Steam Generator - To Be or Not To Be - And 1000 Other Questions

[JayPoorJay]

Good Morning All.

Now I've gone and done it! Wife and I bought a big old "new" 100yo colonial house and a guy can dream, right??? I'm building a sauna and a steam shower in the basement.

At this point, because of y'all, I've fixed a couple TVs, replaced a few capacitors and resistors, repaired some E ribbons, ALL with y'all's help and reading here. Next challenge,,,, I am still and perhaps will ALWAYS be at bottom of a steep learning curve with electronics... Anywho,,,

These things (Thermosol Steam Suite ASD450) NEW are in the thousands. That plus all the building materials, time and energy. This one "for repair" on eBay was $29.00 plus $75 shipping. I thought, what could go wrong??? Famous last words,,,,

I don't have it in my hands YET but, what does this circuit schematic and board look like to y'all??? Pretty straightforward, a nightmare? Workable? What do ya see?

Super appreciative, in advance!

[stj]

simple device,
but it looks like a trasformer is loose in the picture - so make sure they do something about that before shipping it

[JayPoorJay]

simple device,
but it looks like a transformer is loose in the picture - so make sure they do something about that before shipping it

I did see that. This is an "AS IS" situation. What we are seeing is what I'll be getting - little scary, lol... but not?

The thing that I really need (and it doesn't seem like its included in the schematic) is the input from the controller and its connections OR,,, are those connections the little arrows with J6.x numbers/letters on the left?

I've spoken to the manufacturer and they say it is a "six prong" plug connector and those are basically numbered 1-6 (not including the AC input wiring). Could those be them?

[stj]

it's a gamble without knowing what is supposed to be in that box vs what is somewhere else.
and it has no controller of any kind - so that would have to be found or made.
it could be as simple as some switches or it could include timers and temperature sensing - whatever level of complexity you want.
just no wifi please

[JayPoorJay]

it's a gamble without knowing what is supposed to be in that box vs what is somewhere else.
and it has no controller of any kind - so that would have to be found or made.
it could be as simple as some switches or it could include timers and temperature sensing - whatever level of complexity you want.
just no wifi please

Hey Man. I would love to hear about one being "made". The replacement is almost 400 dollars unless one comes up on eBay soon...

Then, there is a guy selling a controller for a much newer thermosol steam generator for less than even the older one designed for this unit... Could it be "modified"?

I've been chatting with the guy and he tells me he bought it with a "LOT" of items at an estate sale and it looked as thought they had just removed it from the space it had been living/working in. I really have my fingers crossed on this one...!

[stj]

if you can find schematics for both the old and new units we could see if the control
those schems show a psu - presumably for the controller, and 2 relay circuits.
one for a contactor for the heater and one for a valve.

so i dont know if the actual boiler/steam generator or other "plumbing" stuff is in the back of the box or totally seperate.

[JayPoorJay]

Hey Good Day Folks

So, my 29$ 1600$ steam generator showed up and I took a look (to the best of my ability - untrained eye) at some of the components and what here...

I'll attach some pictures but for the most part it looks "clean"... No evidence of heat, burning or fire. I think it was just something that was getting discarded during an estate sale or something from an estate clearing situation. Fingers crossed.

Also, like a nut, I went and order a 400$$$ controller. I didn't see any choice. Can't test it exactly without the controller - as far as I know.

Anyways. With what I present here, do you guys think you can get me on a path to getting the wiring in the right place and getting some power to it. I have the 240 ready. I am waiting on the controller, I just have what looks like a one or two loose wires floating around...

What do ya think?

[stj]

start by testing the circuit board.
power goes in on J1/2
J6 pins 1 & 5 should give you a regulated output - probably 5v, but could be 12 or 15 - see what the part number on VR1 is.

once thats checked we can test the relay circuits.

[JayPoorJay]

Man you are fast!
So, even without the controller I can do that test?

Which and where is VR1? Is it in one of the photos? Is it the large coil on the board?

I'm nervous. Pls be patient with a guy.
There are loose wires floating around.

I can and will provide better pictures BUT the main red, black and white wires that WERE and STILL ARE attached on the circuit board side, are not attached on the other end - where do they go?

I also spoke a bit with thermosol and he suggested those two skinny white wires would be for the "fast start" and "thermostat"... in diagram

[JayPoorJay]

These two wires...

From your previous instructions,,, applying power to the unit. Does that just mean that,,,,, well, how would I do that? The full 240v or can I just apply 120v somewhere to test?

[lotas]

Which and where is VR1? Is it in one of the photos? Is it the large coil on the board?

VR1

[JayPoorJay]

Hey, Thanks Lotas...

Yes, I'm kinda dumb with this stuff so please be patient with me. Lol, not overly, just a bit...

So, I have a green earth I'm guessing that will go to earth (ground) when I get the 240 wiring to the unit. I have what we call here 8/3 which holds a neutral, and two hots and a earth (ground).... so from what I'm seeing here,,, basically I don't know where the red, black and white wires would go. J1, 2 and 3...on the board...

Am I missing an entire component?
Yeah. I need all kinds of help.

[JayPoorJay]

Photos...

I have what I believe is T1 the transformer and the circuit board. Nothing else in the box. The guy from thermosol says the level switch are the two reds and the two whites are the thermostat and the fast start?

Yeah, I don't know what I am looking at.

[JayPoorJay]

Good morning.

I'm back, and a little calm-er.
I need to calm down and take tis step by step.
This is a photo of VR1
PN - L7805CV --- GK1E3

They are like 8 bucks on amazon,

[stj]

your outlet - the 2 hot wires should have 240v between them - test that with a meter set to AC
the output we are expecting from the board will be 5v - because that part was a 7805
the 78 means positive regulator - the second 2 digits is the voltage.

how many amps is this thing rated to use at full power?

[JayPoorJay]

Thank you for staying with me STJ (all of y'all)... I need(ed) to take a step back, or something.
I hate to say this but even though you are giving me basic info and asking me basic questions you are kinda talking over my head.

I do have a 240v source and can be ready with that over the weekend. BUT, I don't feel like I know how to get the power to the board safely.
AMPS - I believe (the whole machine) is rated @ 40-46 amps. Ill include a photo of the top of the unit and link the manual.
I have a multi meter and as Lotas suggested (TY) the 5 volts I am looking for should be at the "OUT" pin on the VR1?

Q1: I was looking at this and realized (I think) that everything circled in BLUE is found within the board, correct? (believe it or not I didn't know tis til just now)
Q2: The RED (J6.1-6) is telephone cord style plug coming into the board coming in from the controller? (I have one on the way)
Q3: Are the GREEN, YELLOW and PURPLE components all built into the "contactor". Is that all found in that one piece/component marked white in my attachments?
Q4: If not, would you suspect that the "power flush solenoid" would be found in the BOX somewhere? When I say box, except for the back of the unit, the entire machine is enclosed in a stainless steel box.

If its not all one component (the green yellow and purple) I think I am going to go home after work today and remove some of the side panels to see if the "HEATING CONTACTOR COIL" and the "POWER FLUSH SELONOID" located out of site are in the box somewhere.

So I don't burn anything and destroy this, so I feel even REMOTELY confident, Im hoping you guys will literally give me Step by Step instructions before I start applying power to this thing.

[stj]

at 240v 63A is over 15KW!!!
is it really that power hungry?

as for the board - it's like i said:
power goes in on J1/2
J6 pins 1 & 5 should give you a regulated output

nothing seems to use it though, so it must be for the controller or some extra sensors
and the relays are 12v so there must be a seperate psu in the controller.
which is contradictory and strange.
unless 12v is at J5

[stj]

incidentally, looking at the corrosion on some of the wires bolted to the contactor i would be considering replacing the wiring between the parts.

[JayPoorJay]

at 240v 63A is over 15KW!!!
is it really that power hungry?

as for the board - it's like i said:
power goes in on J1/2
J6 pins 1 & 5 should give you a regulated output

nothing seems to use it though, so it must be for the controller or some extra sensors
and the relays are 12v so there must be a seperate psu in the controller.
which is contradictory and strange.
unless 12v is at J5

Hi STJ,,, Thank you.

I will definitely be replacing wires and cleaning the connections...

Oh and,,, where did you see 63 amps? I've been getting ready for 46 amps tops. I have a 50 amp breaker like Thermosol suggested.

Yes, I believe J6 pins are all dedicated to the controller and that's where 12v goes. It has some lights and I believe a thermometer/thermostat built in? Not sure yet. Should be delivered today.

Any ideas for some of my other questions?

Like - for all of the connections that call for a connection to "J1"... Do I just get that power directly from the contactor spades?
Does this thing use a NEUTRAL wire? All I see coming into it is the 2 120v lines...

[stj]

at 240v 4A = 1KW
and i miss-read your post - so 45A so about 12KW
45A is more reasonable, the same as a good electric shower unit.