manitowoc ice machine harvest cycle

[flyboy3b]

i wasnt sure if this was the right place for this thread,, but it is a troubleshooting issue...

i have a manitowoc Q210 air cooled ice machine that has been shutting off occasionally. the error code on the LED says that it has gone more than 3 1/2 minutes for 3 consecutive harvest cycles. ive looked at it a few times,, and all the readings i have taken were within reason. also,, the times i have looked at it, it has never missed a cycle.
after a few days of thinking about it,, i decided to call the Racine water dept. i asked them if the water temp in lake michigan had dropped recently (we had a cold spell a couple of weeks ago) they said that the water temp had dropped a couple of degrees in the last 2 weeks and the current temp was around 33f.
i went back to the ice machine and ran it for several cycles with the door closed. sure enough,, after the 3rd cycle the water reservoir slushed up with ice,,, and the water pump was barely pumping. this caused the freezing grid to build up ice unevenly and it would trip the thickness sensor. without having a full sheet of ice, the harvest mode was unable to drop the ice. eventually the ice would melt and it would start a new cycle.
anyhow,,, i left the door open and it runs fine. when the water temp rises i can return the ice machine to normal operation.

i just thought i would post this for reference, im no rocket scientist, but who woulda thought a couple degrees of difference would have such an impact.

[kooler]

Hey flyboy, we have similar water temps here in AK altho I've seen Manitowocs do what you've described but only on startup, usually after the initial cycle water circulation and slab buildup returns to normal until harvest...

[The MG Pony]

Thanks for posting such an interesting event! Stuff like that is a valuable tool to help learn about possible causes of fualts and other such odd things!

[flyboy3b]

yeah, crazy stuff. its been running fine with the door open ever since. in a week or two,, ill recheck the water temp. when it rises, i can go back to normal operation.

[flyboy3b]

just a follow up note,,

its starting to warm up a tad,, and the sun is getting taller in the sky,, so i closed the door to the ice machine a few days ago and its been running fine. lake michigan must be warming up.

still a little early for swimming though

[jstch00tme]

there is a grate that covers the inlet to the pump, for future you can remove that grate, it will alow the pump to suck and chew up the slush. ( recomended by manitowoc)

[brianubaldo]

flyboy,

i would be happy to assist you here.. i handled manitowoc ice machine for a year in different fastfoods (mc donalds, jollibee, starbucks etc.)
your model is the smallest in the models.

can you please answer this questions for i can diagnose much easier..

1) is this problems occurs eventually? or always!
2) what is the clearance of ice thickness probe (white sensor upper rigth) to the evaporator?
3) what is the pressure high side and low side
-during freeze cycle
-during end of freeze cycle (ice form neer sensor)
-harvest cycle (when evaporator warms up)

since your error code is about harvest. please put extra effort in ice thickness probe and HPR (Harvest Pressure Regulating) valve!
you can diagnose HPR by pressures.. this things are concerned in harvest problems. but you need also to collect many different datas..

[flyboy3b]

there is a grate that covers the inlet to the pump, for future you can remove that grate, it will alow the pump to suck and chew up the slush. ( recomended by manitowoc)

i never had the pump off,, but i know what you mean,, thanks for the tip. ill pull it off next winter.

[flyboy3b]

flyboy,

i would be happy to assist you here.. i handled manitowoc ice machine for a year in different fastfoods (mc donalds, jollibee, starbucks etc.)
your model is the smallest in the models.

can you please answer this questions for i can diagnose much easier..

i appreciate the assistance, but it was really as simple as the inlet water temp. had i thought about the inlet screen for the pump, i wouldve removed that, but leaving the door open worked as well.
thanks again,
mike

[brianubaldo]

sorry mike if i replied too late

i went to out of town due to company request..

anyway about this topic,,
what is your concern about the pump?
can you tell me ehat is your initial diagnostics and what is the problem that the machine is experiencing!