CaptainKnots
Newbie level 3
need 12v alarm system design help --I want the alarm light to stay on for 20 seconds
We have an alarm system on our boat that is very basic, it is 12v and about as simple as it gets.
(float-switch makes a connection when bilge water gets high enough and light and siren go off... Different lights for different compartments, one siren run off a bus)
Operationally this is functional except when alarms are being triggered for Just a second, and you don't get a light on the panel long enough to see where the problem is.
What I would like to do is build a circuit that will keep the light on (or flashing) at the panel for 10 or 20 seconds after the alarm has ceased being triggered. I am looking for the easiest, simplest circuit that I can build with radio shack parts I can get from whatever port we are in. All I need is the light to stay lit, or flash, for 10 to 20 seconds so I know where to look for trouble.
I am not at all electronics literate, and don't know where to start. Thank you for your patience.
(the intermittent alarm happens when bilge water is higher than normal, but not quite high enough to set off an alarm, until the vessel starts rolling and bilge water sloshing side to side in 30+ degree rolls trips the switch... needless to say when we are rolling 30+ degrees, knowing where the water is getting high in our wooden ship is important.)
We have an alarm system on our boat that is very basic, it is 12v and about as simple as it gets.
(float-switch makes a connection when bilge water gets high enough and light and siren go off... Different lights for different compartments, one siren run off a bus)
Operationally this is functional except when alarms are being triggered for Just a second, and you don't get a light on the panel long enough to see where the problem is.
What I would like to do is build a circuit that will keep the light on (or flashing) at the panel for 10 or 20 seconds after the alarm has ceased being triggered. I am looking for the easiest, simplest circuit that I can build with radio shack parts I can get from whatever port we are in. All I need is the light to stay lit, or flash, for 10 to 20 seconds so I know where to look for trouble.
I am not at all electronics literate, and don't know where to start. Thank you for your patience.
(the intermittent alarm happens when bilge water is higher than normal, but not quite high enough to set off an alarm, until the vessel starts rolling and bilge water sloshing side to side in 30+ degree rolls trips the switch... needless to say when we are rolling 30+ degrees, knowing where the water is getting high in our wooden ship is important.)