Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Mysterious Water Damage to Control Board

I have a control system that is mounted outdoors on a wall in a standard metal power center -- just like hundreds of other control systems (Jandy Aqualink, Pentair EasyTouch, and Goldline.) But, for some reason, this one is getting water inside the power center and the water always damages the same spot on the board. You can see a hard water trace on the back of the board where it runs down.

So how does the water get in to a sealed power center that is made to be mounted outdoors? Well, first I thought that it must be coming in past the weather stripping on the door. I replaced that. Next, when that didn't work, I tapped up the gap between the top of the box and the removable front service panel, but the water still came in.

Finally, I think I found a clue:
Look closely at the point where the outside covering has been stripped off of this temperature sensor wire. See the calcium / hard water deposits here? This is the temperature sensor wire for the solar panels. The other end of this wire is up on a second story roof. Evidently, water seeps into the upper end of the wire, drains down the inside and exits here where the outside covering has been stripped off to allow connection to the control board. Since the water is traveling inside the wire, it makes no difference that the wire drops lower than the power center and then goes up. (If the water was dripping down the outside of the wire this would prevent water from going inside).

My solution? I decided to allow the water an alternative outlet besides where it connects to the board. To do this, I stripped some of the covering off (to allow it to escape) and then bent the wire into a U shape and poked it down into a hole that exits the control panel at the bottom. This way, the water should drip outside the power center.

8 comments:

Unknown said...

What a helpful article! Keep up your useful information! I've been neglecting my pool lately. We need to find some pool repair in Glendale.

jelly andrews said...

Does it solve your problem about water dripping inside your power centre? Is it 100% effective in getting rid of water? Thanks anyway for sharing this one.

Unknown said...

We actually had the same problem before. We wouldn't have known about the water leakage on our control board if not for our pool service phoenix. This is the reason why we always make sure to ask Professional Pool Repairs to do a Pool Maintenance check-up at least once every two months. Pool safety should be considered a priority.

Unknown said...

The biggest problem that we have had with our pool was the pool cover. It got damaged during a huge rain storm that we had. It wouldn't open or close correctly so we had to get it replaced.

Leisure Coast Pool Centre

Unknown said...

I need to find a way to reset my control board. It has been acting very strangely recently. Is there a way to reset the control board, without losing all of the presets?

http://www.amcopoolservice.com/poolservice.html

Unknown said...

I have never had problems with my control board before. I have had plenty of repairs done to my pool though. It is good to keep you pool safe and free of repairs if possible. We call in our pool repair to come take a look at things so we don't have to worry about any mistakes by our hands.

Zach Thalman | http://www.pooldoctorfla.com/repair/

Anonymous said...

I have a large swimming pool in my backyard. I maintain it well throughout the year. But recently, the control system for the pool has been giving me troubles. I am wanting to get it repaired soon so I won't forget about it come next spring. http://www.bellarpools.com/pool-renovation

Unknown said...

I have a large pool in my backyard, but something is wrong with it. I think that the filter is broken because the water is very dirty. I don't know how to fix it, so I am going to hire someone to fix it for me. I hope it is fixed soon so I can use my pool again. http://www.checkerpoolsupply.com/Services/