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Arctica not working properly

Arctica not working properly

Hello: My Arctica chiller will not start on its own. If I change the temp setting, it will start cooling to about .5 lower the selected temp then idle. It will reach the ambient temp without kicking back. It will only start again if I change the temp manually. Anyone with more experience know what part of the chiller is bad before I start opening it? Thanks in advance.
 
A dumb question: can I turn off my chiller completely without disconnecting anything off the system, I mean plugging it off from the power outlet and also doing the same with the pump (which I think is not working as expected)? Will there be any leakage or some water that's inside it returning to the tank? Is there an order of what should be turned off first (pump or chiller)? Can I let just the coel on to monitor the temperature with the probe or it will be turned off when the chiller is turned off?
 
Need new hose fittings but can't find them anywhere?

Need new hose fittings but can't find them anywhere?

I bought a chiller and the maker seems to be out of business (Pacific Coast Imports CL-280) and the previous owner I bought it from just informed me he threw away the old hose fittings. Where can I try to buy new ones that might fit, or more likely, how can I adapt the hose to the chiller without a kit? I feel the chance of getting the fittings are very slim and think I'm going to need to rig something else creative up. Thank you so much!
 
Chiller not coming on

Chiller not coming on

My arctica chiller no longer comes on. Display is lit and correct water temp displayed. Water temp now at 85, chiller set to come on at 80. No sign of fan or compressor coming on. How do I troubleshoot this? Chiller is probably 5+ years old, no issues til now.
 
Fuse keeps blowing on Arctica chiller

Fuse keeps blowing on Arctica chiller

Every year during very hot weather and the chiller runs a lot, it blows a fuse several times a summer. I usually have no problem after replacing it.

This year, same thing happened three times in a relatively short time. It has been an unusually hot period, though. I noticed that there seemed to be two little balls of metal fused to the used fuse. The metal does not seem to come from the fuse itself. I am concerned I could lose my chiller at the worst time of the year. Some feedback would be very much appreciated.

My chiller is a DBE200 1/4HP in line Arctica and has been running like a champ for 17 years and still does when I change the fuse but only for a few days.
 
marcusbacus said:
A dumb question: can I turn off my chiller completely without disconnecting anything off the system, I mean plugging it off from the power outlet and also doing the same with the pump (which I think is not working as expected)? Will there be any leakage or some water that's inside it returning to the tank? Is there an order of what should be turned off first (pump or chiller)? Can I let just the coel on to monitor the temperature with the probe or it will be turned off when the chiller is turned off?
Click to expand...
You can power down your chiller without disconnecting it. Just make sure the chiller pump is on before powering the chiller back up.
 
marcusbacus said:
A dumb question: can I turn off my chiller completely without disconnecting anything off the system, I mean plugging it off from the power outlet and also doing the same with the pump (which I think is not working as expected)? Will there be any leakage or some water that's inside it returning to the tank? Is there an order of what should be turned off first (pump or chiller)? Can I let just the coel on to monitor the temperature with the probe or it will be turned off when the chiller is turned off?
Click to expand...
Turn off chiller first, chiller pump second.
 
seahunt73 said:
Arctica not working properly

Arctica not working properly

Hello: My Arctica chiller will not start on its own. If I change the temp setting, it will start cooling to about .5 lower the selected temp then idle. It will reach the ambient temp without kicking back. It will only start again if I change the temp manually. Anyone with more experience know what part of the chiller is bad before I start opening it? Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
May need a new thermostat or controller from JBJ. jbjlighting.com
 
Hi.
This is my first post, please be gentle.
I have a Resun CL-650 chiller that's been keeping my axolotls cool in hot, humid Brisbane for a few years. Today it started giving issues in an unusual way - It seems the compressor won't turn off, despite water temp having dropped substantially below the set point. The setpoint was at 20'C and temp has got as low as 8'C (my poor axlotls). The unit seems otherwise functional, though the compressor fails to turn off once the set temperature is reached - It is trying to engage an external heater (none is plugged in). It's been humid and we had a thunderstorm that caused the house lights to flicker 2 nights ago, so I'm presuming either a moisture or power surge related failure in the compressor relay or thermostat controller. Am wondering if anyone has had a similar issue or any experience repairing / replacing a resun compressor relay, thermostat. Any related info would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. Pat.
 
Welcome to RC Pat! I don’t handle chillers at all really but hopefully someone can chime in.
 
Not sure what your skillset is or if you can use a meter. I don’t know anything about the unit. That said, a stuck relay would be evident if you could disconnect the thermostat connection that feeds it. Or simply check the output of the thermostat at different temperatures.

is this a manual or electronic thermostat? I am guessing that is what is failing. A sticky relay or contractor is possible as well, but without a schematic I am guessing.
 
BeanAnimal said:
Not sure what your skillset is or if you can use a meter. I don’t know anything about the unit. That said, a stuck relay would be evident if you could disconnect the thermostat connection that feeds it. Or simply check the output of the thermostat at different temperatures.

is this a manual or electronic thermostat? I am guessing that is what is failing. A sticky relay or contractor is possible as well, but without a schematic I am guessing.
Click to expand...
Thanks for this, appreciate the response a lot.

I can use a meter for simple stuff, but my skillset does not include much compressor experience. ( though I consider myself fairly capable of researching possibilities and performing basic diagnostics)

I opened the unit today today, and had a quick look. The controller / circuit board looks fine - looks brand new actually, no dust or obvious moisture effects. Capacitors all look ok and soldering looks ok. I gave it a squirt of contact cleaner anyway.

I think the thermostat is electronic, and that it is working ok - the display indicates when the unit its trying to engage the chiller and when it is trying to engage an external heater - these lights turn on off as expected (ie the chiller light goes off when the temp drops to the set point) and the temperatures involved match manual readings, so I'm concluding the thermostat is functional. I will check thermostat input voltages tomorrow.

The compressor continues to run when the display indicates it is not running not supposed to be running. Also there is no delay after powering up the unit before the compressor starts, which there used to be (it used to take about 3 minuties before the compressor would start up) , making me think a sticky relay is to blame. The unit previously made a loud 'clunk' as the compressor turns off, which hasn't happened since it failed, ( even when turning off the power) which I think also suggests a sticky relay. I did hear the faint click today as a setpoint temperature was reached, which did not lead to the compressor turning off either - I presume this was a relay input.

Unfortunately it seems the compressor starter / relay / overload protector models are no longer available, so I will need to do a bit of research to find appropriate replacements, but my plan is to replace these and see how things go. The fan was a bit sticky - and I might replace that too.

Thanks for the links to the service manuals - I hadn't found these online, and learnt how to open the unit the long way.
Cheers
P
 
reefing102 said:
Welcome to RC Pat! I don’t handle chillers at all really but hopefully someone can chime in.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the welcome. Although the faulty Resun CL-650 chiller unit I've described is for my axolotls, we also have a 500L marine tank with a Hailea HC-250A chiller, so I'll hopefully be forgiven for discussing fresh water ambystoma in a saltwater forum ;)
 
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