Common Chiller Problems

Most chillers are designed with extensive control systems to prevent themselves from damage.   The first indication of a problem will be when the chiller stops.  The chiller through its alarm codes will then give details of why it has stopped.  Most alarm logs date stamp each alarm.  There may well be muliple alarms at the same time that have caused the problem.  It is important to take note of all the alarms that are recorded against a specific eevent as the chiller stoppage may have been caused by more than one issue.  

As an example please find below the commons alarm code faults on the Refcool V15 chiller and what associated action can be taken to fix/repair


Alarms screen and LEDs 

Pressing the ALARM (Top left corner) key can occur in two different situations - no alarm or an alarm present.
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If there is no alarm, the following screen is displayed:

This screen makes it possible to easily enter the alarms log using the ENTER key.

If there is at least one alarm, the alarms screen is displayed sorted by alarm code from lesser to greater. 


Each alarm contains the information needed to understand the cause of the alarm. 
The information available in the screen is shown below:

1. Alarm number/total alarms; 
2. Unique alarm code; 
3. Alarm date and time;
4. Long alarm description;
5. Value of the probes linked to the alarm;

In every alarm screen, the alarms log can be displayed by pressing ENTER.

The red LED under the ALARM button can be:

• Off: no active alarm;
• Flashing: there is at least one active alarm and the display shows a screen that is not part of the alarms loop.
• On: there is at least one active alarm and a screen that is part of the alarms loop is displayed.   

​Reset alarms 
The alarms can be reset manually, automatically or automatically with retries:

• Manual reset: when the cause of the alarm has stopped, the buzzer must first be reset using the ALARM button and then the ALARM button pressed a second time for a true reset. At this point, even the specific alarm action is reset, and the device can restart.
• Automatic reset: when the alarm condition stops automatically, the buzzer is silenced, and the alarm reset.
• Automatic reset with retries: The number of interventions per hour is checked. If that number is less than the set maximum, the alarm is on automatic reset, once the limit is exceeded it becomes manual. 

For more information on Common Chiller Problems talk to Refcool Refrigeration Ltd