Tunze 6201 failure

[ReefEnabler]

Hello,

I have two 6201 Tunzes that have been controlled by a Profilux for a few months. They are on waves from 3-8v.

This morning one of my pumps no longer starts, even when I unplug the Profilux control cord.

Yes the transformer lights up.

I will take it out to clean it soon.


Also, I am a bit dissapointed by the 'range' of controllability when its controlled trom 3-8v. It feels like the pump is only going between ~80-100%, rather than 0-100% like I was expecting, its barely noticeable that the pumps change their flow. Any lower than 3v and they cut out.... I assume having them cut completely out on/on would be bad?

 

[rvitko]

The range should be 30-100%, I am not sure how the profilux controller works, but at speeds below 30% the motor can be damaged, it doesn't have enough rotational speed for the rotor to be stable. You can do an off and on program but it is harder on the pump than 30-100%. We only endorse the use of our controllers and using another type of controller may have unintended consequences.

 

[ReefEnabler]

So what % would 3v be? Wouldn't that be a bit more than 30%?

 

[rvitko]

I am not sure how the voltages interact at the pump. The multicontroller does get an 8V input from the pump but as far as how it is modulated and what the output range is, I don't know. The pump works on 24V at full power.

 

[Jar*Head]

If i understand correctly the lowest on tunze is 12v and up to 24v. If you can find some type of conversion on your profilux controller from Voltage to % that will help tremendously and avoid lots of issue in the future.

 

[ReefEnabler]

Jarhead the control is not full voltage, its a low voltage interface.

Anyways I took the 6201 out of my tank and into a bucket to inspect and clean. I took the shroud off and it was totally clean, so I dont think that was it.

I tried giving it a good whack against the side of the bucket and sure enough it fired right up and just about shot the water out of the bucket.

So maybe it was just locked up and needed a good shove?

I checked again on the Profilux forums and 3-8v is correct.


One suspicion I have, is that since I am using almost 35 feet of cable from the profilux to the Tunzes, maybe that cable is imparting extra resistance and the 3v minimum is actually less than 3v by the time it gets to the powerhead.

So maybe I will try minimum at 4v to provide some room for error?

 

[rvitko]

I know that we use a 1.2m cable, about 6ft and I have been told to never go past about double this. I think too much signal is lost.