Screen logic orrrrrr easy touch pl4 board need help

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Nickest1981

0
Sep 22, 2018
8
Westerly ri
Ok guys sorry for asking for help before contributing but I need it sooooooo
not sure exactly what happened didn't have anything that would tip me off i.e. Rewiring , power outage , earthquake but suddenly after working fine all summer my screen logic stopped working so getting the "can't connect address invalid" message on computer. Also the pump no longer displays the "display not active" message. I read on here as much as I could and also called pentair tech help and am stuck. I have pentair easytouch pl4 panel the pentair ic40 salt generator and pentair intelliflo vs pump. Now after reading the forum the closest thing I can get to issssssss we had a pretty bad thunderstorm the other day and while none of my surge protectors flipped (including the one I have in panel at pad) we did have a flicker. I read on here since I have a hard line from outdoor antenna to indoor screen logic brick to indoor 4 button controller that if the network lines took a hit the rj-485 line could have carried a surge back to the j20 connector in panel smh :drown:
So as of now after talking to tech this is where I'm at. Got a blinking green light on outdoor antenna for screen logic and the pump seems no longer connected and I unplugged SWCG line and nothing changed any help would be greatly appreciated
 
Nick,

If your pump does not say "Display Not Active", then most likely you have a bad com port on the main board.

The best way to trouble shoot the problem is to disconnect everything on the com port, except the pump... this means disconnecting all other com port connections from the salt cell, ScreenLogic, and anything other than the pump. If you have a hardwired indoor unit, it also need to be taken off the bus..

With only the pump connected to the com port, if the pump does not say "Display not active", it is most likely the main board. In theory it could be the pump, but so far it has always been the main board.

If under warranty, Pentair should fix it for free..

Does your panel have a load center with circuit breakers? Is your salt cell power supply built into your EasyTouch or is it a separate box?

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
I just went through the same thing. While I was waiting for my new board I did keep the panel in auto mode so the salt generator was still able to run to produce my chlorine. Even though I could not control anything via screen logic I was able to use the hard buttons on the pump and ic40 to keep my pool maintained till my new board came.

Jim
 
Jimrahbe said:
Nick,

If your pump does not say "Display Not Active", then most likely you have a bad com port on the main board.

The best way to trouble shoot the problem is to disconnect everything on the com port, except the pump... this means disconnecting all other com port connections from the salt cell, ScreenLogic, and anything other than the pump. If you have a hardwired indoor unit, it also need to be taken off the bus..

With only the pump connected to the com port, if the pump does not say "Display not active", it is most likely the main board. In theory it could be the pump, but so far it has always been the main board.

If under warranty, Pentair should fix it for free..

Does your panel have a load center with circuit breakers? Is your salt cell power supply built into your EasyTouch or is it a separate box?

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...




Yes it has it has the three breakers for board , lights/gfi ,and pump. It also has the salt cell piece built in. Thanks so much for the response. I will unhook everything now and try just the pump. Is the piece that screws into bottom left of panel from salt cell the only thing from cell to take off? Nothing from the salt cell board inside ET panel correct?
 
Nickest1981 said:
Yes it has it has the three breakers for board , lights/gfi ,and pump. It also has the salt cell piece built in. Thanks so much for the response. I will unhook everything now and try just the pump. Is the piece that screws into bottom left of panel from salt cell the only thing from cell to take off? Nothing from the salt cell board inside ET panel correct?
Click to expand...

You can just unplug the com cable that goes between J20 and the little salt cell card in the back of the ET..

If you have a load center with circuit breakers and a built-in salt power supply then you do NOT have a PL4 The "L" designates a "lite" version unit, which has no load center. You have a "real" EasyTouch..

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
You can just unplug the com cable that goes between J20 and the little salt cell card in the back of the ET..

If you have a load center with circuit breakers and a built-in salt power supply then you do NOT have a PL4 The "L" designates a "lite" version unit, which has no load center. You have a "real" EasyTouch..

Jim R.
Click to expand...


Ok sorry about thought it was the L version. So just need to unhook the com cable from SAlt cell generator right?
 
Got it! And I just read your signature I also have a caldera hot tub. Best brand imho least amount of headaches out of the 3 diff brands I've owned

- - - Updated - - -

Jimrahbe said:
One more thing.. The EasyTouch has to be in the "Auto" mode and NOT in the Service mode for the pump to read "Display Not Active"
Click to expand...


Quick question. If the ET panel is still telling me my salt % reading can we assume the SCG is in working order?
 

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Nick,

The problem is that the ET will capture the salt reading and it will stay that way until something changes it. The cell only updates it every 12 hours.

For the cell to update the ET, the com port has to be working... If the cell can change the salt readings on the ET, then the com port can't be bad...


I bought my 2008 Caldera, spa used, and it has been great!!. I recently had to replace the circulation motor, but I suspect that was because I left it on when draining the spa and did not realize it soon enough. But it was a pretty cheap and easy to fix. Just the wife and I, but we use it almost every night... we love it.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
Hey Nick,
Ever figure out which piece of equipment was the root of your comm port problem?

We see a lot of storm related comm port failures and I'm interested in whether we can do anything to help prevent them... I don't want to steer your post way off topic, but can you describe the hard wired line from your outdoor easytouch panel? How long is the run, is it underground (in conduit or direct buried), what gauge is the cable, is the cable shielded and if so is the shield grounded (on one or both ends)?

Thanks!
Tom
 
Hey Ogden sorry for the 3 year later response but figured since I just remembered my sign in info I’d let you know. For anyone who stumbles upon this thread and just for closure. It ended up being exactly what Jimrahbe said it would be! It really is uncanny the guy is always on the money. But yes com mother board out from surge. Worth mentioning the surge did not come from power lines but over hard lined j20 port from indoor 4 button panel. Originating from Ethernet switch/line. So I did indeed run a hard line from j20 to indoor protocol adapter which I know is overkill since i did have the screenlogic I could have just jumped off that but I am a huge believer in physical connections be it WiFi or any wireless tech. But to answer your question ran 18 gauge shielded thermostat wire with 4 solid copper 22 gauge lines inside from panel through conduit to basement about 35 ft where I plugged into protocol adapter then into stairway about 65 feet total. I know it doesn’t seem super long but having the conduit straight from pad to house cut down length ALOT!! Pentair did warranty it since it was less than a year old. But culprit after all that was indeed the Ethernet line from switch to screenlogic adapter. In my defense I was not aware a surge that small could pass over Ethernet and into data line and be powerful enough to short the board. Sincere Thanks again to the members who helped
 
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