Hot tub pump not working on high speed

[RTubber]

My hot tub pump works on low speed, maybe not as powerful as it used to be, but when I switch over to high speed it sounds like it tries to start for a second, and makes a click or a thunk sound before cutting out. I can also only get the heat to go to about 60 degrees too. I'm guessing this is related to the high speed pump not working. I have checked all the wiring with a voltmeter, and everything is reading ok. The tub has been filled for a few months, and I ran the cycles to clear any trapped air so I don't think that should be it. Nothing looks to be blocking the flow of the filter either. The breaker never trips, and one thread I found sounded like it could be the capacitor, but that sounds like the low speed wouldn't work, but the high would, which is opposite of my case. 

I'm thinking I might need to replace the pump, but was hoping someone could confirm that might be the case before I paid the money for a new pump.

Thanks for any help in advance.

[CanadianSpaTech]

Video not working

Post photos of the circuit board and the schematic on the inside cover of the pack if there is one. 

6 hours ago, RTubber said:

I'm guessing this is related to the high speed pump not working

No... spa will normally heat in low speed so if you can run in low it should heat

6 hours ago, RTubber said:

maybe not as powerful as it used to be

Motors don't loose power or flow unless there is a restriction or blockage of some sort. Suggest you remove the filters and try running without and see if it heats. Another thing you might want to check is to disconnect the coupler/union at the face of the pump and make sure there is nothing lodged in the impeller. 

Disconnect the pump from the circuit board and test for power in each speed to see if you get power off the board going to the pump... or you can disconnect the wires at the back of the pump and test there. 

It could also be a stuck or burnt high speed relay. It will run on low and when you engage high speed it sends power to both speeds at the same time and cuts out. In this case you will usually hear a hard buzzing noise before it cuts out. If you think it is a relay issue remove the circuit board from the housing and have a look on the back for darkened or burnt areas. Let us know how you make out.

 

 

[RTubber]

@CanadianSpaTech

Thank you for the reply. Here are the results from the suggestions you provided:

There did not appear to be a schematic on the inside cover. I pulled the circuit board housing out and was able to look at the back of the board but did not see any burn marks. I am unable to pull the board out after removing all the obvious screws and connections. A couple of the edges feel like they are loose, but the board still feels firmly connected where the plugs connect on the front side. Is there anything I can look at on the front side of the board, and do I need to remove it completely? If so, do you have any suggestions for what connections might be holding it in?

I removed the filter and left it overnight, but it still remained at 59 degrees and the high speed pump would not turn on. I also checked the power going to the pump and it looked correct.

I removed the pump as well, and there were no blockages in the pipes, or in the pump. I have attached just the audio portion of the original video if that helps to determine anything.

[CanadianSpaTech]

5 hours ago, RTubber said:

left it overnight, but it still remained at 59 degrees

If the pump was running in low it should be heating. With the spa running in low and calling for heat you need to test for 240V coming off the circuit board at the 2 heater connections. If you get 240V replace the heater. If you don't it is an issue on the board. As for high speed you need to disconnect the pump from the board and test for power coming off the board in high speed. If you get power coming off the board then it's a pump issue. Burnt or blown relays won't always show as a burn mark on the back. The 3 screws for connecting the heater might be holding you back from removing the board. 

Here is a troubleshooting guide that shows how to test for power going to the pumps: https://spacare.com/productimages/pdfmanuals/Gecko/in.xe_Troublshooting_Guide.pdf

[RTubber]

@CanadianSpaTech Thanks for the quick reply and link to the documentation. I'll give these tests a go and let you know where I end up.

[RTubber]

@CanadianSpaTech Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to this. My spa is hooked up for 240v. I took the readings, for step 7 where it says Pump 1 is not working. On my pump there is a sticker for amps that say 8.0/3.0. In the guide it says pump up to 15 Amp you should get 240v. Mine was reading only 119. I tried other possible pin combination (for the 20 amp location) and still got 120. Not sure if that is correct, but I would assume I should see 240v there.

For the heating issue, I saw similar results. It says is should see 240 VAC on line 1 and line 2, but it only shows .038. On line 1 & neutral I was seeing the correct reading of 120 VAC.

I'm guessing given the two issues above that don't match up with the readings that are expected, there is something wrong with the board and I should just replace it?

Thanks again.

[CanadianSpaTech]

You are sure you have 240V coming into the spa? When testing for 240V at the heater line 1 and 2 the spa was calling for heat and the heat indicator on the topside was showing the spa is calling for heat and pump 1 was running on low speed? Replacement XE packs are very expensive. Search for a local electronics repair shop that can replace ALL the relays on the board if needed. Would be way cheaper to have the board repaired.

Where are you located?  

[RTubber]

@CanadianSpaTech I checked the power coming into the board again and it is 240v. There are two lines into the heater and a ground. Each line has 120V, I assume those combined make it 240V to the heater?

I went through the doc again and the first page checks pin 3 and pin 1 with the pump off. That reads 118v, when it should read 240v. Then with the pump in low speed, it does get 240v.

I checked those same pins in speed 2 and they show 14v. I'm not sure if those are still the same pins I need to check for speed 2 or not though. It does sound like an issue with the board given some of these readings though. 

I am just west of Denver, CO. I found an electronics repair place that handles a wide range of things so I was going to call them tomorrow to bring it in. https://www.yelp.com/biz/phone-repair-and-more-lakewood-lakewood-2?hrid=37yeX9iTEwfONkv6vCRapA

Thanks once again, it would be great to get this repaired rather than replaced.