Grudge Monkey Posted April 17, 2021 Report Share Posted April 17, 2021 Got a free spa, L.A. Spas Concord, made in 2005. It has a Gecko S Class controller. One terminal of the power connector was melted, which I'll try to repair. If I can't, I'll buy a new controller, but the same model is not available. Will a new model connect the same way to the sensors and control panel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted April 17, 2021 Report Share Posted April 17, 2021 Where are you located? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grudge Monkey Posted April 17, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2021 40 minutes ago, CanadianSpaTech said: Where are you located? Southern California Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted April 18, 2021 Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 Should be some circuit board repair places in SCal. If unfixable you would likely need to buy a bundle with pump wires and topside. Pretty sure Gecko is only making their latest version system and the older packs are near impossible to find. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted April 18, 2021 Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 5 hours ago, CanadianSpaTech said: Should be some circuit board repair places in SCal. If unfixable you would likely need to buy a bundle with pump wires and topside. Pretty sure Gecko is only making their latest version system and the older packs are near impossible to find. I have been trying to get a gecko topside for a month now. I have decided to pull the gecko out and replacing with a balboa retrofit, since gecko doesn't even know when they will be making them again. I wish those Canadians would get their act together... 😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted April 18, 2021 Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 What topside you need? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted April 18, 2021 Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 D1 01580-0001 gecko #K-24. https://pool-spa-supplies.com/dimension-one-gecko-mspa-1-intelligent-upper-control-tsc-24-d13-01580-0001-with-overlay-01560-350 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grudge Monkey Posted April 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 2 hours ago, RDspaguy said: I have been trying to get a gecko topside for a month now. I have decided to pull the gecko out and replacing with a balboa retrofit, since gecko doesn't even know when they will be making them again. I wish those Canadians would get their act together... 😉 Is it a difficult retrofit? Do you need to replace sensors too, or are those compatible? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted April 18, 2021 Report Share Posted April 18, 2021 Balboa's sensors are in the heater tube so just leave the Gecko temp sensor in the side wall of the spa. It will just be a plug at this point. The pump wires will likely have to be changed as they use different plug connectors. Balboa uses AMP pin connectors and the older s-class uses J&J mini plugs. You may need an adapter plate for the topside if the Balboa is smaller than the original Gecko. There are several different sizes available. Post a photo of the original topside in the spa. @RDspaguywill let us know if I missed anything. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grudge Monkey Posted April 20, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2021 Thanks! I'll snap a photo when I can. One strange thing about my spa is that the heater isn't under the controller as I gather is quite common. It's in a rectangular box, inlet at the bottom and outlet at the side. If I switch to Balboa it looks like I'll have to rearrange the plumbing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d.sebens Posted April 21, 2021 Report Share Posted April 21, 2021 If your la spas is like mine then you have a circ pump with a low flow U shaped heater. This is the one I replaced. Says in stock. Probably should call the guy and make sure. https://www.poolandspapartssuperstore.com/gecko-alliance-ctrl-gecko-s-class-la-spa-p1-p2-p3-cp-oz-aux-lh-115v-230v-3-72-7107-0202-205096-0202-205110-0202-205116-3-72-7053/ Edit: I would probably try to find someone to repair it though I personally wouldn’t recommend spacare.com , my dealings with him were very undesirable. I ended up having to replace the whole pack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted April 21, 2021 Report Share Posted April 21, 2021 21 hours ago, Grudge Monkey said: Thanks! I'll snap a photo when I can. One strange thing about my spa is that the heater isn't under the controller as I gather is quite common. It's in a rectangular box, inlet at the bottom and outlet at the side. If I switch to Balboa it looks like I'll have to rearrange the plumbing. Pic of that heater, too. Balboa heaters are all about flow rate and don't work with the usual circulation pump. So get the circ pump in the pics too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grudge Monkey Posted April 21, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 21, 2021 4 hours ago, d.sebens said: If your la spas is like mine then you have a circ pump with a low flow U shaped heater. This is the one I replaced. Says in stock. Probably should call the guy and make sure. https://www.poolandspapartssuperstore.com/gecko-alliance-ctrl-gecko-s-class-la-spa-p1-p2-p3-cp-oz-aux-lh-115v-230v-3-72-7107-0202-205096-0202-205110-0202-205116-3-72-7053/ Edit: I would probably try to find someone to repair it though I personally wouldn’t recommend spacare.com , my dealings with him were very undesirable. I ended up having to replace the whole pack. It's strange that mine has the holder for a heater though the heater is elsewhere. The one you linked seems more appropriate than the one I have. I wonder if maybe it was replaced somewhere along the way. I should check the wattage rating of the heater. The spec sheet for my spa says that it has a 5.5kw heater, but the pack says that it's for 4kw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d.sebens Posted April 21, 2021 Report Share Posted April 21, 2021 My heater is configurable if you change the wiring. My hot tub has a tsc-44 top side which gecko said only the metal bodied spa pack would work on. Like rdspaguy said. Get pics of the heater and the sticker on the heater. Probably be good to get a picture of the topside controls too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted April 21, 2021 Report Share Posted April 21, 2021 7 hours ago, Grudge Monkey said: It's strange that mine has the holder for a heater though the heater is elsewhere It's not common... but also not uncommon. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grudge Monkey Posted April 25, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2021 On 4/21/2021 at 4:28 AM, d.sebens said: My heater is configurable if you change the wiring. My hot tub has a tsc-44 top side which gecko said only the metal bodied spa pack would work on. Like rdspaguy said. Get pics of the heater and the sticker on the heater. Probably be good to get a picture of the topside controls too. No stickers on the heater, just some writing, that says U-0302. I measured the resistance of the heater as 10 ohms. That's consistent with literature I found from 2005 that says that the spa has a 5.5kw heater. It's quite inconsistent with the sticker on the controller that specifies a 4kw heater. Here are two pics of the heater and circ pump. The top picture should be rotated to the right 90 degrees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted April 26, 2021 Report Share Posted April 26, 2021 There is (or used to be) a sticker on the metal tube with wiring specs. I suspect it is a variable heater. Post a picture of the circuit board in the pack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aswin Posted June 15, 2021 Report Share Posted June 15, 2021 It looks like I have almost the same setup as you. The original box (without heater) for my SC-MP-P122-P212-P312-B1-O1 with options CP1-NE-LS-FB1-JJC-LA6 was discontinued and replaced by 3-72-7107. This is for sale for $520 and up. I am planning to get it. Or would it be cheaper to get a different setup with a different control panel like from Balboa? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted June 15, 2021 Report Share Posted June 15, 2021 @Aswin Please start your own thread describing your issue and perhaps we can save you from a costly repair. Post photos of your circuit board and the schematic on the inside cover as well as the topside control. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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