Aquacal heater/chiller heat pump with Intellicenter

[istreich]

I have a Aquacal heat pump model 166ARDSBNP (heater and chiller) that I would like to control via my recently installed Pentair IntelliCenter.
With my previous Intellitouch, I had been told cooling was not supported in intellitouch.
Pentair recently told me that both heating and cooling are now supported in IntelliCenter.
Has anyone successfully done it and could you share your detailed instructions incl wiring, additional part (like solar sensor) and IntelliCenter programming.

Thanks a lot in advance!

 

[ajw22]

Pentair has support in the IntelliCenter for their UltraTemp HPs to heat and cool. I think you need to ask Aquacal how your HP connects and operates with the IntelliCenter.

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I was wondering if anyone has any experience connecting an Aquacal SQ166r (Heat Pump/Chiller) to an Intellicenter Panel. The AquaCal instructions are not specifically for Intellicenter. They are written for Easy Touch or Intelli Touch and I am assuming they apply to the Intellicenter as well...

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Hello all! I recently had an AquaCal SQ225 Heat pump installed... I asked the installer about connecting it to my Intellicenter and he didn't know if it could be done. The instructions reference the EasyTouch and IntelliTouch, so I assume it can work with the IntelliCenter too. I attempted to...

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[istreich]

Thanks for the help and prompt answer. I have reached out to Aquacal and waiting to hear back. I have read the previous posts and it is still not clear where to connect the Aquacal on the Intellicenter motherboard. It seems clear that this is not one of the two RS-485 ports. But one person says gas heater port. But I seem to remember seeing that it should not be the case... Help on this would be great. Ideally be as specific as you can and don't hesitate to include picture. And ditto on programming in Intellicenter.
I have already ordered a 10k thermistor.
I will let you know what I hear from Aquacal and post details on my install once successful (fingers crossed!). Thanks.

 

[ajw22]

AFAIK, the IntelliCenter will only do its heat/cool tricks when communicating with the HP through its RS-485 comm connection.

The gas heater port is your basic "firemans switch" on/off connection that will control the heat on a HP. But that has no ability to switch the HP into COOL mode.

Heater Control with Automation - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[pjt]

I have the setup you'd like to achieve. Connect the HP to IntelliCenter via RS-485 using only the green and yellow wires.

Connect one end of the RS-485 cable to Port B on the HP:




Connect the other end inside IntelliCenter to an available comm port:

I have already ordered a 10k thermistor.

Good, you'll need that or a solar temp sensor.

Pentair recently told me that both heating and cooling are now supported in IntelliCenter.

Yes. You'll setup your AquaCal as "UltraTemp" when adding a heater in IntelliCenter. Turn "Cooling Enabled" on.




On the HP, go to the installer's menu. We have different models of HP, so the menus may differ slightly. The code is 17. Select "SET EXT. CTRL MODE" to "SMART". Exit the setup menu.



After a short wait, the main display should indicate "UNDER REMOTE CONTROL" on the bottom line.



At this point, you're connected. To turn the HP on, go to IntelliCenter: Pool --> Heat Mode --> UltraTemp Only. Set your desired heat and cool setpoints. The HP will turn on if there is a call for heat or cooling.

 

[guinness]

@pjt Great instructions! Better than the manufacturer's Installation Manual which according to metadata was created last month. I didn't know that the AquaCal had an RS-485 interface that was compatible with the UltraTemp protocol. The older four-button units only provide a fireman's switch per their Installation Manual.

 

[istreich]

Thanks @pjt
Very helpful!
How old is your heat pump and do you know the processor on it? Or alternatively the number of buttons on the display? Looks like 5 based on pics...

Reason for asking is because I have been trading messages with Aquacal and here is their latest answer:
"the Pentair controller supports cooling and heating but the microprocessor in the heater cannot.
The controller in the heat pump isn’t capable of receiving data signals from the Pentair to switch over to cooling mode.
Your unit can only support a 2 wire dry contact connection used to turn the heater on and off. Once there is demand for heat, the unit is turned on, then turned off once achieved."

Based on quick research, it seems that newer units (with HP9 microprocessor and 5 buttons display) can be fully controlled. Older units with an HP7 microprocessor and an either 3 or 4 button display can't...

I have to admit that I like your answer a lot but trying to make sure it would apply to my/all models.

Alternatively, if I could control set points in both heat and chill mode, even if I have to manually switch from heat to cool on the heat pump, it would be fine. But I am not sure this scenario works. I suspect that once connected to Intellicenter, you lose the option to use HP display to do anything.

Makes sense?

 

[pjt]

How old is your heat pump

Two years old. I have one of the first SQ150VS heat pumps.

do you know the processor on it?

No idea.

the number of buttons on the display?

Five.

Older units with an HP7 microprocessor and an either 3 or 4 button display

I'm guessing your HP has this setup.

if I could control set points in both heat and chill mode

I can do that, but apparently you won't be able to.

I suspect that once connected to Intellicenter, you lose the option to use HP display to do anything.

For my setup, I can enter the setup menus on the HP, but on/off and temperature control are done via IntelliCenter.

 

[guinness]

Based on quick research, it seems that newer units (with HP9 microprocessor and 5 buttons display) can be fully controlled. Older units with an HP7 microprocessor and an either 3 or 4 button display can't...

 

[pjt]

If you didn't want to upgrade to the HP9, you may want to consider the PoolSync WiFi Controller if your HP is compatible.

 

[istreich]

Unfortunately it looks like it also requires a HP9 upgrade. But I may be wrong.

 

[jeremystitt]

I have the setup you'd like to achieve. Connect the HP to IntelliCenter via RS-485 using only the green and yellow wires. Connect the wires inside IntelliCenter to an available comm port:

View attachment 464667

Good, you'll need that or a solar temp sensor.


Yes. You'll setup your AquaCal as "UltraTemp" when adding a heater in IntelliCenter. Turn "Cooling Enabled" on.

View attachment 464668
View attachment 464669

On the HP, go to the installer's menu. We have different models of HP, so the menus may differ slightly. The code is 17. Select "SET EXT. CTRL MODE" to "SMART". Exit the setup menu.

View attachment 464670

After a short wait, the main display should indicate "UNDER REMOTE CONTROL" on the bottom line.

View attachment 464671

At this point, you're connected. To turn the HP on, go to IntelliCenter: Pool --> Heat Mode --> UltraTemp Only. Set your desired heat and cool setpoints. The HP will turn on if there is a call for heat or cooling.

Just wanted to say these instructions were super helpful. I just had to wire up a new SQ166 that does heat and chill and it took a few tries to get wiring and com port correct, but once we did that, all worked as described here. Thanks again for putting this together.

Jeremy