Jandy Lite2 Fl2 / Flame Sense Issue

[raymondalombardo]

Hello all:

First post here. I live in the DC area and we are currently in the midst of a blizzard. Of course, the spa heater has decided to act up.

A little background about the system we have:

We have a fiberglass shell hot tub built into our deck. The plumbing is routed below the deck and partially below ground to our garage, where the spa motor and blower reside. The heater is adjacent to the spa pack, but outside the garage. It is a three or four year old Jandy Lite 2. I clean it regularly.

The heater will light as follows, and it appears normal, up until the issue I describe appears: The gas valve will open, indicated on the LCD display as a series of horizontal line ( -------- ), and then you will hear a tick, then a light from the igniter can be seen reflecting off the burner tray, and then the gas burners will light. So far so good.

However, when the heater is functioning normally, a second or so after ignition you will see a "flame" character on the LCD display. It is really just a series of vertical scrolling lines but I guess it is meant to indicate that that the burners have lit and the flame is being sensed.

Since this issue occurred, however, the flame sensor indicator on the LCD will not activate, and accordingly the heater shuts down after a few seconds. It will do this three times and then flash an FL2 error message.

I have removed the front panel, and everything is clean. The wiring connections all appear fresh -- no corrosion or similar -- and the ground (green wire near the transformer) appears soundly and firmly attached. I have thought it would be a good idea to clean the flame sensor, but this is the Lite2 where the flame sensor is mounted on the first row of the burner tray, so I cannot remove the flame sensor without removing the tray (at least as far as I can see) because I don't have a pipe wrench to undo the large gas line.

My main concern is that I don't want anything to freeze. The spa pump has two speeds. I have been running it alternatingly on high and low speed to keep the water moving, but it is still somewhat nervewracking to me. I would love to get the heater working again sooner rather than later, and I don't know when the pool company will be able to come given the weather.

Any advice appreciated, specifically on other things to check or how to remove the flame sensor. Also while normally I would never bypass a safety feature, given the weather conditions here if there is a way to do that temporarily -- emphasis on the word temporarily -- until the pool company can get to the house, I would appreciate that info as well.

I have been able to run, using a long needlenose pliers and a fine file, a few "runs" over the sensor to clean it up, but it's not do-able in any sort of thorough fashion.

Flame, when it is lit, is blue, so pressure is good, and this shouldn't be an issue since it is connected to the main gas line for the house.

Again, help and advice appreciated

[idnmadt]

You are not going to be able to bypass the flame sensor on an LJ. Make sure the flame sensor is not touching the burner or grounded in any way, such as water or carbon on the insulator.

You can add salt to the spa to lower its freezing point. Chlorine generators run on about 26 lb. per 1000 gallons. You do not have to have a CG to put salt in a pool or spa. You can always drain it later if you like

[Pool Clown]

Perhaps the flame sensor, or the wire has given up. It could also be some carbon built up in the sensor. Also, you can check the pilot for carbon build up as well. If you can't get the burner tray out, perhaps a flashlight and a mirror will help you to inspect.

[raymondalombardo]

Perhaps the flame sensor, or the wire has given up. It could also be some carbon built up in the sensor. Also, you can check the pilot for carbon build up as well. If you can't get the burner tray out, perhaps a flashlight and a mirror will help you to inspect.

Thanks both for the advice.

The wire appears intact -- insulation is good and no unusual weakness or thin parts.

What is the "insulator" on the flame sensor? I can try to inspect it.

As far as cleaning it, not being able to remove it makes that difficult. The best I could do was to run over it a few times with a long file that I manipulated with a long-nose pliers. But that's not a thorough cleaning.

Salt in the tub may be a good idea.