Plant Care
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- • Nutrient Solutions & EC34
- • Plant Health Monitoring7
Dosing Pump Calibrator — Peristaltic Flow & Timer Blueprint
Dose the reservoir without guessing. Enter the reservoir volume, the EC target and the pump's rated flow — the engine derates that rating through calibration factor, efficiency, viscosity, temperature and pulsation down to the actual mL/min, converts your run time into the exact volume dosed and EC rise, then returns the pump run that hits the EC target plus the micro-pulse schedule that stays inside a 0.05 mS dead band. Calibration offset, efficiency loss, cost per dose and a green—yellow—red pump-health band close the loop so worn tubing shows up before it drifts your feed.
Dose time anatomy
live
time to ec
1.4 d
Actual flow
90
Volume dosed
90
Efficiency loss
10
Calibration offset
10.0
Dose cost
$1.1
Flow, volume and losses stack left-to-right; the dashed arc is the stroke the calibration offset trims. Net run-time holds in the centre.
Inputs
12 parameters · live recalculation on every change
L
10L
200L default
10000L
MS/CM
0.5mS/cm
1.8mS/cm default
4mS/cm
ML/MIN
1mL/min
100mL/min default
1000mL/min
SEC
1sec
60sec default
3600sec
×
0.1×
1× default
10×
Pro Settings — Lab Controls
×
0.5×
1× default
2×
×
0.8×
1× default
1.2×
×
0.5×
1× default
1.5×
Advanced Settings — Deterministic Corrections
×
0.5×
1× default
2×
MM
1mm
6mm default
20mm
%
50%
90% default
100%
PSI
0psi
5psi default
50psi
Deterministic model
12 inputs · 10 outputs
Runs 100% in your browser
This is a deterministic model: the same inputs always produce the same outputs, calculated entirely in your browser with nothing sent to any server. It is a planning aid — not a quote, not a dosing instruction, and not a yield forecast. Treat every line as a working estimate and validate it against your own prices and measurements.
It models one system: Dose the reservoir without guessing. Enter the reservoir volume, the EC target and the pump's rated flow — the engine derates that rating through calibration factor, efficiency, viscosity, temperature and pulsation down to the actual mL/min, converts your run time into the exact volume dosed and EC rise, then returns the pump run that hits the EC target plus the micro-pulse schedule that stays inside a 0.05 mS dead band. Calibration offset, efficiency loss, cost per dose and a green—yellow—red pump-health band close the loop so worn tubing shows up before it drifts your feed.
What the Dosing Pump Calibrator — Peristaltic Flow & Timer Blueprint returns
The engine computes 10 outputs from your 12 inputs. The headline number is Dosing Time Needed (sec), alongside Actual Flow Rate, Volume Dosed, EC Rise / Dose. Every output updates live as you change a parameter.
What it does not do
Outputs depend on the inputs and assumptions shown here. Confirm relevant measurements and local conditions before acting.
STEP 01
Derate the rated flow: Q_actual = Q_rated × calibration × efficiency/100 × viscosity × temperature / pulsation.
STEP 02
Convert the entered run time: volume dosed = Q_actual × time/60, with the reservoir in mL down below.
STEP 03
Turn that volume into an EC rise: ΔEC = volume dosed ÷ reservoir(mL) × concentration × 2 — the A/B parts counted once each.
STEP 04
Invert the EC formula for time: t = EC target × reservoir(mL) ÷ (Q/60 × concentration × 2) — the pump run that actually lands the target.
STEP 05
Close the calibration loop: offset = rated − actual flow, efficiency loss = 100 − efficiency, and cost = volume dosed ÷ 1000 × stock price.
STEP 06
Read the pump-health band off efficiency and line pressure — green >85%, yellow 70–85%, red below 70% or over 20 psi — then split the run into micro-pulses sized to stay inside the 0.05 mS dead band.
Q_a = Q_r \cdot f_{cal} \cdot \frac{e}{100} \cdot f_{vis} \cdot f_T \big/ f_{pul}
Actual flow — rated flow derated by the pump-health terms
V_d = Q_a \cdot \frac{t}{60}
Volume dosed — actual flow over the run time
\Delta EC = \frac{V_d}{V_{res}\,[mL]} \cdot c \cdot 2
EC rise of a dose — net reservoir volume in mL, A/B ×2
t = \frac{EC_{tgt} \cdot V_{res}\,[mL]}{\left(Q_a/60\right) \cdot c \cdot 2}
Dosing time needed — the EC rise formula inverted to seconds
\Delta Q = Q_r - Q_a
Calibration offset — how far the head has drifted from rated
L_e = 100 - e
Efficiency loss — the pump-health tell
C = \frac{V_d}{1000} \cdot p_{stock}
Cost per dose — concentrate volume at the stock price
n = \left\lceil \frac{EC_{tgt}}{0.05} \right\rceil, \qquad t_p = \frac{t}{n}
Micro-pulse timer — no pulse may overshoot the dead band
Calibrate flow with a real timed catch — 60 seconds into a graduated cylinder gives mL/min directly, and the pump-calibration blueprint re-tests on a schedule because peristaltic rollers drift as tubing wears.
Dose to net reservoir volume, not the stamped tank: the archived reservoir-volume engine tied every EC shift to the water actually present.
EC rise scales off net volume in milliliters — on defaults, one 60-second run at 90 mL/min actual adds 90 mL to 200 L and moves EC by just 0.0009 mS; reaching the full 1.8 target needs a ~33 h run or a far stronger stock.
The ×2 is structural for A/B loops: two stock bottles feed most peristaltic setups, so the dose is counted once per part. Single-bottle concentrates should halve the concentration input.
Pulsation dampening smooths the hammer but costs throughput — the engine divides actual flow by the dampening factor, which is why a 1.5 dampener on a 10× stock still pays for itself in line life.
Back pressure above 20 psi is a hard red regardless of efficiency: the archive's accumulator sizing treated over-pressure as a failure mode, and so does this band.
- Actual flow: Q_actual = Q_rated × f_cal × efficiency/100 × viscosity × temperature / pulsation — the archived pump-flow-gph engine derated rated pump output for friction, lift and fittings; this arm derates for the pump-health terms a peristaltic head actually experiences.
- Volume dosed: V = Q_actual × time/60 — the arduino-raspberry-pi dosing-system blueprint computed controller run time as target volume ÷ measured flow from a short timed calibration test (50 mL in 10 s = 5 mL/s).
- EC rise: ΔEC = V_dosed ÷ V_reservoir(mL) × concentration × 2 — the reservoir-volume engine tied every dose to net volume via C1V1 = C2V2; the ×2 keeps the two A/B stock bottles that feed most peristaltic loops.
- Dosing time needed: t = EC_target × V_ml ÷ ((Q/60) × concentration × 2) — the diy-ec-controller required stock volume = EC shift ÷ stock strength × reservoir, inverted into seconds of pump run.
- Calibration offset and efficiency loss: Q_rated − Q_actual and 100 − efficiency — the pump-calibration blueprint re-tests flow on a schedule because peristaltic rollers drift as tubing wears (diy-ec-controller retest note).
- Pump-health band and micro-pulse timer: green above 85% efficiency, yellow 70–85%, red below 70% or over 20 psi; the ec-controller split doses so no pulse overshoots a 0.05 mS dead band — applied here to pump state instead of EC state.
This model combines the earlier Dosing-pump-calculator, Peristaltic-pump-calibration, Nutrient-dosing-timer models.
Q1: How to calibrate a dosing pump? ▾
Time a calibrated catch: run the pump for exactly 60 seconds into a graduated cylinder; the mL you collect equals the flow in mL/min. Enter that as the calibration factor (measured ÷ rated) — a 95 mL catch on a 100 mL/min pump is a 0.95 factor — and set the pump-health terms. This engine then shows the calibration offset (rated − actual), so a head that drifted from 100 to 90 mL/min flags the 10 mL/min gap before it under-feeds the crop. Re-test on a schedule, because peristaltic rollers drift as tubing wears.
Q2: What is a peristaltic pump flow rate calculator? ▾
A peristaltic pump flow rate calculator turns rated output into real delivery: Q_actual = Q_rated × calibration × efficiency/100 × viscosity × temperature ÷ pulsation dampening. That actual mL/min is what volume dosed = Q_actual × time/60 multiplies out, and it is the honest number behind EC rise and dosing time. The archived pump-flow engine derated rated flow for friction, lift and fittings; this arm derates for the pump-health terms a peristaltic head actually sees — so the flow rate you read is what lands in the reservoir, not what the label claims.
Q3: How long should a nutrient dosing pump run? ▾
t = EC target × reservoir(mL) ÷ ((Q_actual/60) × concentration × 2). On the defaults (200 L, 1.8 EC, 90 mL/min actual, 1× stock) each 60-second run adds only 0.0009 mS and the full target needs roughly a 33-hour run — that is the truth the formulas expose: micro-flow pumps top up a maintained EC, they do not build one. Either raise the concentration to 10× (drops the run ~10×) or read the time as "pump X s per interval" once the target is already held.
Q4: Why is my nutrient dosing timer dosing with unwanted accuracy? ▾
A dosing timer without a calibrator doses at rated flow, and the drift is invisible until the crop moans. Run the timed-catch test: if your 100 mL/min rating delivers 90, the timer is short-dosing every cycle by exactly that offset. This tool splits the calculated run into micro-pulses that never overshoot a 0.05 mS dead band — the same pulse discipline the EC-controller blueprint used — and adds a 120-second mixing settle so the next reading is never stale. Recalibrate the flow and the timer follows automatically.
Q5: What does pump efficiency loss mean for hydroponics? ▾
Efficiency loss = 100 − efficiency, and it is the visible symptom of roller wear, head height and line losses. At 90% efficiency the loss line reads 10% and the pump-health band stays green; at 65% (35% loss) the band goes red and this engine halts the schedule. Efficiency enters the flow formula directly, so a head that lost 10% also needs 11% longer to hit the same dose, and the calibration offset line shows the exact mL/min gap — replace the tubing or rollers and the loss line drops back toward the rated flow.
Q6: How to calculate mL per minute for a dosing pump? ▾
The archived method is the only one that counts: catch the output for 60 seconds in a graduated cylinder, and the collected mL is the flow in mL/min — no math, no rounding. From there this engine computes actual flow by derating that measurement through calibration, efficiency, viscosity, temperature and pulsation dampening, then converts it: volume dosed = flow × time/60, cost per dose = volume/1000 × stock price, and the dosing time = EC target × reservoir ÷ (flow/60 × concentration × 2). Always recalibrate at working temperature and pressure, because cold stock and a long line both shrink the real mL/min.