Intro to ProfiLux Pump Groups

The Pump Group settings page is a powerful tool that allows you to create a wide range of wave and flow patterns using any ProfiLux compatible pump; Versia Stream, Versia Flow, any 1-10V pump, via switch channel, etc.

In the ProfiLux, you can have up to 6 individual pump groups. Within each group, you can pick and choose which pumps (up to 16), you want to assign to that group. Each pump group can consist of one or more pumps.

Later on in the article, we will explain the flow control options available to you.

In order for your pump(s) to react to the wave control settings within a pump group, you must first choose an empty pump group, then assign the pump(s) which shall react to the control settings you will create.

1. Choose an available pump group
2. Press the Pump Assignment tab
3. Choose the pumps you want to assign to this group
4. Save settings

You will now have the option to set the individual behavior of each assigned pump; min/max flow rate, flow rate a night and thunderstorm, etc.

With the pump(s) assigned and settings saved, you can now individually configure the behavior of each pump. Below is an explanation of each option.

• A: Give your pump a name here
• B: Min flow rate of this pump (during wave schedule or if pump inactive)
• C: Max flow rate of this pump (during wave schedule)
• D: Flow rate at night (if using nocturnal mode)
• E: Behavior during thunderstorm mode (if being used)
• F: Turns pump OFF if inactive
• G: Behavior during Feed Pause; run at minimum or OFF completely

To the right, you can see an example of what a configured pump group looks like. Below is an explanation of each section.

• A: This chart displays the schedule of your group programs. The percentages in the Y-axis correspond to the “wave intensity” of each program. For instance, if a pump’s max flow percentage is set to 100% and the wave intensity in a program is set to 50%, that wave intensity will make the pump run at half (50%) of the maximum flow percentage.
• B: Group programs are displayed here.

• C: Here is where you type-in the name you want to give to this pump group
• D: This setting controls the behavior of your pump(s) at night-time. If you choose to use this feature, specify the start and end times.

• A: To create a new program, press the ADD button
• B: To modify an existing program, press the blue gear icon that belongs to the respective program.
• C: To copy an existing program, press the double file icon

When creating a tide mode, you have 9 modes to choose from. The mode you select depends on what kind of flow pattern you’re looking to create and the number of pumps you are controlling in this group. For your convenience, we’ve included icons beside each option so you have an idea of how a certain mode will control the pump(s).

Below, you will find explanations of each mode:

No current
The pumps in this group will be permanently OFF.

Permanent
All pumps in this group will run in sync with each other; identical behavior

Permanent opposite
All pumps in this group will react opposite of each other; if pump 1 runs at maximum speed, pump 2 will run at minimum speed

Sequence 1
This mode will make one pump turn ON at a time in an alternating pattern. With this mode, you can set how long one pump will run for before it turns ON the next pump.

After the last pump is activated, the cycle starts again with the first pump. If your group consists of 2 pumps, then the ebb-tide-simulation is generated. If you use this mode with only 1 pump, that pump is switched ON and OFF in alternating pattern.

For a group of 3 pumps, the following switch-ON pattern is obtained:

If you plan to use any of the above tide modes, you will have the option to set the time after which the switch ON state of the pumps will change again. Here, you can specify the minimum and maximum tide duration.

The time after a new switch-ON state is determined by a random-number generator. The number range is based on the min and max tide duration. If you wish to have the same switch-ON time, set the min and max time to the name number.

NOTE:
The minimum and maximum tide duration can be set to anywhere between 1 second to 8 hours.

The Waves section is where you can set the wave form and wave pattern of all assigned pumps in this group.

• A: The sinus wave option will cause your pump(s) to gradually increase and decrease their flow output between the set minimum and maximum of each pump.
• B: Right angled waves will cause abrupt changes between the set minimum and maximum flow output.
• C: Min and Max wave duration can be set to anywhere between 0.4 seconds and 60 seconds. The built-in random number generator determines the duration of each wave within the limits you set

NOTE:
If you want all waves to have the same duration, enter the same values for the min and max wave duration. The technical possibilities of all controlled pumps must be taken into consideration when setting wave durations.

With wave patterns, you have control over the sequence of each wave.

Random
Each wave sequence is random.

Swelling
The swelling pattern causes the peak of each wave to increase each time. For instance, first wave will peak at 30%, 2nd wave at 40%, 3rd wave at 50%. When the last wave is completed, the cycle starts over (30,40,50,30,40, etc.).

Oscillating
Similar to swelling, except when the last wave is completed, the peak of the wave begins to gradually decline; 30,40,50,40,30,etc.)

Uniform
All pumps in this group will behave identically

The wave intensity setting controls the max flow percentage of the group all together.

Random wave reduction can be set from 0% to 100%. The bigger the value, the more different single waves become:

• At 0%, the peak of each wave reaches the maximum (waves are always equal)
• At 100%, the peak of each wave fluctuates randomly between the min and max

The chart below illustrates what kind of flow pattern can be seen on a controllable pump with the following settings:
Min @ 30%, Max @90%, Wave duration 10s, Sinus wave form

The wave intensity setting controls the max flow percentage of the group all together.

For example, if you have 2 pumps with the following individual settings…

• Pump 1: Min @ 30% and Max @ 80%
• Pump 2: Min @ 20% and Max @ 60%

And wave intensity is set to 50%…
This program will allow the pumps to operate at 50% of the max flow output; 40% and 30%, respectively

As you can see, the ProfiLux Pump Groups page is a highly customizable tool for creating simple or complex wave and flow patterns. To save on time and effort, we’ve included 7 preset programs to suit a wide range of applications.

Feel free to use these presets as a template or as they come!