Solar iBoost died

[Ajax123]

Hi all

I have a solar iboost unit on my hot water system. It's about 3 years old. It's been working fine up to now but appears to have died. The display is completely blank, no lights, no messages, nada... and we have no hot water. Must have happened today or maybe yesterday cos my boy was the last to use the shower yesterday morning and it was hot then....

The mains into the unit is fine running from a fused spur with power getting to the unit (well ... to the end if the feed cable anyway ). The immersion heater may have failed (yet to check) but I doubt this would cause the unit itself to fail would it.

Do these units have some sort of internal battery that might gave failed or is it deceased? Have looked at various troubleshooters and found no help at all...

 

[Mike Johnson]

The sender unit has two internal AA batteries: https://www.marlec.co.uk/wp-content...-iBoost-User-Manual-111215.pdf?v=6805cdfd0c7a

 

[Ajax123]

The sender unit has two internal AA batteries: https://www.marlec.co.uk/wp-content...-iBoost-User-Manual-111215.pdf?v=6805cdfd0c7a

The sender unit surely has nothing to do with power to the main unit?? Does it?

 

[Mike Johnson]

No idea, you asked if it had an internal battery and one of the units does, I would be tempted to switch off the supply, not forgetting you can't switch off solar panels and take the control unit cover off to see if there is an internal fuse.

 

[Ajax123]

No idea, you asked if it had an internal battery and one of the units does, I would be tempted to switch off the supply, not forgetting you can't switch off solar panels and take the control unit cover off to see if there is an internal fuse.

Looks like i might have to. I know there's no fuse but maybe an internal keep je alive type battery...

I tried new batteries in the sender... no joy

 

[Avo Mk8]

You could put in a support request and see what they come up with?

Solar iBoost Support Request

www.marlec.co.uk

 

[Ajax123]

Got the front off the unit. Turns out there is a fuse....its blown but it's also soldered in place.... marvellous!

 

[Mike Johnson]

Seems pretty stupid having a replaceable part permanently soldered in place, obviously built in obsolescence. ?. If you can determine the value, can you replace it, but obviously see if you can find out why it blew in the first place.

 

[telectrix]

read the thread title and thought solar iboost was a member. was about to post RIP.

 

[Ajax123]

Seems pretty stupid having a replaceable part permanently soldered in place, obviously built in obsolescence. ?. If you can determine the value, can you replace it, but obviously see if you can find out why it blew in the first place.

Its a 16A ceramic fuse. I'm guessing as its 16A means it cant be classed as replaceable.

I have a plan...

 

[Ajax123]

Seems pretty stupid having a replaceable part permanently soldered in place, obviously built in obsolescence. ?. If you can determine the value, can you replace it, but obviously see if you can find out why it blew in the first place.

I think it blew because the immersion heater blew up... the neutral cable had come loose I think and arced. It was probably quite pretty... What I'm more annoyed with is the 13A replaceable fuse in the spur still works fine... I'll be speaking with Marlec next week. As you say need to double check reason it blew before recommissioning it. Maybe it looks like it says 16A but isn't really.... maybe 1.6A??

 

[Avo Mk8]

It could be that Marlec designed in a 16A fast-blow fuse to protect their solid-state device (thyristor?) that controls the power into the immersion heater. That would account for why your 13A fuse didn't blow.
It's also possible that, despite the 16A fuse going, the fault took out other things!

 

[Ajax123]

It could be that Marlec designed in a 16A fast-blow fuse to protect their solid-state device (thyristor?) that controls the power into the immersion heater. That would account for why your 13A fuse didn't blow.
It's also possible that, despite the 16A fuse going, the fault took out other things!

Indeed. I shall see soon I guess...

 

[Ajax123]

It lives. Removed the 16A internal fuse and replaced with. Unit struck up and apart from having to reset the tine works perfectly.

 

[DPG]

It lives. Removed the 16A internal fuse and replaced with. Unit struck up and apart from having to reset the tine works perfectly.

Nice one!

 

[julian924s]

Evening, I've just had this, what appears to be the exact same issue with my Solar iBoost. Fitted new in Sep 2017 and has been fine up until last week. I noticed the immersion heater had not been on and the iBoost screen was blank.

I've checked the live feed to the iBoost with one of those mains voltage tester pens and it's live alright. I've also removed the iBoost and ran the cable to the immersion heater and that's dead as well - so suspect when the immersion heater failed it's also damaged the iBoost.

The immersion heater is being replaced tomorrow. I've removed the front of the iBoost but can anyone tell me where this 16A internal fuse is located exactly? I'm not an electrician and certainly won't be trying to repair it myself ... but maybe I can find someone that can. If it's the same issue that is.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Nigel W]

Got the front off the unit. Turns out there is a fuse....its blown but it's also soldered in place.... marvellous!

Hi, Is that the fuse located under the large main board?

 

[PeterB7385]

I have the exact same issue with my Solar iBoost+ (installed Aug 2018 with PV system). I have safely removed the iBoost from the mains and immersion heater. My question is, what tool do I need to buy to remove the screws holding on the front? I can then assess if the internal fuse has blown. Many thanks.

 

[Mike Johnson]

A picture of the screw head would be ever so helpful. ?

 

[PeterB7385]

A picture of the screw head would be ever so helpful. ?

Thanks Mike. Alas, the screw heads are about 5cm into the casing via moulded tubes. They are quite small and may be spline headed but v. diff. to see.

 

[DPG]

Thanks Mike. Alas, the screw heads are about 5cm into the casing via moulded tubes. They are quite small and may be spline headed but v. diff. to see.

Buy a multi bit screwdriver set. Won't cost much for one that will cover most things. Just make sure it is a long reach set though!

 

[PeterB7385]

Buy a multi bit screwdriver set. Won't cost much for one that will cover most things. Just make sure it is a long reach set though!

Good idea. Thanks.

 

[JackPreacher]

It lives. Removed the 16A internal fuse and replaced with. Unit struck up and apart from having to reset the tine works perfectly.

Hi Ajax, mine is dead too...same as yours: failed internal fuse.
1. What rating did you replace yours with?
2. Did you re-solder the replacement back in?

thanks
JP

 

[Ajax123]

16A to match what was there. I bought a pack of 5 from amazon. They were too big so I soldered it to the top of the fuse holder as there was plenty of room. I think I paid about £5 for the fuses. Make sure they are fast blow as well otherwise if you use standard blow, if it goes again it'll fry the circuitry.

 

[JackPreacher]

Thanks. Would you mind posting the link to the Amazon fuses in this thread?...it may be too late for me [I think I have fried it now] but others reading will appreciate it. I'll try 'your' fuses as well....I tried a standard 13A fuse at 03:00 this morning after my Much Better Half reported the unit had died....the internal fuse was a right mess..yuk. It popped the fuse immediately. surprise surprise

 

[Ajax123]

I just looked at my amazon orders. Think I might have got them on ebay as it happens but there are several on amazon at a sensible price. Just search for 16A fast blow fuses. I went for the glass ones cos its easier to see if they've blown. I did hold it carefully over the existing fuse before soldering just to see if it powered up. It did. From memory I just left the old one in place. I have visions in a few years of having a whole ladder of fuses in there

 

[davesparks]

I just looked at my amazon orders. Think I might have got them on ebay as it happens but there are several on amazon at a sensible price. Just search for 16A fast blow fuses. I went for the glass ones cos its easier to see if they've blown. I did hold it carefully over the existing fuse before soldering just to see if it powered up. It did. From memory I just left the old one in place. I have visions in a few years of having a whole ladder of fuses in there

Don't use a glass fuse as a replacement for a ceramic fuse, they cannot handle the same level of fault current. It will have been designed with a ceramic fuse for a reason.

Holding a fuse in place over a blown one is an extremely silly thing to do, if the fault which caused the fuse to blow originally was still present you could have sustained serious injury,especially if you are using the wrong size/type of fuse.

 

[davesparks]

Thanks. Would you mind posting the link to the Amazon fuses in this thread?...it may be too late for me [I think I have fried it now] but others reading will appreciate it. I'll try 'your' fuses as well....I tried a standard 13A fuse at 03:00 this morning after my Much Better Half reported the unit had died....the internal fuse was a right mess..yuk. It popped the fuse immediately. surprise surprise

If you post a picture of the original fuse someone will probably be able to identify it and advise on where to get it.

Don't try replacing it with the wrong tyoe/size/rating as it may do more harm than good and leave you with much bigger repair bill.

 

[Ajax123]

I didn't. I replaced a glass fuse with a glass fuse rated identically admittedly it was a slightly larger glass fuse but it was rated the same. Admittedly ive done many silly things in my time. To be fair though on this occasion tested all the component's I could first with a multimeter having taken the unit off the wall. I used a phantom power supply to test the led circuit to see if it lit up when I put the fuse in. It did. It wasn't attached to the mains electricity supply. I did fully expect it to blow again when I reattached it to the mains but it didn't. Both it and I survived but I would not advocate anyone else doing it as my level of controlled silliness may not be matched by common sense in others. Thank you for your concern though

 

[JackPreacher]

I didn't. I replaced a glass fuse with a glass fuse rated identically admittedly it was a slightly larger glass fuse but it was rated the same. Admittedly ive done many silly things in my time. To be fair though on this occasion tested all the component's I could first with a multimeter having taken the unit off the wall. I used a phantom power supply to test the led circuit to see if it lit up when I put the fuse in. It did. It wasn't attached to the mains electricity supply. I did fully expect it to blow again when I reattached it to the mains but it didn't. Both it and I survived but I would not advocate anyone else doing it as my level of controlled silliness may not be matched by common sense in others. Thank you for your concern though

Wow…your original fuse was a glass one!

I didn’t see that coming
I’ve ordered a pack of fast blow 16A ceramics…. this will be interesting

 

[Deleted account]

I didn't. I replaced a glass fuse with a glass fuse rated identically admittedly it was a slightly larger glass fuse but it was rated the same. Admittedly ive done many silly things in my time. To be fair though on this occasion tested all the component's I could first with a multimeter having taken the unit off the wall. I used a phantom power supply to test the led circuit to see if it lit up when I put the fuse in. It did. It wasn't attached to the mains electricity supply. I did fully expect it to blow again when I reattached it to the mains but it didn't. Both it and I survived but I would not advocate anyone else doing it as my level of controlled silliness may not be matched by common sense in others. Thank you for your concern though

That’s good information. Any chance of pictures to show where the fuse is you have replaced.
im in process of getting solar iboost. It’s a need to know thing.

 

[Ajax123]

Wow…your original fuse was a glass one!

I didn’t see that coming
I’ve ordered a pack of fast blow 16A ceramics…. this will be interesting

It was. I take it yours is ceramic? My guess is they are interchangeable but???

 

[Ajax123]

That’s good information. Any chance of pictures to show where the fuse is you have replaced.
im in process of getting solar iboost. It’s a need to know thing.

Not from me I'm afraid. It's inside the unit... its one of those " open here to void the warranty" things. Mine was out of warranty anyway. If you open the unit the fuse is pretty obvious but it's not supposed to be "tampered" with so be aware.

 

[JackPreacher]

It was. I take it yours is ceramic? My guess is they are interchangeable but???

my original one was barely recognisable as anything.....it was a mangled mess

 

[Ajax123]

my original one was barely recognisable as anything.....it was a mangled mess

Maybe they changed the design to a glass fuse cos the ceramic was too strong? . Mine was clean just blown??

 

[JackPreacher]

mine was £200.00 secondhand and 2 years old. It worked very well for almost 10 days..then BANG.
Trying to repair it is probably a lost cause but hey...

A better route [in my opinion] is get as big a battery bank as possible so the DHW immersion can be turned on at anytime....hence I just ordered a 50+kWh brand new 48V Lead Acid battery pack....5 years guarantee...that'll be better than trying to get an iBoost or Eddi or Zappi to work on modulated solar.....it can all just bung straight into the battery. ..still, it seems a waste not to fix the iBoost.

 

[davesparks]

Maybe they changed the design to a glass fuse cos the ceramic was too strong? . Mine was clean just blown??

It's the other way around, a ceramic fuse will handle higher fault currents than a glass fuse.

Ceramic fuses are filled with sand to absorb the molten metal and quench the arc.

 

[Ajax123]

mine was £200.00 secondhand and 2 years old. It worked very well for almost 10 days..then BANG.
Trying to repair it is probably a lost cause but hey...

A better route [in my opinion] is get as big a battery bank as possible so the DHW immersion can be turned on at anytime....hence I just ordered a 50+kWh brand new 48V Lead Acid battery pack....5 years guarantee...that'll be better than trying to get an iBoost or Eddi or Zappi to work on modulated solar.....it can all just bung straight into the battery. ..still, it seems a waste not to fix the iBoost.

Indeed. I bought mine new about 7 years ago. Also have solar with battery but any unused goes to the grid. Hence putting the water unit in. Wish I could find a switching system so I could charge a second battery bank once the first is full....

 

[Deleted account]

mine was £200.00 secondhand and 2 years old. It worked very well for almost 10 days..then BANG.
Trying to repair it is probably a lost cause but hey...

A better route [in my opinion] is get as big a battery bank as possible so the DHW immersion can be turned on at anytime....hence I just ordered a 50+kWh brand new 48V Lead Acid battery pack....5 years guarantee...that'll be better than trying to get an iBoost or Eddi or Zappi to work on modulated solar.....it can all just bung straight into the battery. ..still, it seems a waste not to fix the iBoost.

£4500 for the battery £350 for solar iboost.

would it be viable?

 

[Ajax123]

£4500 for the battery £350 for solar iboost.

would it be viable?

£4500 for the battery?? Blimey I'll have 2. Mine was £8500...