Intelli-ph Pump Motor Direction

Jump to latest Follow Reply
jprince924

jprince924

Member
Jun 18, 2023
10
las vegas
Pool Size
12000
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
The new blue stenner pump head has arrows indicating a counter-clockwise spin but the motor only spins clockwise. The older shur-flo pump has the arrows spinning in the clockwise direction so if you upgrade the shur-flo to newer stenner using the stenners arrow flow you will not be feeding acid into the pool water unless you invert the acid tubes going into and out of the pump head. This is what i did but i am a little skeptical. If you look at a picture of the recent intelliph you will see that it looks correct but the motor direction doesnt actually agree. Does anyone else know about this?
 
ajw22 said:
@Dirk which version motor head does your intelliPH have?
Click to expand...
I used to have the square shur-flo pump where the motor spun in the same direction as the arrows. I have upgraded to the new blue stenner pump where the motor spins in the opposite direction of the arrows. This is where there is a problem. In order to get the acid into the pool, you either have to invert the polarity of the dc current to the pump or switch the in and out acid tubes. Stenner agrees that this is not correct. Pentair staff has been almost useless in this matter if you can even get them on the phone so this matter remains unresolved.
 
I guess I don't know. Stenner, I think. This one:

iPh Corrosion iPh Bolt Motor.191016.jpg


jprince924 said:
Stenner agrees that this is not correct.
Click to expand...
What does Stenner think is "not correct?" Switching the polarity or the tubes?

I'm not sure what the issue is. If Stenner is spec'ing the polarity, then wire it that way and install the tubes in whichever way makes it pump correctly. If the motor can be wired either way, then wire it either way and install the tubes in whichever way makes it pump correctly.

What am I missing?

I do recall that when I first assembled my IntellipH it didn't work. After troubleshooting carefully I figured out that I had reversed how the in and out tubes go. It was counterintuitive and they go on the way you wouldn't think they would (they cross). If I remember correctly, the tube on the right of the motor goes to the tank, and the one on the left goes to the pool. I guess I first thought the tube from the tank would go to the closest fitting. But it's the opposite. If that is the issue, that's just how they do.

If you need me to go out and confirm my memory about that, I will...
 
Because I have rewired my IntellipH motor (so I could run it without the IpH controller in the winter) I know that pump motor cable has red- and black-coated conductors inside it. At least mine does. I would set the pump tubes to correspond correctly to the arrows (for future use, as the arrows are something you, or the next owner, should be able to rely on). Then I would open up the IpH controller and reverse the pump cable wiring. If you don't want to re-solder on the board, then just cut the pump wires and reconnect them with WAGO connectors or wire nuts.

If I'm missing what the real issue is, ya might have to explain it to me, sorry.
 
Dirk said:
I guess I don't know. Stenner, I think. This one:

View attachment 506499



What does Stenner think is "not correct?" Switching the polarity or the tubes?

I'm not sure what the issue is. If Stenner is spec'ing the polarity, then wire it that way and install the tubes in whichever way makes it pump correctly. If the motor can be wired either way, then wire it either way and install the tubes in whichever way makes it pump correctly.

What am I missing?

I do recall that when I first assembled my IntellipH it didn't work. After troubleshooting carefully I figured out that I had reversed how the in and out tubes go. It was counterintuitive and they go on the way you wouldn't think they would (they cross). If I remember correctly, the tube on the right of the motor goes to the tank, and the one on the left goes to the pool. I guess I first thought the tube from the tank would go to the closest fitting. But it's the opposite. If that is the issue, that's just how they do.

If you need me to go out and confirm my memory about that, I will...
Click to expand...
That is a Stenner. Mine spins in the opposite direction of the arrows on the pump face. If I don’t reverse the tubes or motor polarity, it will pump into the tank instead of pumping into the pool water. Is yours correct? Maybe me is not correct.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dirk
Mine is correct. The arrows on mine indicate the flow that is actually happening. As that is my original motor and pump, I didn't need to do anything regarding the motor's polarity.

As I suggested previously, as long as the motor works with either polarity (check with Stenner on that), I would do what I had to do to get the flow to match the arrows. Just a future safety/use concern. If that is not possible, I would file off the arrows and/or otherwise indicate how the flow should go.

But if I'm understanding correctly, this is all overthinking. And I may be off because I'm still not sure what the issue is.

When you replaced the unit, did you replace the whole thing? Is the motor, the pump and the housings for both all new? If everything about the motor and pump are replaced, and the pump is rotating in the wrong direction, then the only thing you need to correct is the polarity of the wiring. The easiest place to do that is inside the IntellipH Controller. If you'd like me to walk you through how to do that, I'd be happy to.

You'd start by turning off all the breakers and disassmbliy the IpH Controller and taking a picture of the circuit board and wiring and post it here. I'll show you where to cut and how to splice the wires back together. If you have any sort of DIY in ya, it's a simple procedure.

In the meantime, disconnect the pump cable from the IntellipH controller until you sort this out.

Please also post a picture of whatever component(s) you just replaced.
 
Oh, and is this new part an OEM part from Pentair, or are you trying to "third-party" a pump you bought from Stenner onto your old IntellipH?
 
Dirk said:
Mine is correct. The arrows on mine indicate the flow that is actually happening. As that is my original motor and pump, I didn't need to do anything regarding the motor's polarity.

As I suggested previously, as long as the motor works with either polarity (check with Stenner on that), I would do what I had to do to get the flow to match the arrows. Just a future safety/use concern. If that is not possible, I would file off the arrows and/or otherwise indicate how the flow should go.

But if I'm understanding correctly, this is all overthinking. And I may be off because I'm still not sure what the issue is.

When you replaced the unit, did you replace the whole thing? Is the motor, the pump and the housings for both all new? If everything about the motor and pump are replaced, and the pump is rotating in the wrong direction, then the only thing you need to correct is the polarity of the wiring. The easiest place to do that is inside the IntellipH Controller. If you'd like me to walk you through how to do that, I'd be happy to.

You'd start by turning off all the breakers and disassmbliy the IpH Controller and taking a picture of the circuit board and wiring and post it here. I'll show you where to cut and how to splice the wires back together. If you have any sort of DIY in ya, it's a simple procedure.

In the meantime, disconnect the pump cable from the IntellipH controller until you sort this out.

Please also post a picture of whatever component(s) you just replaced.
Click to expand...
You are absolutely correct and apparently when Pentair constructed your system it was with a board that had the correct polarity. I’m using the original board but I upgraded to the new pump. Obviously when Pentair started selling complete units with the newer blue pump they reversed the polarity of the board to suffice the new pump. The original pump was a square black with clear plastic shur-flo pump. That pump spun counter clockwise and the new (your) pump spins clockwise. I appreciate your help but I’m actually a mechanic and engineer by trade so I’ll simply switch and splice as you say the black and red wires to reverse my pump. I’m surprised that Pentair hasn’t warned the customers that just want to upgrade the pump using the original board. If the injector check valve fails and the pump is running in reverse, it will pull pool water into the acid tank and overflow wiping out whatever the tank is mounted to. This has happened to me before and Pentair’s legal department sent me a complimentary pool chemical tester to make up for the hole that the acid ate into my deck. By the way, thanks again, you’re a great guy!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dirk

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
jprince924 said:
You are absolutely correct and apparently when Pentair constructed your system it was with a board that had the correct polarity. I’m using the original board but I upgraded to the new pump. Obviously when Pentair started selling complete units with the newer blue pump they reversed the polarity of the board to suffice the new pump. The original pump was a square black with clear plastic shur-flo pump. That pump spun counter clockwise and the new (your) pump spins clockwise. I appreciate your help but I’m actually a mechanic and engineer by trade so I’ll simply switch and splice as you say the black and red wires to reverse my pump. I’m surprised that Pentair hasn’t warned the customers that just want to upgrade the pump using the original board. If the injector check valve fails and the pump is running in reverse, it will pull pool water into the acid tank and overflow wiping out whatever the tank is mounted to. This has happened to me before and Pentair’s legal department sent me a complimentary pool chemical tester to make up for the hole that the acid ate into my deck. By the way, thanks again, you’re a great guy!
Click to expand...
1687486648760.jpeg
Original pump. Notice the in and out
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dirk
It’s actually easier to pull the blue cover off and flip the white squeeze tube which reverses the pink in and out acid hoses and reinstall the blue cover. I don’t think the white squeeze tube cares which it’s being squeezed. Overthinking? Absolutely 😝😂😆, but who cares? I’m retired and having fun. You?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dirk
It’s just amazing how lame some of these billion dollar companies can be. I sent an email on this to someone at Pentair and all he could say was that he no longer works in customer service rather than alert his team of a potential problem. He told me to contact customer service. I told him that if he didn’t care about the company he works for the why should I? Where do they find these guys? And they get paid? Competent people are looking for work and he is taking the place that a caring person can fill. It’s pitiful!
 
  • Wow
Reactions: Dirk
jprince924 said:
It’s just amazing how lame some of these billion dollar companies can be. I sent an email on this to someone at Pentair and all he could say was that he no longer works in customer service rather than alert his team of a potential problem. He told me to contact customer service. I told him that if he didn’t care about the company he works for the why should I? Where do they find these guys? And they get paid? Competent people are looking for work and he is taking the place that a caring person can fill. It’s pitiful!
Click to expand...
Don't get me started... ;)

Glad you got it figured out.
 
Does seem odd that Pentair couldn't muster up an instruction set or warning about this issue. Maybe they figure ShurFlo owners will replace with ShurFlo. Or that these IntellipH models are old enough that they don't merit further effort or attention. Some sort of oversight or bean-counter decision, no doubt.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply