pentair 340042 probably dead and in need of replacement

[Marvin]

got home tonight to a silent pump. Breaker had tripped; noticed a burnt wire at the timer box. not good, obviously. Been very hot today and the superflo had been running on high. Checked connections, reset breaker, and had 120v across 2 lines to motor, same result even after checking a new start capacitor: barely a .5 second noise on high followed by dead silence. (No sound at all on the low setting.) Does not seem to have any thermal reset button (?) so I guess it must me dead. Not very happy about that after only 5 years of service, so checking here for other ideas about diagnostics, replacing only the motor/seals, or a replacement unit that hopefully plumbs in easily into same space.

 

[Marvin]

for reference, this unit is a 2018 Superflo, 2 speed

 

[Ahultin]

240v pump? Do you still have 240 at the breaker?

 

[Marvin]

yes, sorry, 240v from the breaker and in the intermatic timer box. That is what I meant by 2 lines @ 120v

 

[Marvin]

impeller seems to turn pretty freely when I reach in through basket, so it appears to be the motor. Would have bought a no-name brand if I knew I would only get 5 years out of this one. The previous Hayward already had a few years on it when we got the house and made it an additonal 8, so at least 2-3 times longer service life.
forgot: 1 HP. pool is around 10,000 gl

 

[Ahultin]

yes, sorry, 240v from the breaker and in the intermatic timer box. That is what I meant by 2 lines @ 120v

Did you test for 240v at the pump with a multimeter from L1 to L2? (Testing 120v L1 to ground L2 to ground does not confirm 240 at pump)
Also check the pump wire for abrasions/rodent damage, burnt wire at the timer sounds like a short.

 

[Marvin]

talking to myself here, but read that a false reading is possible by checking L1 and L2 separately. I had not pulled the cover to the motor to check there for a full 240 v, although I would think that a 2 speed pump getting at least 120 would work on the low setting if it was getting at least the tested 120v

 

[Ahultin]

although I would think that a 2 speed pump getting at least 120 would work on the low setting if it was getting at least the tested 120v

There is no neutral at the pump just L1/L2/ground

 

[Marvin]

sorry, did not see your quick responses. pump cover backs up a little tight to house so had not tested at pump yet. so test leads go to L1 and L2 to check for 240v?

 

[Ahultin]

sorry, did not see your quick responses. pump cover backs up a little tight to house so had not tested at pump yet. so test leads go to L1 and L2 to check for 240v?

Yup

 

[Marvin]

Yup

well that may be good news, since I seem to have 240 when testing the line in (1 & 3) but not at 2 & 4, at least in the timer box.
I'm guessin there might be a way to "hot wire" and bypass the timer relay to check.

 

[Ahultin]

well that may be good news, since I seem to have 240 when testing the line in (1 & 3) but not at 2 & 4, at least in the timer box.
I'm guessin there might be a way to "hot wire" and bypass the timer relay to check.

After confirming the pump wiring is good (do a continuity test)You could temporarily move the pump wires from the load side of the timer to the line side.

 

[Marvin]

perfect. will do. based on assumption that short may be in the leads from box to pump that needs to be ruled out. for sure not getting juice to the load side on the timer assembly. a million thanks

 

[Marvin]

make that 2 million. Melting of the body of timer relay at the line #2 allowed the relay leaf to lose just enough contact to open the circuit. Temp fix is a piece of 12awg wedged into the gap. Of course we are hosting a big group for literally the first time in years today for a crawfish boil and it blows the night before. And Sunday to boot. Murphy's law.
I'm still concerned by the melting after 15+ years of service and running on low speed for precaution.
Follow up: this mechanical timer seemed dead reliable over the electronic wizardry of modern systems. Any reason not to replace with a similar mechanical? I may do one that allows an initial high setting followed by running at low because the low setting does not generate enough head to get the chlorine tabs wet when I choose to use them (mostly doing liquid since finding this site) so I sometimes end up leaving it on high, which does not help for the heat generation.

 

[Ahultin]

The contact may have just worn enough over 15yrs to reduce the surface area such that it was starting to arc/overheat. You should be fine to just replace the mechanical with a like replacement part.

I would likely err to caution and temporarily bypass the timer altogether/run low or high 24 Jr's until you can get the replacement. The wire jammed in there does not give warm fuzzies.

While you at it, replace the pump breaker with a gfci if it has not been already over the past 15yrs.
Siemens QF220A QF220 Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter, 20 Amp, 2 Pole, 120 Volt, 10,000 AIC, Color https://a.co/d/gYQkonn

 

[ajw22]

I suggest you connect together the LINE and LOAD wires, run the pump 24/7, and bypass the timer until it is replaced.

That wire as a shim to make an electrical connection sounds like a fire hazard.

 

[Marvin]

understood re:direct connect vs shim. thanks again. running 24hr on low now