Maytronics repairs

[rjb1211]

My Dolphin Oasis Z5 (M500?) is 7 years old so I am not going to complain that is is acting flaky. I do need to figure out what I am going to do about it.

First off everything is original so I don't think it makes sense to put a lot of money into it trying to fix it. It powers on and sometimes runs for a couple of minutes before shutting down while other times it starts to turn on and stops immediately. If this is a power supply issue I know those are pricey and I will just get a new cleaner.

I see Maytronics has a service where you can send the cleaner to them and they will inspect it. Does anyone know what that charge is if you decide not to have any work done? Do they charge so much for repairs that it isn't worth bothering with it?

 

[ogdento]

I can't speak to maytronics service offerings, but I had similar symptoms with my robot, although there could be many different root causes.

My issue was the swivel adapter in the cable (it's about a 3' length of cable that goes from the robot into a "white cylinder" that allows the cable to twist easier). Inside the cylinder are 3 or so spring loaded pins, and mine were crusted up with minerals... A little vinegar and then a cleansing soak in water cleaned it up and I was back in business

 

[ogdento]

Here's a link to my picture... When the cable got a slight tug the pins would lose contact and the robot would stop. Sometimes it wouldn't start again unless I "pushed" the cable back into the swivel. Cleaning - as described above - fixed it

Dolphin e70 won’t turn start

Hello: My E70 won’t move. I have checked the impeller, tracks are moving freely, and everything appears clean. Any suggestions?

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[rjb1211]

Thanks. I was messing around with the cleaner and when I pulled on the cord it started working. It ran for about 1/3 of the cycle before shutting down again. That made me think I might have a problem with the swivel as you described.

How do you get it apart to check the contacts?

 

[ogdento]

The white swivel cylinder is two parts that are screwed together... you should be able to grab one half with your hand and the other with some pliers and unscrew it. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to fix mine so I ordered a replacement for $50 from Marina pool and spa (not sure if this same part fits yours):

9995791-RC-DIY Cable - Marina Pool Spa & Patio

9995791-RC-DIY Cable

marinapoolspaandpatio.com

 

[rjb1211]

Thanks for suggesting that but it didn’t fix my problem. Getting the swivel apart was easy. The inside of mine was pristine and the pins had no binding. I put it back together and turned on the cleaner. Now it doesn’t even try to work.

 

[ogdento]

hmm, if it worked when all you did was tug on the cord then it's got to be the swivel, right?

If you've got a multimeter you can test the whole cable... this is what I did:

First - with the swivel intact and the cable plugged into the power supply but removed from the robot motor - I figured out which was ground and checked the voltages on the other two wires (they were 29 and 27ish), but if I pushed the cable into the swivel the wire connected to the center pin would lose voltage, and then when I pulled on the cable (or vice versa, I forget), the voltage was back.

So I then removed the cable from power supply - and with it still removed from the motor I tested the ohms/continuity on each wire from one end of the cable to the other (and still through the swivel). Similarly to my voltage check, if I pushed the cable into the swivel I had continuity on all wires, but when I pulled on the cable, the wire going to the center pin had no continuity.

My concern is the spring pins inside the swivel may move and look clean, but they could be corroded inside the swivel at the wire connection

 

[rjb1211]

I do have a contact problem but it is not at the swivel. I completely disassembled the cleaner and found there was extreme corrosion on the pins of the plug that goes into the drive housing. I found some water inside that housing but I don’t know if it came through that plug or if there is another problem.

I need to do some searching online for parts to determine if I am going to try to fix this or just get a new one.

 

[ogdento]

nice, you found it! you might be able to clean the pins with vinegar (flush with water after)

but if you do need need a new cable - and I'm not sure if yours is the same as mine - but you can probably buy just the short length that goes from the swivel to the robot (that's what I bought from Marina for $50). The complete cables are much more expensive

 

[rjb1211]

nice, you found it! you might be able to clean the pins with vinegar (flush with water after)

but if you do need need a new cable - and I'm not sure if yours is the same as mine - but you can probably buy just the short length that goes from the swivel to the robot (that's what I bought from Marina for $50). The complete cables are much more expensive

My corrosion was so bad that the pins had disintegrated. I did find my version of the short piece and ordered it

I should have my repairs done by the weekend. Getting back to my original question I am glad that I didn’t send it in for diagnostics.

 

[ogdento]

you surely did a better job diagnosing it yourself!

 

[rjb1211]

I still have an issue to chase down. When I opened the motor and control case there was a very small amount of water inside. I put it in a container filled with water to see if the leak was through the axle openings and after a day there was no intrusion. I will check the main o-ring but when I pried it open that was really tight.

That leaves the opening in the lid for the water fan and the plug in the lid. My guess is the plug. I am going to put some water in that to see if it leaks.

 

[ogdento]

Interesting... I've never cracked open the motor housing so I'd be interested in what you find.

 

[rjb1211]

I thought it would be a good idea to update this thread since I got info relevant to my original question.

To recap I replaced the short end of my power cord since the plug that goes into the motor housing had disintegrated due to corrosion. Next I replaced the motor unit ($400) because I wasn't getting power past the plug and couldn't just buy the top of the housing.

When I got it all reassembled the cleaner ran for one cycle and then a few minutes on the next before it stopped. The impeller still spun but the drive motors would not engage. I did some testing and found I had good power so I contacted the seller I used for the new motor unit. They told me I had to contact Maytronics for warranty issues.

Maytronics would not just replace the motor unit. I was told I had to send the cleaner, cord, and power supply to one of there repair centers at my expense. No amount of arguing got me past that, so I packed everything up and sent it to the shop they instructed. They did agree to check it out no charge but that the turn around time would be 2 to 3 weeks. Any issues beyond the motor would be billed to me.

I was shocked and dismayed that one hour after my shipment was delivered I got a notice that a label was created to send the cleaner back to me. I thought for sure there was a problem and they weren't going to repair it. I opened the box immediately when it was delivered and to my surprise the invoice/packing sheet said that the motor unit had been replaced at no charge. I have only tried it once but it did run a full cycle in the pool without any problems.

While October in Pennsylvania is not prime pool season I am still impressed with the service I received. Having to pay for shipping sticks in my craw a little but the charge was only $17 and I now have the cleaner back in service. To my original question I don't know what they would have charged me if everything was on my dime but I can say the experience was good.

 

[rjb1211]

Interesting... I've never cracked open the motor housing so I'd be interested in what you find.

I just realized I didn’t give you an answer on this.

I had put the motor unit in a container with water up to just below the top. After a day there was no water in it so it wasn’t leaking through the motors. That means the leak was through the plug connection, the impeller motor, or the top seal. In any event I didn’t have confidence that it would be water tight going forward so I just bought a new motor unit to be done with it. What I didn’t count on was the new motor unit failing.