Pentair i9+3 Comm Issues

Jim,

Single speed Sta-Rite Max-E-Pro Series filter pump. We have a pool/spa setup. Two control valves with one filter pump. There is also a heater for the spa only and two additional pumps for water features. All pumps are single speed.

Mark

Jim and Tom,

I really appreciate all the input. I can definitely check the wiring out and will do that before buying a new motherboard. This board is a great resource and I will be making a donation.

Again, thanks,
Mark

I've been bouncing back and forth between projects, but I can finally declare this one complete, well, mostly. I never got an estimate from a pool company to come do the repairs, but I suspect based on the other posts I've seen and past experience, this repair would have cost us in the area of $3K. With the help of this board and especially @ogdento, our costs have been more in the range of $800-$900 and that includes a spare main board with updated firmware. The main board, Indoor Panel, and Spa Command including cable were all damaged; probably from a lightning strike. I now have a fully functioning system with surge protection, which will hopefully prevent this from happening in the future.

The main board and Indoor Panel had blown comm chips. The cable going to the Spa Command had an intermittent short from +15 to +D. It's not possible to repair the Spa Command without destroying it, so I had to buy a new one with cable. @ogdento was able to repair the main board and Indoor Panel and update their firmware. In the process, I purchased a spare main board he had to keep my system running while repairs were being made. A special thanks to @ogdento for his help and wealth of information.

I've installed a surge suppressor at the main board and Spa Command and have one ready to install on the Indoor Panel. I used the RS-485 Surge Suppressor, Part No. ISO-485-P, from SerialComm.com. It was $26 and they have great customer support. The suppressor was small enough to fit in the conduit below the Spa Command. This time I raised the base plate of the Spa Command by 1/4" to allow the control to sit above the stone around the spa. I used silicone sealant to make that water tight and after I snapped the Spa Command to the base, I used acrylic latex caulk to seal the panel to the base. This should keep water out and seal along the lower edge of the panel to prevent it from separating. I keep the Spa Command covered with a flower pot base when not in use. This keeps it out of the sun and the occasional hail we get here in Texas. When the pool maintenance folks installed the 3rd Spa Command, the last one under warranty, they recommended covering it and that has worked to extend its life significantly.

I made one hugh mistake which made this repair more difficult than it should have been. I ran several rags through the 100' conduit run for the Spa Command thinking I was doing a good thing removing some of the water and other debris. The 3rd rag got caught in the conduit and would not budge. I took a simple pull and turned it into a nightmare. With a bore scope and drain snake, I was finally able to break it free. I don't recommend anyone do that. Let it be wet.

I'm going to attach a few pictures of the installation if anyone is interested.

I have begun to spread the word about this site to my neighbors. I'm glad I found it and thanks again for all the help.

Mark

Jimrahbe said:

Mark
I suggest you think about supporting this site... Become a TFP Supporter - Trouble Free Pool

Without this site, Tom and I would not have a place to hang out and do what we love to do..... Helping other pool owners is what we are all about.

Thanks,

Jim R.

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Hello Jim,

I became a Silver Supporter a few weeks back. I was happy to contribute and can hopefully do more down the road. Thanks for work you guys do on this site.

Mark

ogdento said:

Hey Mark, nicely done!! Thanks for the kudos... always glad to help a fellow electro-nerd get things going again.

I'll be interested to see a follow-up on those rs485 surge arrestors after a couple of lightning storms. I really hope they do the trick. Countless boards get zapped and just tossed in the garbage... so much waste, it keeps me up at night!

Also looking forward to seeing your teardown pics of that stupid spa command - with an extra order of plastic shavings and chips please. I understand why they're sealed... but I hate that they're sealed! Can't fix what you can't open

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I will definitely post some pictures of the breakdown of the Spa Command. I don't expect there to be much left of the case when I finally get to the board. They go to all this trouble to seal the rear of the board, but the membrane they use is fragile and that's what lets the water in. I'm now using a UV blocker on the panel in addition to covering it to add a little extra protection and try to keep the membrane flexible so it won't separate or crack. Only time will tell. We've got storms on the way, so we'll see how things hold up.