Hi,

I am having a problem with my Coast Platinum Series Spa bought in 2001. The GFIC breaker is tripping.

Spa information:
Coast Platinum Series
Model – ML40
Serial number – 004629
Control Pack/Circuit Board - TSPA-1-P122-P222-B1-01-CP1-H34.5-JJM-FL-RL-CC23453-01C
Two Monster Flow 7.0 HP, 280 GPM, 40 amp, 240 volt, high performance pumps
Pump Serial Number – PF00725059
Pump Model Number – FP-50-2N22F

Problem:
The GFCI breaker trips every 20 minutes or so, shouting the system down.

Trouble shooting:
Following steps done one at a time:

Disconnected heater element from control board, GFCI breaker trips
Disconnected pump one from control board, GFCI trips
Disconnected pump two from control board, GFCI trips
Disconnected fiber optic light power unit from control board, GFCI trips
Disconnected ozonator from control board, GFCI breaker trips

I disconnect everything described above from the control board and again, after 20 minutes or so, the breaker tripped. I set the breaker three separate times and it tripped three times after the described period of time.

To eliminate the possibility of it being the GFCI breaker I bypassed the GFCI breaker and ran the spa fused/protected only by the breaker in the main panel. Waited 30 minutes and the breaker did not trip.

I plugged in each device described above one at a time, waiting 30 minutes between each device and the breaker in the main panel did not trip. The spa ran for two days with out issue. Thinking at this point it was the GFCI breaker and I replaced it. After replacing the GFCI breaker, Nothing works even though I have 220v at the control board terminal strip.

When I replaced the GFCI breaker, I wired it wrong swapping the black load wire and the white neutral wire going to the spa. After correcting the problem, I found nothing on the spa would work.

Question: Will wiring the GFCI breaker wrong damage components in the spa, i.e. Circuit board, pump and so on.

Any help will be appreciated.
Thanks Kirk Warner

KeepItSimpleStupid

Let's look at things briefly.

The input to the breaker was OK, so the breaker is probably good. That's an easy check with a voltmeter with and without stuff disconnected.

Putting N (White) where L1 (Black) is supposed to be puts 120 V where 240 is supposed to go. That's generally not a catastophie.

Putting L1( Black) where N (White) is supposed to go has the effect of putting 240 volts where 120 is supposed to be. That can do some serious damage. The control board cannot take this kind of abuse and it may be fused on the control board itself. An electronics fuse has various kinds of shapes and sizes and could be difficult to recognize.

The 20 minutes of operating seems indicative of a thermal problem. By thermal I mean contacts of a breaker. the GFCI breaker, a Relay or even a frozen bearing on a pump with a lot of friction. I would have payed close attention to temperatures of wires and components. Your finger tip would have been a good tool to feel bearings and feel breakers etc. Your eyes should have looked for discoloration. Checking all wires for loose connections would also help.

They guys with the "big guns" have IR cameras at their disposal.

Without having much else to go on, I'd seriously suspect the control board if power to the board is correct. The manufacturer may have placed a fuse on this board. If there are any legends on the board look for components with the designation of F with a number after it, e.g F1.

serendipity pools

Never bypass a GFI breaker for your tub. Ever.

The reason the house breaker did not trip is because it requires over 100,000 Amps of current before it trips where a GFI breaker requires 1/100 th of this amount. Its a good thing that you do not have a direct to ground fault in your system, because if you did you would likely be dead.

The first thing to do is replace the GFI breaker. They wear out over time and a worn breaker will display symptoms similar to what you have described.

Another option is to use an ammeter to diagnose the current in your system prior to the trip. If your ammeter starts at 40A but climbs steadily over 20 minutes then you may have a heat related slow fault like discribed in the post above. If your current stays steady for 20 minutes and then trips, it is likely the breaker itself.

But for now, you need to determine how much damage has been done by reversing the wires.