3155 overfilling my tank...

[Derekbc]

Hello, I have gone through the steps in the sticky, and my 3155 is still running even though the water level is above the optical sensor. What can I try now?

Thanks,

Derek

[shawnz28]

Does it stop when it gets to the secondary float and the alarm goes off?

[Derekbc]

No, it just keeps filling... Things were going well for a few days, and ended up with 4+ gallons of DI water in the system during the night...

[shawnz28]

Is the output of the hose filling the sump higher than the top of the filled reservoir the pump is sitting in?.... I ask as in a majority of these cases it is a siphon causing this and not realized.

[Derekbc]

It is not a siphon. The hose to the sump is positioned well above the normal water level.

[rvitko]

A siphon will occur if you have for example 18" of water in the reservoir and it is clamped to a sump that is for example 16" high, 2" of water can siphon after the pump shuts off. To prevent a siphon, your reservoir must be shorter than where the hose ends at the sump or you must pump up to a higher point (the tank). I think a siphon or bubbles accumulating on the sensor are the most likely culprit.

[Derekbc]

A siphon will occur if you have for example 18" of water in the reservoir and it is clamped to a sump that is for example 16" high, 2" of water can siphon after the pump shuts off. To prevent a siphon, your reservoir must be shorter than where the hose ends at the sump or you must pump up to a higher point (the tank). I think a siphon or bubbles accumulating on the sensor are the most likely culprit.

The reservoir is a chamber in the sump. The hose is clamped above the level of the reservoir and feeds into the first chamber of the sump. There are no bubbles on the sensor--It malfunctioned shortly after my cleaning the sensor with soap and water and drying. The pump continued to run until the 4+ gallons of water were dumped into the sump. The yellow light indicating low water level was lit even though the water level had triggered the alarm indicating the water level was too high.

[rvitko]

OK, how old is the unit, is this a one you bought new recently?

[Derekbc]

I'm the original owner--purchased January 2012.

[rvitko]

Please send it in, we will get it taken care of. Just include the controller, pump and power supply as well as a note with your return address and phone number.

Tunze USA
305 Victor St
Austin, TX 78753

[Derekbc]

Great, thanks!

[Derekbc]

Roger, thanks for your help. It should be arriving to you tomorrow.

Derek

[rvitko]

If it arrives today, I should have it done tomorrow.

[Derekbc]

Thanks for the call, Roger. Sorry I wasn't able to answer.

Here is a picture of my sump setup, taken January 2012, and has remained the same since this picture was taken. The reservoir is the chamber on the far right. The return hose is clamped to the first chamber, where the return pipe is, and is in a position of being higher than the glass--there is no way a siphon could occur.

The reservoir holds approximately 7 gallons of water, but was only filled half way when the last incident occurred. Since the osmolator was having an issue with overfilling, I would only fill the reservoir with no more than 2 gallons of water. After going through the steps in the sticky there wasn't an issue for a couple of weeks, and I thought I was in the clear and filled the reservoir with more water--about 4 gallons--and it was pumped into the sump during the night. I had adjusted the optic eye and the overfill float switch in a manner that didn't allow for much water to be pumped into the sump before activating the kill switch, but this did not work.

I, too, am perplexed. It has been working great the past year, but only began this issue about a month ago.

Thanks,

Derek

[rvitko]

Derek,

I can't see where the hose ends but here is what I suspect is going on. The water reservoir looks completely full. If the hose ends at the sump portion so it hangs into the sump even 1", that means 1" of water will be able to siphon. The only way to avoid a siphon is if the hose ends at a height equal to or above the water level in the reservoir.

Another possibility is some sort of magnetic interefence issue.

The optic sensor was faulty and we did replace it, but these fail in the off position generally and the float circuit is completely independent so I am puzzled. Here the float and 10 minute time out worked flawlessly.

[Craig Borowski]

http://tunzeusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Siphon-Situations-688x459.png

[Derekbc]

Just took these photos about 5 minutes ago. The first is the line coming from the reservoir, and the second shows how it is positioned above the first chamber. It has been set up this way since well before the issue began...

I appreciate your replacing the faulty optic sensor, and hope this will be the needed fix.

Thanks much,

Derek

[Craig Borowski]

Thanks, Derek. It looks like the end of the tube is well above the reservoir water height. If that's the case then we can rule out the possibility of a siphon. Please keep an eye on it over the next few days and let us know how it goes.

[Derekbc]

Roger and Craig, thanks for your help! The osmolator has been hooked up for 5 days now, and there have not been any issues, thus far.

Thanks much!

Derek

[rvitko]

Good news!