Solenoid Help

[DancingCamel]

We have a fementer that's been struggling for a while to get down below 40 deg F. Recently, we tried crashing and could not get down below 55 deg. Our glycol at the reservoir is 33 deg, all other tanks are working fine. My first inclination is to replace the solenoid but before doing this I thought I'd see if anyone has any other troubleshooting ideas. I'm assuming that something is preventing the valve from opeing all the way so I was wondering if this is usually what happens when a solenoid is going.

Any other ideas before I rip my glycol line apart?

Thanks.

David

[Valleybrew]

If you have air vents on the glycol outputs, vent them and check for air bubbles in the jackets causing flow reduction/impedement. Most likely it is a bad solenoid coil or a plugged diaphram vent in the valve if you have the Asco Red Hat style solenoid. Hopefully you have isolation valves installed on the tank so you can easily isolate the solenoid and rectify the problem.

[Jephro]

You can do a quick check on your solenoid by placing the tip of a screwdriver on top, if the electromagnet is energizing properly the screwdriver should stick to it.

[rafters_brewer]

I've dealt with a similar problem before and if the solenoid is working, there is an air bubble or a foreign particle keeping the valve from opening and closing properly. What has worked for me in the past to clear the bubble/particle is to close the glycol valves on all the tanks and then alternate opening and closing the solenoid valve and glycol valve a few times on the faulty tank. The extra pressure on the glycol sometimes gets things moving properly. Otherwise you have to close the glycol valves on the faulty tank and then remove the solenoid head and clean out the valve.

Good luck!

[Beersmith]

We've had problems with debris causing solenoids to stick open/closed in the past. Other posters have given good advice to remedy the immediate problem. In the future, you might consider installing brass Y-strainers ahead of the solenoids to trap any debris before it enters the solenoid. They make them in 3/4" NPT and should be readily available at a local plumbing supplier.

[BrewinLou]

Is this fermenter the last in glycol line. Check the easy stuff first glycol level is correct in the chiller, chiller is clean and functioning properly. You can usually hear a solenoid snap open.