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Author Topic: real curve ball infinity issue  (Read 2923 times)

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Offline bowtieboy

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real curve ball infinity issue
« on: July 31, 2014, 07:31:21 PM »
Evening all, today I came across a real curve ball that some one out there may have encountered before.

I went to a rinnai infinity ( near new vt26) today that would not ignite, after checking it had gas I removed the cover and went to remove the test point on the gas valve, and as I cracked the test point I was greeted with a liquid, water like in colour but it had a smell to it and it seamed like a really high pressure coming out of the test point.... I left it just cracked for nearly a minute before the pressure subsided and I could completely remove the test point screw.
This was really odd as I had the gas turned off under the unit, this is a lpg bottle installation.
I then attached my manometer and it went from 0 to 27 kpa in less than 30 seconds ! that's not a typo! 27.3 kpa to be exact.
I went back to basics and tested the gas supply from the lpg regulator.. it had a static pressure of 3.02kpa.
after nearly 3 minutes I reattached my manometer to the manifold test point and it was at zero, so I fired the unit and it started.
then I turned it off and once again the pressure climbed back up to 21kpa !! I said what the fudge???
a quick call to Trevor at rinnai and he had heard of this before but only once., the customer had completely emptied the bottles and he believes that there may be a fluid in the bottom of the lpg bottle that has moved up into the gas valve and expands as it turns back to a vapour !!!
now that's really odd.... what gas does that???? ???
Any way after a discussion with Trevor I decided to remove the manifold and check for fluid, and found nothing, but an odd metallic sort of smell, so I blew air through the gas valve and reassembled it, the gas/ fluid that I was dealing with was trapped between the first solenoid and that's where the test point is on a rinnai and after that is the 2 solenoids for high and low control.
so this fluid/vapour was trapped and would expanded and then the solenoids could not open.
does anyone have any idea what this gas is? there is no way a gas valve can increase the gas pressure by itself, it has to be a fluid that is expanding as it turns back to a vapour, but how can it move along a pipe and into a appliance then expand again???
 
 

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Offline robbo

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #1 on: August 01, 2014, 09:28:11 AM »
hi guys/ Bowtieboy, (does anyone have any idea what this gas is) STEAM!(it has to be a fluid that is expanding as it turns back to a vapour)WATER! just a thought, cheers

Offline bowtieboy

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #2 on: August 01, 2014, 07:16:18 PM »
that would be what it is Robbo but there  is no heat in the gas valve to generate the expantion, and this was at 10 am in a cool cimate.
when I got to this unit and tried to start it there was no ignition, yet 27kpa inside the gas valve. odd aye? ::)

Offline bowtieboy

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #3 on: August 01, 2014, 07:21:31 PM »
the lpg in question was supplied by rockgas so I am going to contact the supplier and ask the question. :-\

Offline o2b007

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #4 on: August 04, 2014, 12:58:44 PM »
Are you in an area that freezes?

Offline bowtieboy

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #5 on: August 04, 2014, 07:30:37 PM »
yip it can, but the day I went to this unit it was around 11 degrees at the time and hadn't had a frost over night. ::)

Offline aboutgas

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #6 on: August 04, 2014, 09:30:05 PM »
Was this the first instance of this happening or had the home owner had the problem a couple of times before calling you?
Unless the moral improves the floggings will continue

Offline bowtieboy

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #7 on: August 05, 2014, 07:27:56 AM »
no, this was a oncer, and the owner had run the bottles completely empty as they where changing gas suppliers from rockgas to egas.
thats where i think the ominous liquid/gas has come from, the very last of the bottle.

Offline bowtieboy

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Re: real curve ball infinity issue
« Reply #8 on: August 05, 2014, 06:19:26 PM »
having said that, this has to be a case of a gas that forms for either compression/decompression  or heat/cold... ::)


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