete