HELP- NO SOLUTION FOR COMPRESSOR LOCKOUT

If the loop pressure falls below 3 PSI lockout can happen. The circulator(s) need 3 psi minimum in order to create a "Low Pressure" zone, thus making the fluid flow from high pressure to low pressure.

Bergy

 

WMD:

You have a leak.

The dropping pressure on the loop is not aceptable to me. I have never seen pipe shrink or expand enough to lower the pressure that was acceptable to the loop guy.

The refrigeration tech said you lost the imaginary 10 ounces of what ever. You bubbled every fitting you could get to with out digging up the yard with no loop leaks.

Guess what the water and the refrigerant are going someplace.

You have a leak or two.

 

Thanks Bergy - it sounds like my flowcenter leak is likely the source of LP/LOC and FP1 faults.

 

Mark - definetly a leak - post 100 describes what a found when I came home from work. A puddle below the flowcenter.

 

Get that fixed then.

Is it the only one? One never knows. I used to do a lot of natural gas and propane piping before DOE got into the act. Find one leak and fix it. Test again. Find the leak, less than the last one and fix it. Re-test. Then find the next smallest leak and fix it. And so on into a gazing ball and an esher mirror, (sure glad he did not work for me, very exact, but very slow).

I have been on this thread from the git go. I will give up all the know easy leaks, but I think you may have a bad coaxial heat exchanger. I do not think it is bad enough to shut the system down with violent motion, but bad enough to keep you running to the basement to reset a wounded unit.

Mark

 

my question

Over 100 posts on this problem dating back to last heating season and now it is the flow center? As a homeowner I'd be skeptical of a leaking flow center being the cause. If the flow unit has been leaking a year, no fluid on the floor for the past year?

A leaky flow center is an issue but I am doubting it the THE issue.

Z

 

That would be an assumption - as to say "no puddle no leak".
A seasoned Geo tech will tell you differently.
Most leaks occur without the benefit of providing you with a puddle of water pointing to their origin.

 

teetech

Fair enough, I am not a seasoned tech, just a homeowner. I fully understand what you are saying. I've done my share of plumbing repairs as a homeowner.

Z

 

update

The technician replaced the flowcenter, and we are still having problems. The ewt was 42 and the lwt was 45 in heating mode. what on earth is up with that ? We had a fault retry that yielded LP/LOC at startup. Apparently when they flused the loops, "loop 3" shot out air and what they described as some sort of gunk.

 

LOC

another thought and forgive me if this is ridiculous - I am a novice trying to find a solution. The technician said he reset the refrigerant charge in the compressor today. After flushing the loop we had the same symptoms as before (see previous thread). After I turned on my propane fireplace, I noticed a very strong smell in the house - not propane, I have been burning this thing a lot this past week without this smell. Could this be the refrigerant charge (freon I presume). Is the freon in the compressor gas or liquid form ? If gas perhaps it is leaking ?

 

If those numbers are correct you are adding heat to the loop... In other words, you are in the cooling mode. If the unit was in heating mode then the reversing valve might be stuck in cooling.

Bergy

 

Or plumbing is backwards with the new pump

 

Very good grasshopper... Great point!!

Bergy

 

we checked plumbing - it is good. Tech reflushed the system and again some sort of sludge forcefully shot out of the loops. Something is clogging flow. It is like a slimey sludge. Any ideas what this could be ? My thoughts are grout/clay, scale (However the water we put in the system has been run through and iron/ sulfer filter and softner) or I believe I read that the glycol/water solution in the loops can thicken up at low temps (however when we tried to push the fluid last night our temps were 42 and 45, so that doesn't seem too cold.

Anybody ever seen anything like this ?

AO

 

I have never seen sludge come out of the loop

If you haven't yet, I would be flushing the loop with plenty of clean water.

 

Have you checked...

the glycol levels? The following is a Tech Tip from Enertech Mfg. about the subject...

"In the interest of quality and ongoing training, Enertech is issuing this tech tip. To prevent bacterial growth in geothermal systems, a minimum percentage of Propylene Glycol is recommended. A 25% solution is the minimum required by glycol manufacturers so that a bacterium does not start to form. This "slime" can decrease the heat transfer of the pipe and the capacity of the system."

Bergy

 

Way to go Bergy....

could be the source of the sludge.

 

How can I ensure proper glycol levels. How much of the >25% solution should be added to a flush cart when the system is being flushed ? Can the current glycol levels in the loop be measured ?

 

My gut

I don't think you want to add glycol if bacteria growth has already taken place. I'd purge it all out and then add antifreeze. And i'd go with an alcohol now, considering the risks noted.

 

I agree with urthboy