HAYWARD EcoStar SP3400 / Possible to bypass the drive?

[ccelle]

My pump is showing the DRIVE ERROR - PUMP HAS STALLED error. It spins freely. I have tried several times turning the breaker off/on after 30 mins+. The wire connections seem to be fine.

I can't afford a new drive at this time. Is there a way to bypass the drive and hard wire the pump? I'm fine with one speed, just need the pump up and running until a permanent solution is available.

Thanks
Carl

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

How old is the pump?

Have you contacted your pool builder or Hayward. There have been lots of failures of Ecostar pump drives,

I have not heard of anyone hacking the pump to run it at one speed without the drive.

 

[ccelle]

Welcome to TFP.

How old is the pump?

Have you contacted your pool builder or Hayward. There have been lots of failures of Ecostar pump drives,

I have not heard of anyone hacking the pump to run it at one speed without the drive.

Hi ajw22,

We bought the house 2 years ago so I don't know the exact age of the pump. I spoke with a Hayward rep but I didn't have the pump info with me at the time so I emailed him with my serial number and explaining the issue and just waiting to hear back. I went over the items that I already tried (listing above) and he mentioned that the only other thing it could be is the drive. I'm sure I will hear from him at the beginning of the week but wanted to get a jump on other options, if needed.

I was hoping that the motor might have some kind of default speed that could carry me over.

Thanks for the help.

 

[JamesW]

Remove the Blue, Black and Red wires from the drive and check each motor lead to ground.

There should be no continuity.

Next, check continuity from lead to lead. Ohms reading should be between 0.5 and 1.0 ohms max.

If any of these readings are outside limits, replace motor. If they are within range, replace drive.

It's a three phase motor, you would need a variable frequency drive to convert the power from single phase into three phase at the right frequency.

How old is the pump?

 

[ccelle]

Remove the Blue, Black and Red wires from the drive and check each motor lead to ground.

There should be no continuity.

Next, check continuity from lead to lead. Ohms reading should be between 0.5 and 1.0 ohms max.

If any of these readings are outside limits, replace motor. If they are within range, replace drive.

It's a three phase motor, you would need a variable frequency drive to convert the power from single phase into three phase at the right frequency.

How old is the pump?

Thanks JamesW,

I'll try that and get back to you.

 

[ajw22]

This thread describes how to replace the EcoStar motor with a single or dual speed motor to make it equivalent to a TriStar pump.

SP3400VSP Failed, need replacement recommendations

So the original pump was a single speed 1hp Hayward Super II Pump (per original pool order paperwork) that must have failed. The PPO swapped that failed pump for a new SP3400VSP that is supposedly rated to replace up to a 3 hp pump? I always ran it at 100% since I only use it for in floor...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[ccelle]

This thread describes how to replace the EcoStar motor with a single or dual speed motor to make it equivalent to a TriStar pump.

SP3400VSP Failed, need replacement recommendations

So the original pump was a single speed 1hp Hayward Super II Pump (per original pool order paperwork) that must have failed. The PPO swapped that failed pump for a new SP3400VSP that is supposedly rated to replace up to a 3 hp pump? I always ran it at 100% since I only use it for in floor...

www.troublefreepool.com

UPDATE: I thought I could borrow a multimeter but nobody I know has one so I can't test the motor as JamesW suggested.

I heard back from Hayward. My pump is a 2014 so its out of warranty so I would have to buy a new drive. I can't see myself doing that given all the issues that I have read with this pump.

I also asked Hayward if this could be converted to a single speed. The Hayward's rep response is below in case anyone is trying to do the same in the future.

" I had to double check with our engineers where those are manufactured, unfortunately there is not a way to bypass the need for a drive on that motor. The only suggestion I was able to find would be depending on costs you could swap in a single speed Tristar motor for that unit and convert it to a single speed motor. Spx3230z1ber would the part number for 3hp Tristar motor. "

Looks like I'm going shopping for a single speed motor.

Thanks for the help!

 

[JamesW]

You can buy a multimeter at any hardware store.

If you're going to be doing work like this, you should have a good multimeter.

You don't need a 3 hp motor. If you replace the impeller and diffuser, you can go to a much smaller motor.

 

[ccelle]

You can buy a multimeter at any hardware store.

If you're going to be doing work like this, you should have a good multimeter.

You don't need a 3 hp motor. If you replace the impeller and diffuser, you can go to a much smaller motor.

Thanks JamesW! I just got off the phone with a local Phoenix pool pump repair shop and they told me the same thing. He mentioned that he sees this scenario quite often. I have a 20K gallon pool with a Triton II - TR60 filter so he mentioned that I can go with a 1HP, new impeller and a few other items for about $220. That sounds much more doable for me.

Thanks again.