Kingspan septic tank not working

[devs]

Hello Hugh and thanks as always for your assistance. I've just had a look into this today and my observations are as follows...

The unit is nolonger tripping out the switch on the consumer united when powered (however still failed to rotate)

There are no signs on water ingress and the capacitor appears in tact.

I'm strongly considering wiring a plug directly to the motor and seeing if it will power via an extension lead.. However I'm unsure of what wires are what? Do you happen to know or able to suggest any further trouble shooting so I can illuminate the motor?

I've attached an image here of the wiring and also a more general image of the unit.

Thanks Hugh,

Steve.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

Unit looks to be in excellent working condition, so I dont think you need to worry there, discs are as I'd want to see them and a healthy crust on the primary section. I wouldn't like to hazard a guess on the wiring I'm afraid, it's not my specialist area, and given the situation, it's too risky to guess it.

Only thing I can suggest is, if you feel capable of checking mains voltages with a Multimeter, is look at the power supply into the unit, and check there's 240V there when power is put on to the unit. This would rule out a break in the cable between house and tank. Might be worth posting in the Electrical section, see if any of the Guys in there can elaborate on your setup.

 

[devs]

Thanks Hugh, thats a good shout and I'll see if I can figure out what contacts to test. If the motor is receiving power and the capacitor appears in tact it can only be a failed motor again. Is that correct Hugh?

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

I would think so, but I wouldn't want to say for definite. Again, there are ways of testing a motor but you'll need an electrician with the correct knowledge. It might be worth contacting Kingspan/Klargester and asking if their technical people can tell you more and/or if there are any downloads with more information available.

Afraid whilst I can happily advise on the drainage and operation side of things with these, electrics are not my domain.

 

[lostinthelight]

Not offering advice but ive had numerous occasions when a capacitor has been faulty on a motor with no outward sign of damage

 

[devs]

Thanks for that. Does anyone know how to test if one is working?

 

[lostinthelight]

There is a testing mode on some multimeters but I would leave it to pros, if you dont fully discharge the cap the residule charge can zap the cr@p out of you

 

[devs]

Ha okay thanks mate!

 

[devs]

Ah interesting... I know nothing about capacitors however this is what is in the unit...



and this is what I find on the kingspan site.. https://www.kepartshop.com/products/3-uf-capacitor-for-panasonic-motor?_pos=2&_sid=f10f41bdd&_ss=r

I'm I right in thinking that the 2.0uf that is installed is under powered compared to the 3uf thats on the kingspan site and this would explain the failure?

Clutching at straws and hoping not to have to buy another motor.

 

[Terrywookfit]

You will get a buzzing sound from the motor if cap is fooked.

It is wired in series with start winding to create a rotating magnetic field between windings to start rotation.

If it is not big enough it will not work.

 

[devs]

Okay thanks mate, I didn’t hear any sound and will wait until I’ve eaten before double checking

if there’s no buzzing is it likely to point to the motor rather than the cap.

is it worth me trying a 3uf? I can get one tomorrow via amz.

 

[Terrywookfit]

Have you checked you have voltage incoming.

Which multimeter are you using ??

 

[devs]

Hi Terry, not yet as I wasn't sure what terminals to test from. However a spark friend of mine has just come back and suggested the following:

"The cores of the incoming cable one will be earth and attached to the casing . The other two look to be going into u1 and u2 . Try between them."

So I'm about to test them. The meter that I'm using is this...

 

[devs]

Hmmm, just check the power via the first two incoming cores and received zero with the meter set as below:

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

That could well be your issue! I think you need to look into providing a temporary power supply to the unit, see what happens then, before going any further. Quite possible the unit itself is fine, and the problem lies with the power supply.