Troubleshooting

Controller Not Working:  

-Is the clear plastic case covering that covers the display screen lifted up? 

-Are you missing a step when setting the controller? (For instance, if the set temp is higher than their water temperature, the chiller wouldn’t turn on). 

Chiller Not Cooling: 

-The chiller takes anywhere from 2-4 hours depending on the outside temperature and other variables. The initial drop-down does take a considerate amount of time, so you won’t see any meaningful cooling until a few hours of use. 

-Confirm there is a healthy flow throughout the system and have both filters been cleaned? 

-Is the pump making any sort of noise? If so, it could be caused by cavitation (trapped air).

-If the pump is making noise or the flow is diminished (with clean filters) the pump could possibly be cavitating/there could be air trapped somewhere in the system. Try releasing air by simple unscrewing the outlet side of the chiller hose connected to your plunge, and monitor the water pressure & flow coming from the hose once it’s disconnected from the plunge. If it has good pressure, you can connect back to the plunge. If it does not have good pressure, and you’ve cleaned your filters entirely, contact our support team at help@thecoldlife.com

Chiller Maintaining Temp But Cycling Frequently: 

-Especially in low ambient temperatures, this is normal operation. A lot of times customers assume it's the compressor they're hearing, but in most cases it's the fan. Low ambient temps means the chiller is cooling itself off a lot faster, causing the fan to turn on / off much more frequently. In summer temps, the fan needs to run much longer to cool off the rest of the chiller, and they won’t notice it as much. 

Chiller Cycling Frequently & Not Getting Down the Last Few Degrees of the Setpoint:  

-Similar to the above, what you are experiencing does sound like normal operation, and it is part of the chiller's function at low ambient temperatures. Beyond the fan cycling frequently so as to not overcool itself, the compressor can cycle frequently as well. The closer the ambient temperature is to the set temperature on the chiller, the more difficult it is to cool because there is less heat for the chiller to pull from the water. When the ambient temperature is lower, the internal pressures of the refrigeration system inside the unit are likewise lower and the plate exchanger inside the unit gets cold faster. Because of that, the chiller might need to cycle for quite a while in order to reach those last few degrees toward the set point.

GFCI On the Chiller Tripping After a Few Minutes: 

-If the chiller's GFI trips after a few minutes of running / once the work light on the controller goes solid, this indicates it’s tripping as soon as the compressor tries to engage. This will only happen if the chiller was run with too slow of flow for an extended period of time OR it was exposed to freezing ambient temperatures. 

-In most cases, it’s due to the filter not being cleaned. Once you notice your flow is severely slowed, then you should clean the filter right away. The first step is to always clean filters when having a water flow issue. 

With something like this, whether it’s caused by not cleaning the filter or freezing ambient temperatures, there will be no remote troubleshooting to do, and the chiller will need to get sent in for repair.

* Due to the nature of this type of damage, this would not be considered a warranty repair, as the damage is not due to a manufacturing defect / error.