Howdy - hoping someone can shed some light on this.

At this house I'm living in, there is a pool pump controller / chlorination system in which I can set the pump running times, installed near the pool. The house has a 1.5kw solar system installed.

The pump controller's power gets cut off intermittently around 4pm onward, and it loses the timer settings I program into it. Sometimes it will remain with power for days on end.

There is a pool pump timer installed in the mains meter box (a). I've set all the dip switches to on, but the pump controller still loses power some days

There is a dual ABB load controller (b) that randomly switches on and off throughout the day. I'm guessing the pool pump controller power is via the ABB load controller, and this is where it's getting cut??

What on earth is (c)? It has a red light and a green button, bit It doesn't appear to do anything.

Cheers

Look on your bill and report back which tariffs are connected, that will help me explain your pool pump hours. But yes your pump is probably on a controllable tariff which your distributor is switching on and off (relay b) to control peak demand on their network. You get cheaper power for allowing this to happen.

Box (c) is a gadget that was installed as part of the "smart-houses" (or something similar to that) program. About 8 years ago some wise government department went around Qld houses offering free low-flow showerheads, efficient lightbulbs and installing energy monitors. The white lead on the back connects to one or more clip on current transformers to monitor one or more circuits. It talks via wireless to a similar sized handheld or wall mounted gadget in your house with an LCD screen. The idea was to let the home owner know how much energy was being used at any time. The previous home owner probably kept it.

I don't know about (a) does it set the maximum run time for the pump when it is turned on, like a delayed off switch?

A is a 24 hour timer. Hager EH010 is the model. Just a really basic timer that rotates and actuates on whatever pins you slide across. This item won't be part of your problems. There is a manual override switch on the bottom of it if you want to operate whatever is connected at your choosing.

The two channels on the (b) relay are most likely hot water and pool pump circuits. The unit is an ABB ripple control receiver. The distributor sends a coded ripple signal at 317Hz on top of the normal 50 Hz AC supply frequeny to switch different channels.

Thank you both. Yes there is a small switch at the bottom of the Hager timer, labelled I and Auto. I've tried both positions with same affect. Would the I position simply mean it's on all the time regardless of the dip switch positions (like a bypass) and Auto meaning it's using the timer?

My main problem is the pool pump not running if I'm not there to manually turn it back on, if it's had its power cut. I've just discovered I can tell the pump controller to always turn on when power is resumed, even though it's timers get cleared. So would the logical thing be to use the Hager timer to set the periods I want it to run instead, as this never gets cleared?

Is there a possibility origin is monitoring my usage and shedding devices if I'm exceeding use of my solar generation throughout the day?

I'll take a look at the tarrif on the bill and report back. Weve only just switched over to the supplier.

Knotboard - did you conquer those forwards?

Thanks guys

Haircut said: I've tried both positions with same affect. Would the I position simply mean it's on all the time regardless of the dip switch positions (like a bypass) and Auto meaning it's using the timer?
KB Said: Yes


[b]Haircut said: [/b]So would the logical thing be to use the Hager timer to set the periods I want it to run instead, as this never gets cleared?
[b]KB Said: [/b]Yes, that's probably why the Hager timer was installed in the first place.
[b]

Haircut said: [/b]Is there a possibility origin is monitoring my usage and shedding devices if I'm exceeding use of my solar generation throughout the day?[b]
[/b] KB Said: No, the EM1000 meter can't be remotely interrogated. And that's not an operating practice I have ever heard of from a distributor or retailer.


[b]Haircut said: [/b]Knotboard - did you conquer those forwards?[b]
KB Said: [/b]Not even close, life got in the road of windsurfing for many years.

The Hager timer you have may not have a battery reserve, so if the power is cut to it then your timing will be out by the amount of time the power is cut to it. If you don't already know, to set that timer you need to rotate the wheel by hand to match up with the time of the day. Then whilst it's powered it will continue to turn over once in its 24 hour cycle actuating off the pins you have chosen to slide over. If the power is being cut to it then you may want to get the battery reserve model which is an EH011. Expect to pay roughly $150 from an electrical wholesaler.