Air condition pump not running

[boatman37]

Just got home. Probably head back down later. So to summarize...compressor comes on, fans come on, the 2 terminals on the board for Power have 120V but the 2 marked Pump have no voltage with air turned on. Initial thought is the board is bad but want to be sure it isn't the wall controls or some other component on the main board. Any idea on tests I could run to narrow it down?

Also, gonna call the shop Monday that just did my outdrive. Highly doubt anything they did had any effect on the air conditioning but just want to confirm that but mainly ask them what their thoughts are.

Any ideas what board I would need if that is the issue? Or a ballpark cost for said board?

 

[boatman37]

Doing more research I see a few sites saying to connect my pump leads directly to the 120v input on the board for a temporary fix. I'm not looking for a band aid but it also said if this fixes it then most likely the board is bad?

 

[Creekwood]

I had issues with my CruiseAir 3 years ago. It was not the pump symptom, the AC just would not run. I replaced the thermostat panel, but that was not it. I thought the board was bad, so I tried to source a replacement. There are a bunch of different models and it was hard to sort out the exact one. It was crazy expensive. Probably cheaper in the US. It was almost $CAD 700 plus tax. And it did not fix the issue. I ended up doing a complete replacement with a MarinAire unit, but my pump was good so was able to use that.

If I was to do it again, I would just have the marina AC/refrig tech look at it. I did not realize until after all of this that they have a guy that comes in and works on them and can fix just about anything. Oh well. I like the MarinAire anyway. Its quieter, and the features are better (can set either a preset humidity level or temperature or both). Good luck. It was a lot of trial and error for me before I gave up.

 

[dtfeld]

I did a quick search on that control box, but I didn't find the schematic. However, some boats that have 2-3 AC's running of the same pump, use a pump relay box so that any ac that turns on, turns the pump on too. They have little relays that are replaceable. Yours might have one of these (or something similar), that might be replaceable.

Open up that box and see if you see something that looks like this, or post a (close up) picture of the guts of that box.

 

[techmitch]

If the compressor and fan comes on but the pump does not, it's odd that it is not setting a HP code.

 

[boatman37]

I don't believe mine has a relay since there is only 1 system but there is a small component that has 3 wires going into it (purple, yellow and black) that the schematic labels as TRIAC. I read somewhere that that may act like a relay to direct current and may be the issue?
I'll post a pic of the board from my phone in a few

 

[boatman37]

 

[boatman37]

You can see in that one pic the 3 wires going into the 'TRIAC'. It is right next to the ground post. Thinking of replacing this first since I believe they are only about $50 but would like to test it first if I can.

 

[techmitch]

Can you post the wiring diagram?

 

[dtfeld]

Call Citi marine, see if this will work in your unit. I bet it will. You can check the operation of the existing triac with a multimeter. Google how, I don't know of the top of my head.

 

[boatman37]

Call Citi marine, see if this will work in your unit. I bet it will. You can check the operation of the existing triac with a multimeter. Google how, I don't know of the top of my head.

View attachment 128980

That looks a lot like mine. Thanks

 

[boatman37]

Here is the schematic inside the board box

 

[ttmott]

If your compressor starts and the raw water pump does not come on you will get an HI PS error code on the SMXir controller and the compressor / fan should kick off.
If the compressor continues to run without the raw water pump operating and you don't get the Hi PS error then the high pressure switch failed closed and has probably taken out the entire unit; not a good outcome but I had it happen.

 

[boatman37]

If your compressor starts and the raw water pump does not come on you will get an HI PS error code on the SMXir controller and the compressor / fan should kick off.
If the compressor continues to run without the raw water pump operating and you don't get the Hi PS error then the high pressure switch failed closed and has probably taken out the entire unit; not a good outcome but I had it happen.

What do you mean 'the whole unit'? I haven't left it on very long without the pump. I have made it a habit to check for water coming out the thru-hull every time I turn it on so as soon as I saw there wasn't any I turned it off. During my testing it has ran maybe 30 seconds at the most without the pump running

 

[Almightys]

Get a meter and test the trigger. Also rest power at the pump. Diagnosing electrical gremlins over net is tough

 

[ttmott]

What do you mean 'the whole unit'? I haven't left it on very long without the pump. I have made it a habit to check for water coming out the thru-hull every time I turn it on so as soon as I saw there wasn't any I turned it off. During my testing it has ran maybe 30 seconds at the most without the pump running

The compressor will cook itself until it completely fails if the high pressure switch fails closed and loss of raw water. The paint on my Dometic Turbo actually burned off the compressor and any wiring laying on the compressor had burned through the insulation. It was so hot I could smell it all through the boat. It was the forward system which has a history of loss of raw water due to the distance away from the pump. The folks that take care of my AC stuff on the boat said the windings in the compressor were kaput and the complete unit needed to be replaced.
New info - you are shutting it down rather than it shutting itself down with a HI PS error. Do you know if it will trigger a HI PS? I would determine that does in fact happen as that will help show the controller is still good. Are you able to obtain a voltage measurement at the "pump" terminals when the compressor is running? It seems a difficult task within that 30 seconds you reference....
From a sequence aspect first the thermostat demands cooling then the fan speeds up then the raw water pump starts then finally the compressor starts. If no raw water the refrigerant pressure goes high and trips the high pressure switch and that is what throws the fault code.
OK - let's say the compressor starts and you are measuring voltage at the two "pump" terminals on the controller card. And, zero volts is the measurement. Change the Triac. It's rare but they do fail. One thing though; first wire the pump to an outlet and make sure it starts and runs fine. If it doesn't start and run or trips a breaker or the start cap has failed there is a problem with the motor and that can take out the triac on the card.

 

[boatman37]

Might atop down there Tuesday evening and do more testing but yes I shut it off manually before getting any alarms. And pretty sure the compressor was running when I tested and got no voltage at the pump but will test again to be sure. I felt the compressor after one of those tests and it was barely warm so I definitely didn't let it run long

 

[boatman37]

Ordered that TRIAC part. $29 part and $16 shipping...ugh. Wish me luck

 

[boatman37]

Got the TRIAC part today and swapped it out. I now have power going to my pump but pump not coming on. Not sure if I just didn't get a good connection last week when I checked for power or maybe that I have 2 issues. Plan now is to put a plug on the end of the pump cord and plug it into an outlet to test directly to be sure. That pump is only not even 4 years old but the old pump was working but had a crack. Going to see if I can swap out the cracked part from the newer pump. Pump is a Dometic LC-2CP-MD 115V in case anyone knows anything about these pumps. The one connector (think it was the inlet) was cracked.

 

[bbwhitejr]

Got the TRIAC part today and swapped it out. I now have power going to my pump but pump not coming on. Not sure if I just didn't get a good connection last week when I checked for power or maybe that I have 2 issues. Plan now is to put a plug on the end of the pump cord and plug it into an outlet to test directly to be sure. That pump is only not even 4 years old but the old pump was working but had a crack. Going to see if I can swap out the cracked part from the newer pump. Pump is a Dometic LC-2CP-MD 115V in case anyone knows anything about these pumps. The one connector (think it was the inlet) was cracked.

When I had an issue years ago, I also plugged it into a 110v outlet. Excellent way to test. Remove the screws from the head of the pump and check that the spindle is turning if it runs. Then make sure the impeller is turning with the shaft.

Bennett