Help with Auber ezboil dspr-320

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alexipas

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Hello electric brewing friends!
I finally made the plunge and went 10gallon electric brew kit 220v with a auber controller.

I bought this used and at first it didn't turn on until I realised a few wires had come loose. I looked at a wire diagram and plugged them in and it works!

My issue. I changed power to 50% and the boil raged on. I changed it to 10%... Still full boil. I changed it to zero percent.. full boil.

This is my first PID and I have no idea what I'm doing. There is no actually temperature prob just a simple thermistor. So the temp reads -196degrees... This doesn't matter to me yet because I just want to reduce the power. Any one have a clue whats going on? Hardware or software issue? I assume user error since this system worked for the previous owner.
Thanks so much!
 
You’ll probably have to post up some pictures to get an answer but I’ll take a stab anyway. The low voltage output of the ezboil should be connected to the low voltage side of a solid state relay. It is possible that this relay has failed and is stuck in the on position so full power all the time. Alternatively there could just be something wrong with how the relay is wired.
 
Update:
I bought a temperature prob rtd100 and I plugged it in and just held it in the kettle (I have yet to drill the hole) I was able to cycle the element on and off by setting a temperature guideline.
Could it be that I set a poor schedule for power to drop to 50%? As in I shouldnt have said 100% for one hour?
Also I assume if I turn down the power manually as the step is going that should work though?
 
You’ll probably have to post up some pictures to get an answer but I’ll take a stab anyway. The low voltage output of the ezboil should be connected to the low voltage side of a solid state relay. It is possible that this relay has failed and is stuck in the on position so full power all the time. Alternatively there could just be something wrong with how the relay is wired.

Thanks for taking the time to reply! I believe it is wired low to low. I took a picture. I will google in the morning how to test the relay to see if it's stuck. That could make sense too. Unless again, I just don't understand how to set the power level. I assume I did it correctly when it said p 50. Then I push run
 

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Auber EZBoil controllers have a unique feature that can be described as: "Accelerated heat to boil," where the controller calls for 100% heat, regardless of what the dial power setting is, until a temperature just below boiling is reached. When the trigger temperature is reached, the controller reduces power to the value set by the knob (and displayed on the front panel), and also starts the boil timer. For this function to work properly the EZBoil requires a temperature sensor in the wort.

Since your temp sensor bypass gave you an indicated temp of -196, the controller doesn't know you have reached a boil, so will not reduce the power below 100%. You need to have a proper temp sensor installation for the controller to work as expected.

Brew on :mug:
 
Auber EZBoil controllers have a unique feature that can be described as: "Accelerated heat to boil," where the controller calls for 100% heat, regardless of what the dial power setting is, until a temperature just below boiling is reached. When the trigger temperature is reached, the controller reduces power to the value set by the knob (and displayed on the front panel), and also starts the boil timer. For this function to work properly the EZBoil requires a temperature sensor in the wort.

Since your temp sensor bypass gave you an indicated temp of -196, the controller doesn't know you have reached a boil, so will not reduce the power below 100%. You need to have a proper temp sensor installation for the controller to work as expected.

Brew on :mug:
You've saved the day Doug! Thanks for telling me that! Very cool feature that I didn't know about!
 
I had the same issue. As I recall, adjusting the “bout” setting corrected it. I think I changed the output setting (default is 100%) lower, maybe to 0. Not nearby my controller to confirm. Good luck.
 
I had the same issue. As I recall, adjusting the “bout” setting corrected it. I think I changed the output setting (default is 100%) lower, maybe to 0. Not nearby my controller to confirm. Good luck.
The "bOUT" parameter sets the power used during the "Accelerate to boil" phase of heat up. The default setting is 100%. If you set it to 0, the kettle would never heat up. Setting "bOUT" to a value that gives you an acceptable boil level when you don't have a proper temperature probe, will result in a very slow heat up to boil. This is not a good way to solve the "problem." Connect a temp probe so the controller can work the way it's designed - don't try to make it work in an unintended way.

Brew on :mug:
 
The "bOUT" parameter sets the power used during the "Accelerate to boil" phase of heat up. The default setting is 100%. If you set it to 0, the kettle would never heat up. Setting "bOUT" to a value that gives you an acceptable boil level when you don't have a proper temperature probe, will result in a very slow heat up to boil. This is not a good way to solve the "problem." Connect a temp probe so the controller can work the way it's designed - don't try to make it work in an unintended way.

Brew on :mug:
After referring to the manual, It was the “bAST” setting that I lowered to 0 to correct the issue. Sorry for the confusion.
 
After referring to the manual, It was the “bAST” setting that I lowered to 0 to correct the issue. Sorry for the confusion.
"bAST" is the temperature at which the "Accelerate to Boil" function shuts off, and the knob set power output control begins. Setting bAST to 0 only disables the A2B function if the indicated temperature is above 0. OP's indicated temp was -196, so setting bAST low wouldn't work (minimum setting is 0.)

Brew on :mug:
 
Hmmm ok thanks. I'll have to investigate why it's reading a negative temperature. That and install my temperature prob. Any suggestions of where I should install it?
I was thinking level with the element or slightly below. From my understanding if I put it above the element it will read hot
 
Hmmm ok thanks. I'll have to investigate why it's reading a negative temperature. That and install my temperature prob. Any suggestions of where I should install it?
I was thinking level with the element or slightly below. From my understanding if I put it above the element it will read hot
Looking at the photos you sent in our conversation, it looks like you have a jumper wire where the temp probe should be connected to the EZBoil. Since the temp probe is a temperature sensitive resistor, and resistance goes down with decreasing temperature, replacing the resistor with a short, makes the EZBoil indicate the lowest temperature it is capable of displaying.

In general you want the temp probe placed close to the heating element, otherwise you can overheat, or even scorch, your wort near the element, before the temp probe senses the over-temperature. Distance from the element translates into time lag between when temp changes, and when the change is detected. You don't want the sensor touching the element however. If you are recirculating the wort, you want the temp sensor located between the element and the wort pickup that feeds the recirc pump, again as close to the element as you can get it. This puts the sensor in a zone where the hot wort is flowing towards the pump inlet.

Brew on :mug:
 
Here is my concise but incomplete documentation I created in my effort to bend my own dspr320 to my will. Hope it helps.
 

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