Need help with heating element

I just finished my control panel and everything seems to be working correctly except when I plug in the element to the outlet it doesn't get hot. I'm using a TA7 PID, There's power to the element (124v at each hot Terminal), the elements are brand new and have continuity so I' assuming they are working. One thing that is probably an indicator of a problem is the light that turns on when a particular relay for an outlet is energized. When nothing is plugged in, or if just a cord with no element is plugged in, the light stays on. If an element is attached to the cord the light goes off.
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Without a wiring diagram, we have no place to start troubleshooting.

Good point. It's also quite possible that the PID isn't programmed correctly since the instructions are virtually useless. I went through the menue and set the probe type and made sure it was set to heat. Other than that I don't know what else to program.

Bobby_M said:

Without a wiring diagram, we have no place to start troubleshooting.

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I've attached a wiring diagram and a picture of the terminals on the PID.

Fwiw. My element active LED also lights up (dimly) when the element is unplugged, but everything works as intended when plugged in

If you've got it wired per the diagram, Assuming that Red=L2, you don't have an L1 bus and there's no way the system would even turn on because L1 could never energize the relay thru the keyswitch

Good catch. The switch is wired incorrectly in the diagram but it's correctly wired in the actual panel.[/B]

BigFloppy said:

If you've got it wired per the diagram, Assuming that Red=L2, you don't have an L1 bus and there's no way the system would even turn on because L1 could never energize the relay thru the keyswitch

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I wonder why we're both having similar problems. At least your is working.

BrokenHorn said:

Fwiw. My element active LED also lights up (dimly) when the element is unplugged, but everything works as intended when plugged in

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baer19d said:

Good catch. The switch is wired incorrectly in the diagram but it's correctly wired in the actual panel.

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Ah, but if the switch is wired incorrectly in the diagram but properly in the actual panel, what is wired/drawn incorrectly throughout the rest of the panel... just saying!

By drawing EXACTLY what you have, you'll probably fix the issue by default..

Be thankful you don't have a panel like mine...

Do you have SSRs that have a "firing" LED? Is it lighting up? Does the PID out1 LED light? Can you hear the contactors closing when you toggle the on/off/on selector? Do you have a multimeter so you can poke around and check voltage?

Bobby, the answer to all of your questions is yes. However, everything is working fine. I'm not exactly sure what I did but it works. Thanks for the help guys.

Okay, now this issues are:
1st, I think one of my SSR's is stuck in the closed poition because even if the PID out1 is not lit, and only .3 volts DC is being sent to the SSR, the element is still energized with 220v. If this is the case than a new SSR should do the trick.

2nd, the other PID for the 2nd heating element seems to be working correctly except that it overshoots the target temp by 2-3 degrees. It will start blinking about 10 degrees under the set temp, which I'm assuming is the PID regulating the power to the element, and keeps blinking while is attempts to reach set temp. The out1 light goes off once 4 degrees or so over target temp is reached , but it's not consistent. Is this just part of the" learning process" the PID goes through that I've heard of? One of the 120v legs of this element only has around 105v going to it and I dont know why. There's 120v at the relay so I'm losing current somewhere along the way. I hope this makes sense. If anyone who is knowledgeable about this stuff is will to talk over the phone in order to better diagnose these issued I'd be willing to PM you my number.
Thanks