Question: 

 

My chiller has starting to take longer than normal to cool the water, is it wearing out?

 

Answer: 

 

Chillers do require periodic maintenance to keep them working efficently. Before performing any maintenance the chiller should be disconnected from the mains power supply and we suggest shutting off the water supply to the unit.

The chillers have lift of prefilter pannels on the sides and front. These trap dust and debris and will need cleaning to prevent the restriction of air through the chiller. To remove the front filter panel you will need to undo the single screw at the bottom to release it. These prefilters should be cleaned with a hoover or soft bristled brush.

If these have not been cleaned for some time it may be nessisary to remove the back pannel of the chiller and use a hoover or compressed air to clear the condenser. This looks like the radiator on a car.

We also recommend flushing the chiller through in reverse as detritus and calcuim deposits can gather within the internal pipework. This will dramatically reduce the ability of the chiller to cool the aquarium water. 

The best way to do this is to use a suitable pump to pass water from a bucket into the outlet of the chiller and then from the inlet to the drain using a piece of pipe. it is best to repeat this several times and should flush loose debris from the unit. The chiller itself should be left unpluged from mains power during this.

In extreme cases where there is a build up of calcareous deposits inside the chiller set the unit up with with a pump running to and from a salt bucket in a loop. Fill the bucket with 50% warm RO water and 50% white vinegar or a solution of Ezeclean, set the pipes up in reverse and reverse flush the chiller for a day. Once finished flush the chiller through with fresh water as above.

We reccomend that the chiller is flushed every 6 months and that the prefilters panels are cleaned monthly.