Strong Spa , works fine - but no heat .

[waterl0gged]

Hey all, have a Strong Spa , about 5 years old now , that is acting up ..........
Haven't used it in a about a week and went to open and check up on the water chems (salt tub running a Saltron Mini ) , and noticed the tub was off and the main breaker was popped and the tub was down to 76 . Reset the breaker and everything started up just fine , heater light came on so good to go , right ? Opened the tub this morning and it was only up to 82 , but otherwise working fine , and the heater light still on .
Pulled the front panel to check it out . Its a Balboa VS Spa Pack (501z M7) , so I figured the heater must have gone bad (still may have), checked voltage at the heater ......nothing . Checked incoming voltage , fine at 240v. Then I noticed the control board was burned up at the heater feed lugs. Checked for voltage on the board heater lugs , nothing. I checked the two little spades that protrude from the heater lugs on the board (looks like they are slightly before the lugs) , and had 240v at the spades, but not at the lugs .
Thinking possibly the heater went bad (maybe due to the salt water) and burned up the board a bit before tripping the breaker .

At this point , I am thinking of just replacing the whole Spa Pack . I can prob just replace the board , but the heater is also probably toast as well . The smarter money is to just replace the whole spa pack that includes everything basically , instead of doing a board replacement PLUS the heater , correct ?
What do you guys think ? I will include some pictures .........doubtful the board is repairable .

 

[Mdragger88]

That’s a nasty burn
I would do it all & be done if the whole thing is available & is all inclusive as you said.
You would then have some spare parts at your disposal for the future.
Let’s see what @RDspaguy thinks…

 

[waterl0gged]

That’s a nasty burn
I would do it all & be done if the whole thing is available & is all inclusive as you said.
You would then have some spare parts at your disposal for the future.
Let’s see what @RDspaguy thinks…

Yea, its burned up pretty good . Not sure why, possibly bad connections on the rusty looking heater lugs , and got hot .

Anyway , searching for a replacement Balboa 501z . Mine has a 4kw heater . Finding mostly replacements with 5.5kw heaters . Does it matter if I replace the control board with the larger 5.5kw heater assy vs the 4.kw heater ? Anyone know if this will be ok ? Thanks !

 

[RDspaguy]

Any damage from a salt system would trip the gfci immediately, it would not have time to burn it up the board like that if the breaker is functional. This looks like heat damage from a loose/corroded connection, failing relay, or dry fire (running without water). Frankly, I'm leaning toward the latter, as a bad connection does not damage both sides of the heater circuit, so yours would require 2 bad connections to yield this result. Not impossible, but not likely unless it was recently worked on and improperly connected.
As much as I dislike a salt system, I can't blame it directly for this.
If it comes to buying a heater and board, definitely buy the system. Spadepot.com has custom systems (you pick the kw, voltages, accessories, etc) at great prices. I use them alot with no problems.
That said, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss a board repair. If there is a good electronics guy nearby, you might bring it in and ask him. Could save you a few hundred $.
You definitely need a heater element. Post a pic of the element and I can confirm if it was dry-fire. If it was, you'll want sensors too, as it's likely one or both was damaged. They're pretty cheap, and worth replacing just in case.

 

[waterl0gged]

Thanks RD . We have had this tub since new, and it was never dry fired by me . I am the sole one who takes care of the spa (and pool) , and have always made sure the tub was full of water before firing it up . Also, it has always pumped water instantly after the pr cycle, with no hints of air trapped , and the pump dry running on initial start ups . Strange . Also, the board has never looked like that before , so this is a fairly new occurance, and tub has been filled/ running for prob 6 months now (after the last fill) .
The heater wires/straps look quite rusty and corroded , so not sure what happened , as there are no leaks that have happened over the spa pack . Possible salt water may have been wicking its way through the heater lugs , who knows.

Will post a picture of the heater element when its pulled .

Also, any advise on if the 4kw or 5.5kw heater makes any difference , other than the 5.5 heating up quicker. Do you think I should /could use a 5.5kw instead of the 4kw ? Most everything I am seeing is 5.5kw now . Spadepot as well .

Trying to find a Balboa 501z M7 configured with a titanium heater element , with no luck so far .

Thanks again for the help !

 

[RDspaguy]

The heater wires/straps look quite rusty and corroded

They look burned.

A 4kw heater allows the heater to run when one or more pumps are on high, depending on the amp rating of the breaker. To determine if you can use a 5.5kw without changing settings on the board I would need to know the amp draw of any pumps/blower and main breaker.

 

[waterl0gged]

They look burned.

A 4kw heater allows the heater to run when one or more pumps are on high, depending on the amp rating of the breaker. To determine if you can use a 5.5kw without changing settings on the board I would need to know the amp draw of any pumps/blower and main breaker.

Thanks for the input RD . Yes, definitely more burned than corroded, I can see .
I will just stick with a 4kw to keep it simple . Found a direct Balboa replacement on Spa Guts , Spa Depot only has the 5.5kw models from what I can find . Think I should order a Titanium heater element and swap it out with the stock one right away ? Balboa comes standard with the is incoloy .
Curious what the heater element will look like when I pull it apart .......

 

[RDspaguy]

Think I should order a Titanium heater element

A winter breakdown can be costly.

 

[waterl0gged]

OK, tub is back in business. Installed a new Balboa Spa Pack with new heater and all. Removed the standard incoloy heater right away and installed a titanium 4kw heater before it was even installed. Working like a champ again .
Now ........trying to figure out why this happened in the first place ? Heater straps certainly look "burned" , but the heater looks in pretty good condition ? I think it may have been a poor electrical connection (possibly cause from the saltwater) , which led to an overheating issue due to poor electrical connections ? Just my guess , because the heater has never been dry fired , and looks ok ? Possibly a lightning strike at some point ? Who knows ?
Here are some pictures of the old heater element and burned board ........ Any ideas ?

 

[RDspaguy]

(possibly cause from the saltwater)

I have seen a salt tub, old aftermarket inline install, that had extreme corrosion that I could only attribute to the salt, as this was the first time that I had seen anything like this and that I had seen a salt cell. The damage was clear on EVERY exposed metal part, from pumps to circuit board. If it were the salt, you'd know. Although I suspect there was some o-ring deterioration that may have been, in part or whole, from salt.

but the heater looks in pretty good condition ?

I disagree. That's stainless steel all bubbly and turning brown, plus the element is actually rusting. I'm sure you don't know how odd that is, so you'll have to take my word for it.
Who was that talking about stainless in that other thread... Was it @JamesW , or @phonedave ? @Methuselah , do you recall?

I think it may have been a poor electrical connection

That and worn relays overheating are the main reason boards get replaced. It is odd that it burned on both sides, but that element does not look like dry-fire. Definitely unusual. The pump causes vibration, and the water flowing past that long element causes more, and nuts can vibrate loose. That's why they have lock-nuts and torque specs on replacement elements. But both at once is pushing the odds for any scenario. It's ALWAYS one or the other, in my experience.

 

[waterl0gged]

Thanks for the input RD . Was expecting to find a little more obvious problem with the heater element when I pulled it out . Definitely looks corroded around the nuts . I didnt expect to see surface rusting on the element , thats strange to me . I am not an expert on what it should look like though , but will take your word on it , that it looks unusual !
I installed a new titanium 4kw heater element in the new balboa spa pack , so hopefully this one lasts more than 4 years (tub was new in 2019 , but was only converted to salt water for the last 2 1/2 years ).
Thanks for the help !

 

[phonedave]

That said, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss a board repair. If there is a good electronics guy nearby, you might bring it in and ask him. Could save you a few hundred $.

I know is after the fact, but I have used this company in the past (not for spas, for appliances)

Circuit Board Medics - Automotive, Trucking & Appliance

Circuit Board Medics is an automotive, trucking, and appliance electronic module repair company serving consumers and businesses worldwide.

circuitboardmedics.com

Cheaper than a new board and fast service too - especially a lifesaver when replacement boards are on 6 month backorder.

 

[Methuselah]

One side looks a lot worse than the other. I suspect the left worked loose and heat conducted to the other through the board, causing higher temperature differential between on/off cycles leading to that second side starting to work loose.

Could also have been gremlins escaped from buggs bunny cartoons...

On your old board, it might be a salvageable spare, but if kept for that purpose I'd replace the relay.