IC40 displaying good flow/salt levels no chlorine production

[datdye]

Hello,
I've read through several related threads and attempted to troubleshoot my Pentair SWG on my own without any luck. Maybe someone can figure out what I missed! First a little overview and then I'll list the troubleshooting I've done:
IC40 purchased/installed last May (2021) worked fine all year
IC removed and dummy installed for winter (cell itself remained outside/connected to ET
IC only displays steady green flow light/salt indicator when pump is on; cell light/percentages are blank
ET diagnostic displays "communication lost" and salt level "0 ppm" This display remains anytime the pump is on (both on ET and SL app)

1. Had water tested at local shop; salt levels ~3300 ppm
2. Visual inspection of IC wiring checked out. Connection at ET look okay
3. During salt cell diagnostic mode I noticed the salt light displays red briefly but then returns to steady green
4. ET settings show IC enabled/100%
5. Did ET system reset with no change to IC

My next step is to reach out to Pentair, thought I'd post here first and see if anyone has suggestions.
Thanks in advance!

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

Did you try increasing the cell percentage using the up button on the cell control panel?

Communications lost indicates a problem with the RS-485 connection to the EasyTouch. Once we get communications working the other problems should go away.

Do you have a separate IntelliChlor Power Center or is it integrated into the EasyTouch Load Center?

 

[datdye]

Allen,

Thank you for your post -- cell percentage is at 100 but I am only able to verify this value after depressing/holding "less" on the IC for a brief time. This results in the display showing the current assigned value. Once these lights have greened up, I am able to adjust the value either up/down but after about 30 seconds they go blank again and I am unable to make any further adjustments. Only lights displayed at this point are the green flow indicator and the green salt indicator.
IC is integrated into the ET panel - no separate power center. I have attempted reseating the RS485 connector on the ET panel with no change noted. I traced the wiring to the bottom of the panel and it seems in good condition.
I agree 100% this is probably a comm issue, but no idea why/how. Is replacing the ET/SWG 4 pin cable the best option at this point?

 

[ajw22]

What pump do you have? Your signature does not list a pump.

Do you have other devices on the RS-485 COMM link?

I doubt it is the cable. I would disconnect the cell yellow and green RS-485 wires from the ET RS-485 connector and see if the cell works in stand alone mode not connected to the ET. That will isolate if the problem is in the cell or in the RS-485 communication.

@Jimrahbe

 

[Jimrahbe]

D,

On the back wall of your EasyTouch is the Surge card.. Basically, the card is a power supply that gets 28 volts AC from the SWCG transformer and changes it into about 35 to 40 volts DC. But this same card also sends the RS-485 communication to the salt cell. The Surge card is connected to the main board's com port by a 4 wire cable that runs between J20 on and main board and any of the three 4 pin com port connectors on the Surge card. If the wires on that cable don't have good connections it can cause the EasyTouch not to be able to communicate with the cell.

I would check both ends of that cable.

Just to be clear, here is what the Surge card looks like..

SWG Power Supply PCB.jpg

• Jimrahbe
• Sep 21, 2016

On my system the small grey cable coming off the lower left connector is the one that goes to the main board J20, but it could any of the three connectors as they are all the same.


Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[datdye]

What pump do you have? Your signature does not list a pump.

Do you have other devices on the RS-485 COMM link?

I doubt it is the cable. I would disconnect the cell yellow and green RS-485 wires from the ET RS-485 connector and see if the cell works in stand alone mode not connected to the ET. That will isolate if the problem is in the cell or in the RS-485 communication.

@Jimrahbe

I have a whisperflo vs pump, the IC is the only connection on the comm link far as I know. Still under warranty far as I know so hopefully a replacement is an option if nothing else checks out.

 

[datdye]

D,

On the back wall of your EasyTouch is the Surge card.. Basically, the card is a power supply that gets 28 volts AC from the SWCG transformer and changes it into about 35 to 40 volts DC. But this same card also sends the RS-485 communication to the salt cell. The Surge card is connected to the main board's com port by a 4 wire cable that runs between J20 on and main board and any of the three 4 pin com port connectors on the Surge card. If the wires on that cable don't have good connections it can cause the EasyTouch not to be able to communicate with the cell.

I would check both ends of that cable.

Just to be clear, here is what the Surge card looks like..

SWG Power Supply PCB.jpg

• Jimrahbe
• Sep 21, 2016

On my system the small grey cable coming off the lower left connector is the one that goes to the main board J20, but it could any of the three connectors as they are all the same.


Thanks,

Jim R.

I have checked the panel and it looks connection is from J20 to the com3 port on the surge card. It's quite a jumble at J20 with the pump, surge connection, and wireless module connected there. Everything looks solid - would you recommend removing the connections and redoing the wiring? I've attempted uploading some photos but couldn't figure out which type of file would work.

 

[Jimrahbe]

D,

The Surge card has three com port connectors... They are all the same point electrically. The best option is to run one 4 wire cable from J20 on the main board to any com port on the surge card. Then use the other two empty com ports on the surge card as your connections to the different devices. This works much better than trying to cram a bunch of wires into the same connector.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[datdye]

I have checked the panel and it looks connection is from J20 to the com3 port on the surge card. It's quite a jumble at J20 with the pump, surge connection, and wireless module connected there. Everything looks solid - would you recommend removing the connections and redoing the wiring? I've attempted uploading some photos but couldn't figure out which type of file would work.

Just completed rewiring the surge panel to the J20 and everything works now! Thanks to all for the inputs -- there was some electrical tape on the connections that had melted from the afternoon sun. Clean connections for the J20 did the trick. I appreciate everyones help with this!

 

[Jimrahbe]

D,

Excellent!!

Glad you were able to get it working again.

Jim R.