Brand New Controller Failure (Popping Noises)

[CodeSection]

@doug293cz Thank you for helping. I just took a few more pictures which might give a better view. If I'm reading it correctly, it shows 119.2v when taken opposite from one another. Then it shows 238.0 when taken next to each other.

 

[The_Bishop]

Looks to me as if the outlet is wired wrong.

The 'L' shaped connector should be 'ground'. The connector directly opposite is 'neutral'. The two side connectors are 'hot'. In other words, across the two 'hot' legs, you'd read 220-230v. From neutral to either 'hot' legs would provide 110-115v.

 

[Gravitysucks]

Looks to me as if the outlet is wired wrong.

The 'L' shaped connector should be 'ground'. The connector directly opposite is 'neutral'. The two side connectors are 'hot'. In other words, across the two 'hot' legs, you'd read 220-230v. From neutral to either 'hot' legs would provide 110-115v.

This. His readings look like he has a "hot" wired to the "neutral". He mentioned his GFCI not tripping and since his outlet isn't in a spa panel I assume he has a GFCI breaker in his panel. While it's possible, I can't imagine an actual electrician wiring up an outlet incorrectly so it would seem more likely that the mistake is with the wiring of the GFCI at the panel.

 

[augiedoggy]

@ancientmariner52 I appreciate your feedback. I'm not sure what you mean "240v throughout". Isn't their build a standard build that uses 240v? If it is 240v, other than for the pumps, why are 120v parts used? I really do not understand.

no a person can use contactors with 120v , 240v or even 24v dc coil if he or she wishes... Ive used all three in my builds. there is a correct standard for how a 4 wire 240v 50a outlet needs to be wired though, meaning the 2 hots need to go to the correct blade holes and vs versa on the plug as well as the N and G wires... they make 240v versions pumps too btw.. but you have 120v there already in a 4 wire 240v panel with US wiring.

Your electrician will be able to see if the problem is on your end soon enough.

 

[augiedoggy]

Readings on the power cord are incorrect. The 240V reading should be between the two slots on either side of the "L" shape slot. The L slot is ground. The slot directly opposite is neutral. Going back to your post on the wall socket, it looks like the socket may be the place where the miswiring occurred. It's hard to tell from your pics which reading goes with which slot pair.

Brew on

I agree if im reading the pics right he has 240v between y and w... 240v should be seen between x and y.

 

[BrunDog]

Exactly. You should be reading ~240 across X and Y, not across Y and W. You should read ~120 across X and W and also ~120 across Y and W.

 

[CodeSection]

Thanks to all who responded. The owner of the electrical company came out and found the wires were crossed at both the gfci and receptacle. He was very apologetic and has agreed to pay for all damages. He said he had two of his best electricians at my house doing work. It appears one was working with the gfci and wiring to the receptacle hole in the wall. Then the other guy installed the receptacle later that day. The owner said one of them should have tested the receptacle and would have seen it wasn't wired correctly. Both the receptacle and power cord tested correctly after the owner correctly wired the receptacle and gfci.

Auber Instruments has been very professional in handling this and in communications with me. They always treated me with respect via emails or via the phone even when I questioned them. I was skeptical of their initial diagnosis and their diagnosis yesterday based on how they were talking about the heating element initially. I was wrong in thinking they were possibly playing a blame game. They were just trying to make sure that the cause for the damage was taken care of before using the controller again.

Last night their senior engineer emailed me twice trying to explain the issue in the email earlier from them that I posted on this thread. I appreciate that and would do business with them in the future.

I emailed them the pictures I took last night and the engineer confirmed this morning again what they had said and you all had posted. Auber Instruments tested everything else and has assured me they are working and nothing else needs replacing.

What a learning experience! Hopefully, I will be able to brew my first batch next week sometime.

 

[BrunDog]

Luckily, worse damage didn't occur. Goes to show... never assume anything. If you do any electrical work, DIY or not, a VOM is an absolute requirement.

Glad you got it sorted!

 

[Sparkncode]

Pretty shoddy electrical work.
If they do that do they also randomly connect the earth terminals to phase?

 

[augiedoggy]

Luckily, worse damage didn't occur. Goes to show... never assume anything. If you do any electrical work, DIY or not, a VOM is an absolute requirement.

Glad you got it sorted!

Ive seen some very seasoned electricians cause some very expensive damage on the equipment I install and service, as a general practice I make then show me and verify the power with a meter now before firing the machine up. Anyone can make a mistake and its easy to become complacent and skip double checking your work. I did this myself on a panel I built causing me grief this week.

 

[ancientmariner52]

Happy to hear you figured it all out. The suprising thing to me is not that experienced people made mistakes, but that they were so quick to take responsibility and make it right. Good for them and good for you!

 

[CodeSection]

You all make great points! I questioned the owner about other work that was performed at my house and he assured me it was done properly. He believes the issue here was two people were working on installing the gfci, wiring and receptacle. One employee connected the gfci and wires to it to the subpanel, fed the wires down below the sub panel, and drilled a hole in a wood panel/wall for the receptacle. The other employee was working outside at the main panel replacing a whole house surge protector. When the second employee finished that install, he went and installed the receptacle.

As mentioned, the owner showed me the multimeter readings when he corrected the wiring. To be sure, I will retest it with my new multimeter before plugging into the receptacle.

@Sparkncode I agree with you about the quality of work and it certainly doesn't sit well. Mistakes happen in every profession, but with good processes and procedures, many mistakes can be caught. That did not happen here. The owner does take full responsibility and doesn't want to tarnish his business name. Plus, I have some additional work that I want done. You can be sure, I will be more vigilant in asking to see their meter readings tests. I don't know what you mean by "If they do that do they also randomly connect the earth terminals to phase?"

 

[doug293cz]

They owner's explanation of why the mistake was made has a hole in it. You should have four wires, one each black, red, white, and green. The green is ground, the white is neutral, and red and black are both hots. Two people working could easily switch the red and black around (which won't cause any problems, unless they somehow get connected together), but switching white and red, or white and black (which happened in your case) is just a dumb error, and it had nothing to do with having two people working on it. The color codes are chosen so that you don't have to know what was done on one end in order connect the other end up safely.

Brew on

 

[BrunDog]

@doug293cz beat me to it. Absolutely agree. Standards are in place for a reason.

 

[CodeSection]

@doug293cz I agree 100% that it was a dumb error and should have been caught by at least from one of the employees. It is disturbing to hear that the owner's explanation doesn't make sense. This company is licensed for residential and commercial. They have no complaints either with the Better Business Bureau or Arizona Registrar of Contractors. They came highly recommended by another company I do business with.

I was hoping for a quality company that I could use on a regular basis when needed. This was their first visit to my home and unfortunately first impressions after what has occurred are negative. I will start the process of finding another company for future work...

 

[ancientmariner52]

@doug293cz I agree 100% that it was a dumb error and should have been caught by at least from one of the employees. It is disturbing to hear that the owner's explanation doesn't make sense. This company is licensed for residential and commercial. They have no complaints either with the Better Business Bureau or Arizona Registrar of Contractors. They came highly recommended by another company I do business with.

I was hoping for a quality company that I could use on a regular basis when needed. This was their first visit to my home and unfortunately first impressions after what has occurred are negative. I will start the process of finding another company for future work...

Based on this company's track record, this was an anomaly. In my experience, when tradesmen make a mistake, in future work they take extreme care to make no further errors, certainly not for the same customer. And you've already found that they stand behind their work, right or wrong. Personally, I would consider giving this dog one more bite.

 

[LittleRiver]

No one is above making a mistake. No one.

I once had a very reputable electrical company install a large CNC router and vacuum pump. Everything about their work was top notch, and I was very happy. But they made a simple mistake connecting the $20K pump and fried it.

They made it right, they replaced the pump. I wasn't happy about the delay, but they made it right so I can't hold a grudge against them.

 

[BrunDog]

Everyone makes mistakes, no doubt. But this one would definitely have me concerned. Installing a basic 4 conductor receptacle is bread and butter work. Should get it right with one eye closed and all four limbs tied back.

But good on them for paying for the damaged controller parts.

 

[lschiavo]

Over 20 years of electrical contracting. Hundreds of service entrances. Only one time did one of my guys swap a hot and neutral. It fried about $15k worth of appliances and electronics. A simple voltage check at the main would have prevented the damage.

If you're hiring, hire licenced and insured. That guy had a whole house full of new stuff and had his check in a week. First and only claim I made to our insurance.

It happens...