FIXED |Cascade won't start 2nd stage|
 

It was working fine all day when I was setting up the 920 and the 980x but after a high load bench I heard a click noise and then I noticed that the 2nd stage was loosing temps fast. So I shut the computer and the Cascade off and let it sit for a day... Today I turned it on as usual but the Second Stage is stuck... It doesn't turn on anymore, just hangs there with first Stage on -41c and nothing happens. When I press Hot Bypass valve I also don't hear it kicking in anymore...

I made this small video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=et9JI_X_3Rc

:scared::blink:

Thanks!

My first guess would be the starter cap on the second stage has gone out. But I am not an expert on this stuff. Have you contected the builder ?

Thanks for the fast reply my friend. Is there any physical clues I could look for? I might open it up tomorrow to inspect.

Ruffus is the builder and I already Pm'd him over XS, but last time he logged in was 06/10/10..

No physical clues besides a burt cap or something leaking out of it. I woul dhave to relook up some your pics to see where they are located, usually right on teh comp itself, but I have seen others with them sitting off to the side.

Check all your wires and make sure non have come loose and they all make good contact.

On Kals when I shipped him my cascade there is a little black relay box that is strapped on one of the supports, one wire had come off during shipping and result was the second stage would not start. Reconnected it back up and away it went.

Something similar happened to mine about two weeks ago. During a bench session the second stage temps started rising rapidly...I shut it down and tried again about thirty minutes later, but no dice. Two days later I fired it back up and it operated normally...have no clue what it was. I suspect in your case a stuck relay, you think?

Fixed your video, just the info after the "=" sign in the youtube link goes between the [youtub3] tags "et9JI_X_3Rc"

Sure sounds like something overloaded, was the wall providing enough juice?

Kal, yes I use the outlets outside the electrical box (bypassing the breakers).

Rick, I tried twice within the last 24 hours and still nothing.

Buck, I will open the unit tomorrow and inspect!

sounds like possibly a relay may have failed. or the main cap that starts the compressor might have gone pop.

I know mine had a little second stage breaker on it that would kick over if I tryed to start the second stage too early or too rapidly after I turned it off for a second? Maybe something like that was the click you heard

Hopefully is something I can fix myself like replacing a relay (just like in a car)?

Yes I so wish ruffus would reply fast so I can have an idea on what to look for when I open it! I'll try to look for a breaker too thanks mate!

Inside Pics
 

Buck, can you see where it is from these:

http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/a...8/CIMG1984.jpg

http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/a...8/CIMG1986.jpg

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...1&d=1253659948

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...1&d=1253659973

Hopefully is there somewhere and I can repair it myself :thumbsup:

Sometimes a capacitor will look bloated and rounded when it has blown ....

just make sure to short it out before touching the leads, as a start cap will hit you hard




Good luck

Guess I see a relay here:
http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/1184/rele.th.jpg

Is there a reset on that switch there?

Yes! It was a reset switch and it was triggered off!

I just pressed it to on and will try again! crossing fingers :)

I'm glad it was nothing major... Having those things repaired is $$$ for shipping.

He has not reported back whether that fixed it or not...

Success!
 

Yes it was that little reset button!

It's a Danfoss pressure shut-off valve. I guess it's set to turn 2nd stage off when it's reaching a certain level of pressure.

It's back to normal now:
http://img808.imageshack.us/img808/2311/img0383f.th.jpg...http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/7...g0384du.th.jpg...http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/301/img0385i.th.jpg


Thanks for all the help experts! :thumbsup:

love a story with a happy ending :)

sweet!! :thumbsup:

Good to hear !!!!

Simple fix is good :)

hehe... I'm on eastern time = the future... ;)

I knew it! awesome its working jor

WooHoo! :ola: (Remote troubleshooting ownage) :taunt:

Not to rain on your parade, but ruffus has been giving me the runaround for 7 months now. He wont respond to multiple emails, and for now I recommend everyone steer clear of him. He last emailed me a month ago (no communication of any kind since) saying the build is done and holding 300watts at -89. I asked for pics and now he has vanished :(

He is also building a unit for lowfat (a cascade) and lowfat a few days ago on XS posted that ruffus told him another 1-2 months after he has already waited 4. At least lowfat seems to be able to communicate with him, I get ignored.

Sent him a mail today that if I dont recieve a response and a unit soon im opening public threads on every forums in existence to let the world know whats up:thumbdown:

I'm sorry to hear that Karmakazi, that's not his usual agenda. Brad is a very responsible guy that always stands behind his work even when he doesn't need to.

He is very slow on reply's but he usually returns them. Hi's Cascades builds will take 6 months and between yours and lowfat probably a year to be done... I know that between his kid, wife and day job his Cascade / SS business is only a hobby, but his Cascades will outlast anything build by sdumper...

If I hear anything from him I'll ask him to reply you. :thumbsup:

rufus did good designing safety stuff

wooooooooooooooooooooooooo

party for bra-zil :D

Looks a manual reset high pressure safety. Low pressure switches are normally auto reset. Looks like the builder knows his stuff. Glad to see it working again

If you aren't sure if the cascade is functioning correcty you can always ship it to me and I'll do some testing.
If everything is OK I'll ship it back in a few months.
If it's all fucked up I'll ship it back right away.

LOL, sounds like a good deal to me? :P

That suck's man .... don't you have a phone number and address .... ?

Seems like finding a alaround good build these days is tough .... shame it has to be like this .... Hope you get it soon and it all works out .... if not I could not blame you for dragging his name through the mud .... very conservative ....

I would be compeled to jump on a plane and visit his home if you have already funded this project , I hope not ...

Best of luck

Great news Jor ..... back up and running = WIN