Wet Process Heating and Cooling Equipment

Troubleshooting Heater, Heat Exchanger and Digital Control Problems

The following procedures may expose personnel to hazardous voltage and hot or potentially poisonous chemicals. Turn off all tank power, steam, and hot water supplies. Wear recommended protective clothing for the tank contents prior to removing and inspecting the suspect heater. Proper tools, protective insulating gloves and procedures are required. Only a qualified electrician should perform all tests.

Heater, heat exchanger, and control model numbers, serial numbers, materials of construction, wattages, amperages and voltages should be determined before beginning any diagnostics.

The following are links to the different sections of our troubleshooting guide, with an outline of what each guide contains.

HEATERS:

ELEMENT WILL NOT HEAT PROPERLY (ALL HEATER TYPES)
1) No power/electrical fusing.
2) Open/overheated thermal fuses on heater.
3) Missing thermal fuse.
4) Thermostat not turning heater on (new installations).
5) Thermal fuse(s) keep opening (Protector I style).
6) Protector II bimetallic thermostats opening at a low temperature.
7) Heater blowing electrical fuses.
8) Reduced output of heater.
9) Voltage measured in tank.

METAL HEATERS
1) Holes in heater sheath (metal heaters).
2) Swelled or split heater sheath (metal heaters).
3) Heaters tripping GFP/ELCB circuits.
4) Melted or overheated ground wires.
5) Metal plate-out on heater sheath.
6) Physical damage to heaters.
7) Sand or magnesium oxide found in junction box.
8) Installation problems.
9) Discoloration/blackening of heater sheath; heater is distorted or misshapen.

QUARTZ HEATERS
1) Carbonized buildup inside heater sheath.
2) Buildup on the outside sheath of the element.
3) Tube cracked off at solution interface.
4) Tube cracked or broken off near bottom.
5) Tube cracked or section broken out near center.
6) Tube etched or has porous appearance on outside surface.
7) All three legs of element open, failure after a short period of operation (less than one day).
8) All three legs of element open, failure after an extended period of time.
9) One leg/element open.
10) Bluish spots or discoloration in cold zone transition area.
11) Holes/melting of metal element sheath.
12) Guard melted or distorted.
13) Guard material cracking at weld seams or solution interface.
14) Heaters tripping GFP/ELCB circuits.
15) Quartz heater floating up in guard.
16) Element will not fit in quartz tube.
17) Wrong phase element ordered.
18) Thermowell tubes full of solution.

FLUOROPOLYMER HEATERS
1) Fluoropolymer sheath melted, split or distorted.
2) Swelled or split heater sheath (any location).
3) Swelled or split heater sheath at the hot zone transition.
4) Section of element that's completely missing.
5) Melting or distortion of junction box at the element insert point.
6) Cracks in internal epoxy encapsulation.
7) Holes in the Thermowell tube.
8) Guard material cracking at weld seams or solution interface.
9) Heaters tripping GFP/ELCB circuits.
10) Fluoropolymer sheath on single element or phase of the heater melted.

SAFEONE^TM HEATERS

HEAT EXCHANGERS:

COIL WILL NOT HEAT PROPERLY (ALL COIL TYPES)
1) Supply problems, no steam/hot water.
2) Valve not turning on.
3) Reduced output of coil.
4) Tank contents overheating.

METAL COILS
1) Holes on the coil surface.

FLUOROPOLYMER COILS
1) Fluoropolymer tubing split or swelled above solution interface.
2) Tubing turns white after prolonged service (above solution interface).
3) Tubing turns white after prolonged service (below solution interface).
4) Holes in tubing.

CONTROLS (DME/DE/DM/DQ SERIES):

DIGITAL CONTROLS
1) Control will not turn on - no power/electrical fusing/incorrect voltage.
2) Blank display.
3) Display cycles on/off when power is applied.
4) Blank display on high/low end of operating range.
5) Erratic/unstable display.
6) Control intermittently flashes ---/process temperature.
7) Control displays A.001 when you enter calibration mode.
8) Low temperature displayed.
9) High temperature displayed.
10) Random irregular display.
11) Control displays "000".
12) Control displays "32"F or "0"C at all times.
13) Control displays/flashes "AAA".
14) Control display changes very frequently.
15) Heat/status lamp does not illuminate.
16) Mode keys do not operate properly.
17) Error message (HHH).
18) Error message alternates between UUU and HHH.
19) Error message (UUU).
20) Error message (small "c" on lower left portion of display).
21) Error message (large "C").
22) Control will not turn on.
23) Control loses calibration.
24) Control relay contacts remain closed.
25) Control relays remain open.
26) Control will not calibrate.
27) Temperature setting drifts upward after short system warm-up.
28) Control will not exit stand-by mode.