Possible failure of controller? No heat from element.

[Hello]

I'm at a loss and probably incapable of figuring out what's wrong because I'm frustrated. I fired up my HLT today and it was fine. Then I realized the water only heated to 62F. It should be at 170 by now.

I noticed the element wasn't hot at all and the PID showed AL2 and OUT lit, which is different than before. I read the troubleshooting guide but I can't figure out what I need to do.

I plugged the element into the BK plug and I'm using the outlet from the BK but using the HLT's element. Since the element is working, did my PID fail?

While I am careful not to dry fire these elements, I do wonder if I flipped on the element too soon and it was dry fired. If that is the case, would the element even work sill?

Not sure how to fix the issue and could use help.

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[jmh286]

I would start by (carefully) opening the panel and make sure your SSR is switching. Your PID simply outputs ~12vdc which switches the SSR and allows current to pass through. If your SSR isn't working, you won't get power to your heating element. There should be a light on the SSR to indicate that it is on.

On a side note, without knowing how your panel is wired, I intentionally wired in a switch on my panel to have control over the on and off of the heating element. This adds a relay per circuit, but will give you positive control over your equipment.

 

[iijakii]

That's what happened both times I had bad SSRs (cheap Foteks).

 

[dogpoundbrewery]

I see you had Alex build your controller . Have you had any other issues with it .

 

[Hello]

I see you had Alex build your controller . Have you had any other issues with it .

Nope and I'm not sure this isn't user error.

I'm going to take a look at the inside and I'll respond back with pics and see if I can't figure this out. I appreciate all of the help I can get.

 

[Brumateur]

You can send this controller back to me for inspection and free repair if necessary.
But befor this - could you take two identical 120V incandescent lamp (any wattage) , connect them inline and plug instead of heater?
This way you can check if controller works properly.

 

[Hello]

You can send this controller back to me for inspection and free repair if necessary.
But befor this - could you take two identical 120V incandescent lamp (any wattage) , connect them inline and plug instead of heater?
This way you can check if controller works properly.

Hey, I know that and you've always been helpful, but I was trying to avoid the $40-$50 ship fee both ways if possible. If this was an easy fix, then I wanted to explore that first.

The plug is 240 though. How do I connect them inline? My mind is thinking I get two lamps and lop off the plugs to connect the wires...which I certainly can't imagine is the case here.

I shot you an email if it is easier to explain through that.
I am going to open it up today to see if there is a light on the SSR indicating power. I had to leave yesterday after I brewed, so I cleaned and took off.

 

[Hello]

Okay, I took some pics and hopefully they're okay. Juxtaposition is the controller is upside down from me. So the heat sink is right in front of me. The PID that I'm talking about is on the right. It's the HLT one. I plugged in the controller and looked inside and do not see a single light. I shut off the lights and still saw no light. Not sure what I was looking for, but I definitely didn't see a light.

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[Hello]

One more of the switches.
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Hoping that does help.

 

[doug293cz]

The light you want to check out on the inside of the controller is on the face of the SSR. See below. This light is supposed to come on whenever the SSR receives a voltage pulse from the PID.



Also, the bottom left LED on the PID should light up when the PID is sending voltage pulses to the SSR.



Brew on

 

[UndeadFred]

Do you have a multimeter? Check the resistance on the element.. should be around 10 ohms. You could also look for 5-24V or so on the input of the SSR's and 240V on the element that way. It's simpler then hooking two bulbs in series as you have to rig up a couple of sockets to do that safely...

When I had that issue happen with my homebrew unit one of the 240V wires worked itself loose from the output of the SSR.. but I suppose that is the best case/most lucky scenario.

You can look for loose wires and tighten things up in a box like that without the risk of ham when unplugged too...

 

[mattd2]

MIght be a stupid question... but it might not: Is there a reason the breakers are in the off position? Have you intentionally switched them off for now or did they trip?

 

[Hello]

MIght be a stupid question... but it might not: Is there a reason the breakers are in the off position? Have you intentionally switched them off for now or did they trip?

The breakers you speak of, are the blue switches. They power my elements and aren't breakers. Unless you're not talking about the blue switches. I don't have a key lock and normal switches like the Kal units.


Regarding the SSR light. I'll check again in the morning. I don't think I looked there. I can then retrieve my multimeter from my friend and check that.

 

[mattd2]

The breakers you speak of, are the blue switches. They power my elements and aren't breakers. Unless you're not talking about the blue switches. I don't have a key lock and normal switches like the Kal units.


Regarding the SSR light. I'll check again in the morning. I don't think I looked there. I can then retrieve my multimeter from my friend and check that.

I am pretty sure the Chint DZ47 are MCBs (miniature circuit breaker). It is odd to me that the panel has these exposed like they are - especially when it is not unlikely that water could be splashed on the panel.

Either way whether or not they are circuit breakers - why are they switched off? I', guessing that you have them switched of when you are taking the photos because you don't want them on at that moment... but I have seen (and done) stupider things in the past

 

[Hello]

I am pretty sure the Chint DZ47 are MCBs (miniature circuit breaker). It is odd to me that the panel has these exposed like they are - especially when it is not unlikely that water could be splashed on the panel.



Either way whether or not they are circuit breakers - why are they switched off? I', guessing that you have them switched of when you are taking the photos because you don't want them on at that moment... but I have seen (and done) stupider things in the past

They power the elements. If turned on, the elements would turn on. I can unplug the elements and turn them on, which I'll do later today. It's the only way I can turn power on to my panel basically. There's not a master switch.

I'm still trying to figure out what to do. Waiting for the guy who built it to explain the lamp deal to me. I'd like to get this resolved before next week so I can brew again.

I tightened the connections though they didn't need it.

 

[ChocolateMaltyBalls]

I'm guessing the mini circuit breaker is used instead of the switch-contactor setup often seen on HBT.

But that's not the problem here, circumstantial evidence would point to the SSR as the component to test, either it's failed open or it's not getting the signal to close the element circuit. The multimeter will tell you which it is.

Edit: also double check that your PID is in SSR mode (not relay mode). It should be in the instructions.