Chiller REPAIR?

[BCT182]

I was wondering if anyone can recommend a place to have my chiller fixed? Or can I re wire it some how? All I know is that there is an electrical short thats making it unable to read the temp, its goes to default and shuts off.
Tanks at 85, please help!

 

[matts125]

what kind of chiller is it and Does the chiller have a thermostat built in or a seperate thermostat?
sounds like an easy fix to me but you may need to buy a new temp controller..this is a good one.
http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_controllers_aqua_logic.asp?CartId=

Matt

 

[jsmkmavity]

it depends on where the short is. if the compressor is shorted its not worth fixing. unplug it and find the wires that go into the compressor. with the unit UNPLUGGED take a screwdriver and touch across all the terminals to discharge the capacitor if it has one. then pull the wires off the compressor and check one at a time from where the wires were connected to the tube coming from the compressor. with an ohmeter there should be infinite resistance-in other words you should have no connection between the wire terminal and the compressor casing or any metal part connected compressor. if you dont have the tools ask around for an electrician or heating/ air conditioning repair man on this forum or your neighborhood. i know luke (liveforphysics) could do it but i dont know how close he is to you. he just moved.

 

[Scooterman]

i with an ohmeter there should be infinite resistance-in other words you should have no connection between the wire terminal and the compressor casing or any metal part connected compressor.

this is incorrect, if you have an open circuit you have problems, easy to figure out but if your motor has a short it is difficult to test with a VOM.

Many times in motor failures, the cause of fail is not electrical but rather
mechanical. Armature bushings wear out allowing insufficient clearance
to the field assembly.
Electrical failures are not that easily identified with a VOM. If you have
an electrical open, it will be quite obvious. On the other hand, if there
is a couple of windings shorted together, it is sometimes impossible to
identify with a typical Ohm meter. An impedance analyzer would be most
useful in this situation and probably the only instrument - in most cases
where failure is caused by a shorted turn - able to detect where the fault
lies.

I agree that is you get an ac repairman, to check it out he could save you money.

 

[BCT182]

Ok, well I called 4 AC repair companies and none said they would work on it. It broke last winter. I just pulled it out of the garage. It worked for about 15 minutes. I chilled some water in a bucket. The compressor kicked on and everything. The thermostat is built in. Its a via-aqua polar chiller. After about 15 minutes the digital thermostat started to creep up to 99 degrees while the water was still at 72 in the bucket, then it did what it did before, shut the compressor off, said "EH" on the digital read out and beeped non stop. I think if the thermostat could be removed so that the chiller runs 24-7, then I could add a controller to turn it on and off when necessary.
If anyone could help me get this thing fixed I would appreciate it, and I'd have no problem paying someone to fix it.
Thanks

 

[DonW]

I think you will have to send it to the maker to fix it in its stock configuration. It does sound like the thermostat assembly is toast. If its anything like most you can bypass the oem stat. This will cause the chiller to run 24/7 so you will need to get a plug in style stat as a replacement. If its anything like the pacific coast units you can just order up new electronics board pretty cheap.

Don

 

[jsmkmavity]

most appliance repair shops should be able to check it out and diagnose the problem then give you an estimate of the repairs

 

[bc_slc]

of all the problems to have, the thermostat is a pretty good one to pick. I hope you can get a controller or replacement.

Mat

 

[BCT182]

of all the problems to have, the thermostat is a pretty good one to pick. I hope you can get a controller or replacement.

Mat

Yeah, but the problem is that I'm an idiot when it comes to electrical, my wife has to baby proof the outlets so I cant figure out a way to electrocute myself.
I shoved scissors in wall outlet to CUT down on our power bill. :badgrin:
get it.... scissors.....cut...... ok never mind

Seriously I don't know how to wire stuff. I looked and all I saw was a bunch of wires and stuff.

 

[DonW]

Order the board need and bring it to my shop in Lakewood. I'll stick it in there for you.

Don