Hydroponic tank water level detection and refill

I have a hydroponic set up where I want to detect the water level of the tank and when it reaches a certain (low) level to activate a pump to re-fill from a 2nd tank (2nd tank holds the supply of nutrient mixed water). Would love some ideas here on how I could set this up. I was thinking something like this:
Sensor: https://core-electronics.com.au/optomax-digital-liquid-level-sensor-llc200d3sh-llpk1.html
Pump: https://core-electronics.com.au/dc-mini-immersible-water-pump-6v-12v.html
Does the sensor need a Step-Up/Step-Down Voltage Regulator with an ESP 8266 type board ?

Has anyone used this ? what other parts would I need with this specific sensor, can I use this with an ESP8266 or Microsoft Azure Sphere type MCU?
Thank you in advance for any tips and help with exact parts I would need for this, as I would like to order them before XMas ideally!!

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Hi Vajira,

Personally, I would set the system up like this


Using 2 sensors (one for the bottom of the tank and one for the top) and a simple RS latch in programming to control the level.

Working with nutrients might affect the performance of some sensors so I would go with a non-contact one like this.

To ensure that the sensor uses the same logic level as the microcontroller (5 V for the product linked in my comment, or variable output up to 14.5V for the sensor you linked).

An Arduino Uno should be able to power 2 sensors and control the motor with another MOSFET, (getting the Arduino to work with an ESP8266 could be achieved with a shield such as this one: https://core-electronics.com.au/sparkfun-wifi-shield-esp8266.html)

Regards,
Liam.

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Thanks Liam, this was very useful. I’m working through a set up and hope all goes ok. I’m using these sensors Optomax Digital Liquid Level Sensor - LLC200D3SH-LLPK1 Australia (core-electronics.com.au)

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Hi Vajira,

No worries!! Let me know how you go! If you have any other questions let me know and hopefully I can help out :slight_smile:

Cheers,
Liam.

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Hi Vajira,

Just wondering how you were moving along with your project?
I’m keen to see it up and running!

Liam.

Thanks Liam, Currently stuck with doing some Microsoft Azure Sphere coding to learn the Sphere MT3620 Dev Kit.

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