I just replaced my old two speed spa pump with a new two speed 230 volt one. It has an old Pinnacle PC50-A controller box/heater. It went in perfect everything lined up fine, but when I turned on the power only the low speed would work. If I turn up the thermostat, the engine would quickly click and cycle on and off every couple of seconds. The same thing happens when I turn on the jets thru the air switch. There is a 110/220 switch inside the Pinnacle controller box and I tried both ways but nothing changed. I swapped the high/low wires on the motor and that didn't help either. Is it possible that I received a bad motor? Or could it have been wired for 115 at the factory instead of 230?
motor cycles on and off
- Thread starter mgm
- Start date
Welcome to TFP!
If your motor works on both 120 and 240, it is certainly possible it is wired for 120 from the factory. You normally move a wire on the terminal block to switch. A diagram is usually on the cover plate or motor label.
If your motor works on both 120 and 240, it is certainly possible it is wired for 120 from the factory. You normally move a wire on the terminal block to switch. A diagram is usually on the cover plate or motor label.
Typically they come wired for 230V If you wire a 115V motor for 230V it will get destroyed quickly. If you run a 230V at 115 it typically acts the way you describe.
Long story short check the voltage a the motor.
Long story short check the voltage a the motor.
it is virtually impossible to get to the back of the motor when it is installed in the cabinet to perform the voltage test. is there a way to test at the control box where the plug to the motor goes in to the controller without the motor connected?
You can measure the supplied voltage at the controller end of the power wires, but you can not check to see what voltage the motor is setup to use, or if it is wired correctly,, or check to see if there is a problem with the power wires themselves from there.
Will I harm the controller by powering up the system with the motor unplugged? My thoughts are that the controller might only be supplying 115v to the motor, at least that would either confirm or reject that notion
The controller will be fine with the motor disconnected. And you might as well check everything that is easy to check first, before tackling the more complex checks.