Hayward Aquarite SWG Blowing 2.5amp fuse

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mdavis49

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Apr 2, 2021
5
TX
I have an old (2004-ish) Hayward Aquarite T-Cell 15. Over the years I have replaced the boards, cells, displays, etc. My current challenge is a blown fuse.....not the 20amp fuse on the board, but the 2.5amp fuse on the mounted on the bottom of the control box (see photo with cap removed). I can replace the fuse, return power and leave the main switch in "OFF", it all looks normal: Power light on, Display showing salt reading. The moment I switch to "Generate" and hear the click, the lights and display all begin to flicker, then go out and the fuse is blown. I have done this experiment multiple times and it is repeatable. See attached video.

In all the threads I have read, i don't read anything about this 2.5amp fuse; is it necessary?
Any ideas on why this fuse burns out when in "Generating"?

I have confirmed 240VAC across TB1, 2.5ohms resistance across Blue/White and Violet/Grey wires, and the 20amp fuse on the board is fine.
 

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mdavis49 said:
not the 20amp fuse on the board, but the 2.5amp fuse on the mounted on the bottom of the control box (see photo with cap removed).
Click to expand...
If the Aqua Rite™ "Power" LED indicator is still off, then you can check the fuse which is located on the bottom of the electronic unit (units mfg after 10/2004 do not have an accessible fuse).

Twist the fuse cover 1/4 turn to remove the fuse. If the fuse is obviously blown, there is a replacement fuse taped to the cover of the owner manual or you may purchase a similar "20 amp slo-blo" fuse at many home improvement or hardware stores.

Click to expand...

From this reference, it looks like the fuse should be 20 amps.

If the main board has been replaced, it has a 20 amp fuse and you should not need the bottom fuse.
 
Indeed, the older Hayward gen has a 1.25" glass fuse mounted at the bottom of the box. The fuse is inline with the primary winding of the transformer. What type of fuse are you using, quick or slow blow and would you know the orig rating?
 
JamesW said:
From this reference, it looks like the fuse should be 20 amps.

If the main board has been replaced, it has a 20 amp fuse and you should not need the bottom fuse.
Click to expand...
I'll take it the pcb, cell and dsp bd have been replaced with newer builds. JamesW has you covered. Either bypass the bottom fuse or use a 20 amp glass fuse.
 
full


In this picture, the fuse is in series with the secondary winding output.
 
For the older Goldline, the 2.5A fuse is in line with the Primary winding. For the Aquarite the electrical rating is 110-130vac @ 2A or 220-250vac @ 1A.
 
JamesW said:
full


In this picture, the fuse is in series with the secondary winding output.
Click to expand...
Correct. The above diagram is for the Aquarite model. Otoh, the older Goldline PCB does not have the 20 amp fuse mounted on the pcb. Instead it has a 2.5 Amp glass fuse in series with the primary winding of the xformer.
 

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@OP,
To be on the safe side. Can you please post a few pics of your PCB? Focus on the TB1 terminal, the rectifier wiring connections and the yellow 20A fuse.
 
JamesW said:
The reference says that the glass fuse is 20 amps.

I am pretty sure that it is on the secondary output and not the primary winding input.

@mdavis49, can you show a picture of the wiring going to the fuse holder?
Click to expand...
No contest. Perhaps my understanding was from the very first build which is older than me. Gotta go search from rubbles.
 
This has me intrigue. Am I understanding the orig pcb does not have the 20A fuse on the board vs the replacement pcb? It would be very interesting to know how the OP wired the replacement pcb.
 
mdavis49 said:
I have an old (2004-ish) Hayward Aquarite T-Cell 15. Over the years I have replaced the boards, cells, displays, etc. My current challenge is a blown fuse.....not the 20amp fuse on the board, but the 2.5amp fuse on the mounted on the bottom of the control box (see photo with cap removed). I can replace the fuse, return power and leave the main switch in "OFF", it all looks normal: Power light on, Display showing salt reading. The moment I switch to "Generate" and hear the click, the lights and display all begin to flicker, then go out and the fuse is blown. I have done this experiment multiple times and it is repeatable. See attached video.

In all the threads I have read, i don't read anything about this 2.5amp fuse; is it necessary?
Any ideas on why this fuse burns out when in "Generating"?

I have confirmed 240VAC across TB1, 2.5ohms resistance across Blue/White and Violet/Grey wires, and the 20amp fuse on the board is fine.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks to all who replied and are helping me to solve this problem. While i have replace the board and display in the past, the wiring is identical to how it has been working for 15+years. I just replaced the original 2.5amp fuse with the one taped to owner manual, and it blew, so i have re-replaced with like (not identical) kind and so long as i keep in "OFF" i have a display of salt level. It when is switch to "Chlorinate" or "Super Chlorinate" that it blows. Here are additional photos and a wiring diagram:
 

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I don't think that the original fuse was 2.5 amps.

The original fuse was probably 20 amps.

Do you still have the original fuse?

In any case, I think that all you have to do is take the yellow and orange wires off of the fuse and connect them to the terminals by the yellow 20 amp fuse on the circuit board.

Maybe C0d3Sp4c3 can confirm.
 
Thank you for the pics, much appreciated. Now we know what we're talking about. Your 2.5A fuse should be 20A. JamesW is right, the fuse mounted at the bottom of the box is inline with the secondary winding. I have been wrong so many times in the past and well, up until now!
Your pcb is not a Hayward OEM but yes, I agree with JamesW. All you have to do is to disconnect the Yel and Org wire from the glass fuse holder and connect them directly to the terminals on the pcb by the 20A fuse.
For reference, see the schematic diagram in post# 7.
 
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Not sure why the original fuse went bad. Maybe it was just old.

Once you connect the yellow and orange wires to the circuit board, you would be using the yellow 20 amp fuse.

Get a spare fuse for backup. If the fuse is constantly going out, then you have other problems.

Once you start everything, check the diagnostic readings and post them so that we can verify that everything is working properly.

The amps for a T-15 should be in the 5 to 8 amp range.

So, there's no way that the original fuse was 2.5 amps.
 
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