Cwbeck3
Member
Hi, Just yesterday I picked up what seemed to be a craigslist steal on a Marvel Kegerator for $25. It's an older one, looks like it was built in 2002, but the compressor still works great, and I ran it for the past 24 hours on a temperature controller and it held nicely at 34*. The guys was getting rid of it for two reasons 1) he was moving, 2)he said for the most part it worked fine, but every once in a while it would fail to kick back on and he would have to manually unplug it and plug it back in at which time it would reset itself and proceed to cool again. So my thought, and his as well, was that it was a thermostat issue (please feel free to chime in if you disagree or have further insight). After a quick google search for the part number, it doesn't look like anyone is carrying that part anymore. Plus for the build I had in mind I was just planning on running it off of an INKBIRD anyway so I could have tighter control over the temperature.
I was hoping for some help... more so just confirmation... on how to bypass the thermostat on these things. I have done some research prior as there is lots of good information on this forum already. I have a plan... but wanted to run it by this community first as I'm sure there are more than a few of you out there more mechanically inclined than I am, an could probably tell me if I'm about to ruin the whole thing. So I've attached some pictures.
The first is the wiring diagram from the back of the unit itself. I have a basic understanding of how to read these diagrams, but I'm sure it much more useful to other than it is to me.
The second is of what I would assume to be a DIN rail type device. The Neutral line from the power cord goes directly to this device. There is also another white wire which runs from there to an input terminal 1 on the thermostat.
The third picture is of the opposite side of the thermostat which shows the red and black load lines. Black is coming directly from the power cord. The only other items which are plugged into the thermostat are the wires for the potentiometer and thermistor, which if I am bypassing wouldn't be needed anyway.
So my plan as it exists would be to wire nut the red, black, and white wires (circled in the third picture) which are connected to the thermostat itself, which I believe would just cause the cooling system to run anytime there is power to the unit. That power would instead be controlled by the INKBIRD controller which would act as the thermostat. Am I missing something? Does anyone have experience with this particular brand and foresee potential problems I didn't think of? Any input would be greatly appreciated.
I was hoping for some help... more so just confirmation... on how to bypass the thermostat on these things. I have done some research prior as there is lots of good information on this forum already. I have a plan... but wanted to run it by this community first as I'm sure there are more than a few of you out there more mechanically inclined than I am, an could probably tell me if I'm about to ruin the whole thing. So I've attached some pictures.
The first is the wiring diagram from the back of the unit itself. I have a basic understanding of how to read these diagrams, but I'm sure it much more useful to other than it is to me.
The second is of what I would assume to be a DIN rail type device. The Neutral line from the power cord goes directly to this device. There is also another white wire which runs from there to an input terminal 1 on the thermostat.
The third picture is of the opposite side of the thermostat which shows the red and black load lines. Black is coming directly from the power cord. The only other items which are plugged into the thermostat are the wires for the potentiometer and thermistor, which if I am bypassing wouldn't be needed anyway.
So my plan as it exists would be to wire nut the red, black, and white wires (circled in the third picture) which are connected to the thermostat itself, which I believe would just cause the cooling system to run anytime there is power to the unit. That power would instead be controlled by the INKBIRD controller which would act as the thermostat. Am I missing something? Does anyone have experience with this particular brand and foresee potential problems I didn't think of? Any input would be greatly appreciated.