Pentair IC40 COM Link Error

[BrianSD]

I've been trying to sort out a problem with our IC40. When we opened the pool in late May, everything was fine. I got the water balanced and the cell installed (I use the "dummy cell" when the pool is closed) and everything was working. Fast forward a couple of weeks and I noticed that the cell was off (no lights) when the pump was running. I looked in the Diagnostics menu on the Easytouch system and the last line said "COM Link Error".

Being the "cheap" guy that I am, I started looking for solutions to this problem on the web rather than calling someone. I usually have good luck finding information on problems, but I couldn't find anything extensive on the problem this time. I found some old threads on TFP that mentioned resetting the system, so I tried that last weekend. I can't remember the exact sequence that I used, but something I did worked because that cell started working again. So, I patted myself on the back and went back about my business. Well, about 3 or 4 days later (I was checking every day) I found that the lights were out again. Once again, I tried resetting things (pushing the reset button and flipping the AC breakers) to no avail. Wah, Wah (sad trombone sound). There is one difference this time from last in that the salt reading in the diagnostics menu is now "0" where it was reading the true level previously even with the COM Link Error reported.

Can anyone provide any advice on troubleshooting the problem here? The way I see it, the problem could be with the cell, the wire, the control board in the Easytouch, or the transformer. If the cell is bad, I'll replace it, but I don't want to replace it if the problem is somewhere else...

I don't think that I have a warranty anymore, and I haven't called Pentair. The system was self installed in August, 2012.

Thanks in advance.

 

[mmcwhorter]

I just had an issue with my IC-40. There is a thread about it on TFP.......I got it solved and all I can say is the Pentair support was really great. Call them. My unit is working perfectly now. I hope it stays that way

 

[Jimrahbe]

Brian,

Welcome to TFP... A Great resource for those of us with communication problems...

If your EasyTouch can communicate with your pump, then the problem is not in the ET.

If your system is wired correctly, then the Pump/Filter relay has to be energized for the SWCG's power transformer to get power. With the IntelliFlo, just because the pump is running does not mean the relay is closed. So you could have a bad or intermittent relay.

If you drop the main panel down, you can see a small 4" square PCB mounted to the back wall of the ET. If you can see a green led (on) then that means the power supply is working.

Turn off the power to the system, and when it comes up, the IC40 should have lights and two lights are flashing back and forth (red/green). Once this calibration cycle stops, the lights should stay on. If, after the cal cycle, all the lights go out, your cell is most likely toast.

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[BrianSD]

Thanks Mark and Jim.

I checked the pump/filter relay and there is definitely power coming out on both lines (120VAC per line) to the SWCG transformer. The transformer is warm, too.

The circuit board at the back has several green lights and one blinking red light (D1). I don't know if the "D1" indicator has always behaved that way (blinking red) or if that is a new thing. I couldn't find anything online about what those lights mean. I'm attaching a picture of the board (I hope). The Cell PWR, Board PWR, and D2 lights are green. The D1 light is blinking red, and the D3 light is off.

I read somewhere else (I can't remember where) that there should be about 30 VDC coming out of the SWCG board on the red wire that routes down inside the ET to the connector at the bottom. I'm only seeing 21.5 Volts. Is that a problem, or is it simply because the cell isn't drawing power?

Thanks again,
Brian D.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Brain,

Wow... I got cheated.. my PCB only has one LED D7 (Cell power)...

I get 42 volts DC between the red and black wires on the connector going to the SWCG when the cell is not producing chlorine and 37 VDC when it is producing chlorine.

I would think 21 volts would be way too low, but I have no idea if that means the cell is bad or if your power supply card is bad??? You have a lot more circuitry on your small PCB than I do.

I guess I would disconnect the SWCG and see what the lights and voltages are then...

Do the cell lights ever turn on???

Jim R.

 

[BrianSD]

Now this is interesting. I went down to confirm that the cell lights never came on to answer Jim's question. The pump wasn't running yet, so I shut off all of the breakers again. While the breakers were off, I disconnected the salt cell cable and checked the continuity between the pins at the bottom of the ET and the plug on the control board. All was good. I then reconnected the cable and flipped on all of the breakers. Once the ET system was back up, I went into the diagnostics menu and performed a reset (I don't think this changed anything, but I was in there anyway). As before the cell diagnostics reported all OK and a salt reading of 0 ppm (to be expected because the system had been reset). I connected the volt meter to the black and red wires coming off of the board and then hit the F button to fire up the pump. Lo and behold, the salt cell lights came on. It went through its startup routine and then settled down with the proper lights all on. It seems to be working again. The diagnostics menu reports OK with 3600 ppm salt. My salt strip says 3500 ppm.

I got some strange readings on the volt meter during the startup until I remembered that I had to switch the red wire from the Ohm socket to the voltage socket (D'OH!). Once I got that sorted out I was able to measure 36 Volts when the cell is on and 44 Volts when the cell is off (similar to Jim's readings).

I really don't like intermittent faults, but it seems like that is what is happening. I guess I'll just have to keep my eye on it.

I'm not sure why the circuit boards are different. Maybe they cut back on the boards between 2012 and 2015. I have looked for replacement boards and found the listed replacements to be smaller than what is in my box.

Thanks for the help. I'll add any further updates as they occur.

Brian D.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Brian,

My original IC40 was about 2.5 years old and something similar started happening to me. The cell would come up and run the calibration routine and then appear to be ok. but... At random times, after the cal routine all the light would go out. It would then come back on line and go through the cal routine again. It would often go back through the cal routine several times before being good for hours.

I called my PB, because I'm still under warranty, and they set out a Pentair tech. Of course, it ran fine for the hour he was here, but I did show him a video of what was happening. The PB sent out one of their guys who just by coincidence came just as the cell started going though the cal routine seven times in a row. So now I'm not looking as crazy as they thought...

PB called the Pentair rep and they came out a replaced the cell and it has been working fine ever since.

Thanks,

Jim R.