Sta-Rite SR333NA E01 issues - What should I do next?

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timjanes

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Jun 4, 2013
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Hi all -- I have a Sta-Rite SR333NA that's giving me fits this season. I've had rodents in the unit prior to this and they've chewed at some of the cords, but from what I can tell, they haven't chewed through any. I've put electrical tape over all the chewed up areas, and that enabled me to get the unit running last season. There was additional rodent work this winter, and I taped over the new damage as well. Also potentially worth mentioning, there's normal pressure in the system (clean filters run at about 15 and I've cleaned them twice when it was up to 22-24). This is typical pressure for my pool during normal operation, so I think the heater's getting enough water flow.

  • E05 error/replaced SFS. When I fired it up this season (about four weeks ago), it ran well for about a day, then gave an E05 error with the SFS LED lit. I replaced the stack flue sensor a few weeks ago, and the E05 was replaced with an E01 error. ($18)
  • E01 error/replaced thermistor. Initially after the SFS replacement, the system would come on, the gas would fire shortly after, then it would error out (E01) after a minute or two with the LED near the thermistor connection would light up. After doing some research here on that E01, I replaced the thermistor, but the behavior remained. ($20)
  • E01 error/replaced thermal regulator. This past week I replaced the thermal regulator. Still getting the E01 error and the LED near the thermistor, but now the system doesn't fire up at all. Once I press the "Pool On" button, it goes right to E01 and the LED. ($52)
Probably relatedly, the new damage from the rodents this winter was to the wires right near the thermistor connection to the control board. They chewed both wires, very minor damage to one, and the other they exposed the wiring but didn't chew through. I've covered them with electrical tape.

I'm thinking I could do a few things from here, but wanted opinions from you! So far I've only spent $90 and done the most obvious things I could tell based on the errors, but now I feel like I'm getting to a little more guesswork. I'm very open to any suggestions, but among the options I'm considering:
  • Replace the membrane/panel ($60)
  • Replace the wiring harness ($150)
  • Replace the control board ($240)
If anyone has any thoughts, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Thanks much,
Tim
 
Especially since you had rat problems, i would re-verify the wiring! Both of those codes are reporting OPEN connections. I don't get that too often with good wiring. Usually those components fail with erroneous reports (wildly out of calibration). A very high temp reporting is typical. Before you buy another component, do a very close inspection of the wiring. I would suspect any bare wire exposed, and replace.

A note to all: Error codes are telling you what is happening, NOT necessarily that the component has failed! Merely that the system has either lost connection with the component, or it is getting a bad report from the switch/sensor. Many, many, times, it is the wiring that is the problem, or rather rats, that is the problem.
 
Thanks for the reply, @Pool Clown. Really appreciate it, and your guidance on what these errors indicate is helpful. On the wiring front, if I've got rodent chew on probably 40-50% of the wires, does it make more sense to replace the harness, or would you advocate a more methodical replacement? I don't mind replacing the parts I have to this point as the heater's been around for a long time at this point, so some maintenance was in order.
 
Rat pee=rust, corrosion, and general degradation. IOW, if the heater is in relatively good shape, and you have kept the water chemistry balanced, it's probably worth the investment of a wiring harness. Also, invest in some kind of rat deterrent too.

While replacing the harness (must be done as a whole), can be time consuming, trying to piece it back together can be tedious. And you never really know if you got it all (repaired), unless of course the heater fires. Even then could be just temporary if not every wire was checked/corrected.
 
Did the mice make a nest or were living under the dome top? If so, I bet they maybe caused issues with the board as well. Only way to know for sure is to replace the entire wiring harness at about $200 or so. Also if this unit is the older one with a black air orrifice on the blower, you might want to consider replacing it as you might be putting good money into something that may not have much life left in it. Especially if you end up needing a board or a control module down the road due to mice.
 
Just got done replacing the wiring harness, fired it up and I'm still getting the immediate E01 error. I found the harness for $110, so felt ok about taking a shot at this step. Are there diagnostic steps I can take to confirm (or come close to confirming) that the board and/or membrane are culprits? I'm still facing a $2000 replacement, and have so far spent only $200, so if there's some assurance that another $200 or so would work, I'm ok trying to get a season or more out of it. Since @ps0303 asked, mine does have the black air orifice on it. I suspect it's original to the pool (built in 2000). I've owned the pool since 2012 and rehab'd the heater from several years of not working (de-limed and dealt with mice issues...though obviously not preventatively), so I know I've been on borrowed time with it, but another season or few would be nice. I welcome any thoughts!

Thanks,
Tim
 
E01 involves three components.

The sensor itself.
The wiring to the sensor.
And the main board the wire is connected to.

You have replaced two of the three components...

Maybe push on the connector while you power it up and see if you still get the error, Otherwise...

...i think you know what i am going to say next.
 
When you replaced the thermal regulator, did you also check the bypass to make sure it was still in place?

Since you replaced the wiring and the thermistor, E01 error code usually indicates thermistor is bad, well that leaves the system board unfortunately. Very possible that when you tried to turn the unit on that whatever damage to the wiring the mice did might have caused a short on a component on the system board.

I would try putting some mothballs around the unit to keep rodents out.
 
Quick status update so the thread holds the complete story: I did decide to take a flyer on the board. I got the non-HD board for $230 on Amazon, installed it last night and everything worked! I don't keep my heater running all the time, so I'll let it come up to 82F this weekend (it's currently at 74F), so I'll have a more sustained period with it running and will see whether it stays working. Having now replaced wiring, sensors and the board, in that order, I'm not sure if it was solely the board that was the issue, or failures in the other two areas, but hopefully having this detailed out through this thread is helpful. I will end up replacing the heater eventually, of course, but was able to give it some maintenance and life for about $400.

I've read here that steel wool is a great anti-rodent device for heaters. If anyone has more specific guidance as to where it should be placed, I'll be tackling that soon. I'm a little skittish too because the clips that secure the top housing to the body are broken, so it's just setting in place with gravity. Anyone have suggestions for mooring that down better, or should I be replacing that piece? Seems possible that mice could push it out of the way to gain access again is my main concern.

Even if it ends up failing on me soon, a huge THANK YOU to @PoolClown and @ps0303 for taking the time to post responses. I (and many others) really appreciate how helpful these forums are because people like you take the time to respond and lend your expertise.

-Tim
 

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Those units are easy for rodents to get into. Try mothballs around it. Take a few short pieces of wire and put them thru the holes where the clips went or check if HD or one of the big box home improvement stores has some replacement clips.
 
Hi all -- Final update just to keep the thread complete. The heater is still running like a champ after 2+ months and as the Minnesota summer winds down. No issues at all. I have materials to install some 1/4" chicken wire over the various (innumerable?) rodent entry points (tip seen elsewhere on the interwebs) and we'll see how things go next year.
 
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