Mystery daily pump restart/reprime

[BowserB]

So far no answer from Pentair tech support, and my pool builder? Well, he didn't even know the pump could be controlled with an app. Pentair Intelliflo VSF 011056 pump controlled by programs via an app and the Pentair Intelliconnect RS485 interface. Up to four programs can be set up as schedule, egg timer, or manual, with different speeds for each. Schedules can even be nested. Right now, I have one schedule 1725rpm from 6am to 9pm. Program 2 is an egg timer. Programs 3 and 4 are manual. The schedule is just that, starts and stops according to times set. Egg timer and manual are off unless you start the egg timer or turn on the manual start. This app is not confusing. Easy to use and adjust. I just noticed something odd, though, and I wonder if anyone else has experienced this.

As I said 6am to 9pm is the daily run at 1725rpm. However, every day at exactly 6:58pm, the pump stops and restarts, primes, and then resumes its 1725rpm until 9pm when it shuts off. With this pump, if you use the control panel rather than the Intelliconnect and app, then there are four more programs 5-8 available. I checked, and they're all disabled. It doesn't seem to be a heat or other environmental issue. Last week was mid 90's, while yesterday and today have been cloudy and 80's. And what are the odds that an environmental factor would hit at 6:58 pm each day. I'm not aware of the Intelliconnect's time source. Mine is AT&T wireless, so what's happening could be a 7pm event--but I don't have anything at that time either. Note it is possible that the pump is restarting at some other time as well. I just haven't been out there to see it.

Any thoughts? Thanks.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Bill,

The IntelliConnect is new and not many have one, so it could be some bug in the system.. But... my gut says that it is programed to do what it is doing even if you can see it. That is why it happens at the same time each day...

I know squat about the IntelliConnect, but the first thing I would look at is what I had programmed to start at 7 am??

I would also read the manual for both the pump and the IntelliConnect and see what I needed to do to get them back to factory default condition.

As a test, I would set the pump to run from 8 am until 8 pm and see if the pump shuts off at 8:58..

Dollars to donuts it is a programming error..

Sorry I can't be of any real help on this one..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[BowserB]

Thanks, Jim. I was an I.T./computer/network/server consultant until I retired last year, so "RTM" is not a new concept to me. I rescued as many manuals as I could from the trash pile as the plumbers finished their work each day during construction. Downloaded the rest. Pentair's documentation for the Intelliconnect is primarily installation, and that's it. As to the Link2O app, there is pretty much none, and I'm not surprised, as I've had a number of conversations and email exchanges with Brian Boothe, Engineering Manager, and it seems the app in still under development. It does give Pentair the ability to look at the pump and its settings. So far nothing from Pentair. I'll try an 8 to 8 program and see what happens. I'll set it to manual first, just to be sure the existing settings are cleared. If there is a programming error, it has to be in the pump controller, the Intelliconnect firmware, or the Link2O app. The "programming" I can do is limited to start time, stop time, and pump speed.

Thanks for the idea. Are the donuts in your bet Shipley's?

 

[PoolGate]

Mine was doing something similar and it ended up being that I was having one program stop at the exact time the next one started, causing a pause in the pump, causing a re-prime. The solution was to overlap the 2 programs by a minutes. Doesn't sound like this is exactly your problem, but I agree with Jim, it is probably doing what it is programmed to do.

 

[BowserB]

I had only one schedule. The other two were an egg timer and two manual. I've set a new 8 to 8, so I'll see what happens. BTW, when you overlap, which one prevails? The ending one or the starting one. How much time do you overlap? I've been thinking about a short schedule--maybe 30 minutes--at the beginning of the day at high speed, just to get things going, blow out the settled stuff in the pipes, and blow the air out of the filter tank.

 

[BowserB]

I switched Program 1 to Manual. Then went back in and created an 8 to 8 schedule. At 8am the pump started up. At 8pm the pump stopped. In between, at 6:58pm, the pump restarted itself just like it's been doing each day. Still no word back from Pentair tech support.

 

[PoolGate]

Have you checked the Pentair system time?

 

[PoolGate]

I remember what happened to mine now. I created a macro to turn on both of my waterfalls with 1 button. I schedule that to run for 15 minutes a day in the morning. When it turned off after 15 minutes, for some reason it turned the pump off too causing it to re-prime.

 

[Rocket J Squirrel]

I think there’s corruption in your automation’s program. Write down or photograph all your automation settings. Erase the EEPROM and start over.

 

[BowserB]

Rocket, I don't really have the ability to erase--or even locate--an eeprom. Best I could do was to remove and re-add the two relay-activated devices--a "flow dependent" booster pump for the now retired pressure side cleaner; and a Pentair Whisperflo pump for water features. PoolGate, I also have a schedule for the water feature pump to run 10 minutes every day. That pump is set up as a "non flow dependent" device, so it operates independently of the filter pump. I believe the Pentair controller time difference is what accounts for the 6:58pm reboot time. Whatever is happening is probably scheduled for 7pm.

In any case, I have a scheduled call today with Brian Boothe. He's been a big help in the past, so I'm hoping he'll find the glitch.

 

[BowserB]

Mysterious pump restart solved. In the interim, I found the pump was also restarting at 11am. My original 6:58 was really 7pm. I just hadn't synced my Fitbit in quite a while, and its time was off. So the pump was restarting at 7pm and 11am central time. Pentair's Brian Boothe called me back yesterday. He found the answer from the firmware programmer. It seems the Intelliconnect box does a time sync with Pentair servers at 11am and 7pm central time every day. In turn, the Intelliconnect polls the Intelliflo pump about once a minute to deliver program changes, if any, and to sync the pump time at 11am and 7pm. Any change sent to the pump causes it to stop and restart. Amazing thing is that Pentair has a lot of Intelliconnect/Intelliflo installations, yet I was the first person to notice the restarts and contact Pentair about it! Brian did share that the twice a day time sync may be changed to once a day and the sync schedule may also be altered. I suggested 3am would be a good time, as that would also catch the two DST time changes as well.

 

[mknauss]

Bill -- could you add the Intelliconnect to your signature?