I recently purchased a SolarTouch control unit and a IntelleFlo i2 pump to retrofit an old single speed pump and manual solar valve. I installed the pump first and ran the system manually (manual speed control on the pump and manually redirected the flow to the solar panels). Everything worked fine.
I then installed the SolarTouch (ST), motorized valve and connected the communication cable. I set the program on the pump to start at 12:01 AM and off at 12:00 PM, (although I also have a mechanical timer set for 8 AM and 5 PM on and off time respectively) and set the program speeds 1 - 4 to what the SolarTouch uses; 1 for normal non-solar heat speed, 3 for solar heat, and 4 for Solar Hold. I fired everything up, set the SolarTouch to heat, set the desired pool water temperature up to 88 deg (to ensure it was way over my pool water temp). It was a warm day and the air/roof temperature was high enough to enable the SolarTouch to call for solar heat. Everything appeared to be working fine, ST displayed Solar Hold, pump went into speed 4, 5 minutes later the control valve opened, and 5 minutes after that the pump went to speed 3. I ran the system on 8am-5pm auto for a couple of days. It had been a cold and cloudy winter down on the west coast of florida, so when the frequent clouds came, the roof temperature dropped and the system stopped calling for solar heat and the pump went to speed 1. I was happy.
A week or two later, on a sunny day, later in the afternoon I heard the pump stop then a bit later go back into prime. After prime, the solar touch again called for heat and performed all the normal stuff again. About an hour later the pump shut down again, restarted and again started the solar heat routine. I thought it was odd, but also though that the wind hit the temperature sensor and that is what shut the pump off. This went on for the next couple of weeks. I was out near the pool pump area sometime after and the pump shut down again, and I was close enough to look at the pump and Solar Touch displays. The pump was showing an over current, and the Solar Touch was showing a red blinking light (communications error) then restarted. I shut it all down, disconnected the comms cable, cycled power on the pump and it started up and ran normally. The shutdown happend many times the next week or so. During normal solar heating, the pump was drawing approximately 750 watts and 2500 rpm which was normal, the pressure on the filter was about 10 lbs with the array about 12 - 15 feet above on the roof. The pump stainer was filled and no bubbles.
I did a manual check by disconnecting the ST comms cable from the pump, set the manual speed to 3 (2500 rpm), manually switched the control valve to open for solar heat and ran 8am -5pm for 5 days straight with absolutely no issues with the pump. I reconnected the ST cable and ran it again and yes, it shut down, this time the pump went into prime, then to speed 1 for a second, then shut down for about a second, them back to prime. It repeated this 6 or 7 times before I shut the sytem down. With the ST comms disconnected, the pump ran fine the rest of the day.
I called Pentair service, and of-course the 6 week warranty period had expired... I asked the technician what would be the likely cause and after describing the situation, told me he suspected the ST control board.
Any suggestions on what I can do or check? Anyone else have this sort of problem? Thanks...
I then installed the SolarTouch (ST), motorized valve and connected the communication cable. I set the program on the pump to start at 12:01 AM and off at 12:00 PM, (although I also have a mechanical timer set for 8 AM and 5 PM on and off time respectively) and set the program speeds 1 - 4 to what the SolarTouch uses; 1 for normal non-solar heat speed, 3 for solar heat, and 4 for Solar Hold. I fired everything up, set the SolarTouch to heat, set the desired pool water temperature up to 88 deg (to ensure it was way over my pool water temp). It was a warm day and the air/roof temperature was high enough to enable the SolarTouch to call for solar heat. Everything appeared to be working fine, ST displayed Solar Hold, pump went into speed 4, 5 minutes later the control valve opened, and 5 minutes after that the pump went to speed 3. I ran the system on 8am-5pm auto for a couple of days. It had been a cold and cloudy winter down on the west coast of florida, so when the frequent clouds came, the roof temperature dropped and the system stopped calling for solar heat and the pump went to speed 1. I was happy.
A week or two later, on a sunny day, later in the afternoon I heard the pump stop then a bit later go back into prime. After prime, the solar touch again called for heat and performed all the normal stuff again. About an hour later the pump shut down again, restarted and again started the solar heat routine. I thought it was odd, but also though that the wind hit the temperature sensor and that is what shut the pump off. This went on for the next couple of weeks. I was out near the pool pump area sometime after and the pump shut down again, and I was close enough to look at the pump and Solar Touch displays. The pump was showing an over current, and the Solar Touch was showing a red blinking light (communications error) then restarted. I shut it all down, disconnected the comms cable, cycled power on the pump and it started up and ran normally. The shutdown happend many times the next week or so. During normal solar heating, the pump was drawing approximately 750 watts and 2500 rpm which was normal, the pressure on the filter was about 10 lbs with the array about 12 - 15 feet above on the roof. The pump stainer was filled and no bubbles.
I did a manual check by disconnecting the ST comms cable from the pump, set the manual speed to 3 (2500 rpm), manually switched the control valve to open for solar heat and ran 8am -5pm for 5 days straight with absolutely no issues with the pump. I reconnected the ST cable and ran it again and yes, it shut down, this time the pump went into prime, then to speed 1 for a second, then shut down for about a second, them back to prime. It repeated this 6 or 7 times before I shut the sytem down. With the ST comms disconnected, the pump ran fine the rest of the day.
I called Pentair service, and of-course the 6 week warranty period had expired... I asked the technician what would be the likely cause and after describing the situation, told me he suspected the ST control board.
Any suggestions on what I can do or check? Anyone else have this sort of problem? Thanks...
Do you still need help? 