Another attempt at fixing Apex EB832

[laverda]

I would think they would be as they are both 12v supplies. Looks like the meanwell is only 0.42 amps. Does anyone know the Amp rating of the other one. I can not see a fan hook up in the photo however, so it may need to be hooked up somehow different. Should be easy enough.

 

[2mk]

I would think they would be as they are both 12v supplies. Looks like the meanwell is only 0.42 amps. Does anyone know the Amp rating of the other one. I can not see a fan hook up in the photo however, so it may need to be hooked up somehow different. Should be easy enough.

I think the fan hookup is part of the main board instead of being part of the 12v PSU

 

[2mk]

The new PSU and the old board are not necessarily compatible.
Buying a new EB832 is likely what Neptune is implying here.

I see.

 

[DaneGer21]

Of coarse they knew the issue after “x” amount started needing repair. They update the parts, don’t really tell anyone, and charge to repair.

Hopefully some if not most was under warranty!

 

[laverda]

One reason I will never buy from Neptune again. I have had 5 or 6 of their previous controllers without a single failure. Still using an very old aquacontroler 2 on my QT tank. At 20 plus years old it is more reliable than my apex gold has been. I have 2 failed eb8s, a dead brain and most recently my display shorted out. My auto feeder is stupid loud. Of the three I have had 2 were very loud. There have been other failures as well. Like my apex turning my alk doser from auto to "ON" on three occasions emptying my alk container. On top of that it did not notifying me when my Ph went above 8.4. I no longer rely on it for anything critical.

 

[ReeferLou]

Any reputable electronics supplier will have them. Digikey, mouser, newark, etc.

If you just need a few caps and you know what you're looking for ebay is hard to beat.

 

[_AV]

If you just need a few caps and you know what you're looking for ebay is hard to beat.

I do not trust ebay for electronic components professionally. Their supply chain is questionable. Too much counterfeit.

 

[((FORDTECH))]

One reason I will never buy from Neptune again. I have had 5 or 6 of their previous controllers without a single failure. Still using an very old aquacontroler 2 on my QT tank. At 20 plus years old it is more reliable than my apex gold has been. I have 2 failed eb8s, a dead brain and most recently my display shorted out. My auto feeder is stupid loud. Of the three I have had 2 were very loud. There have been other failures as well. Like my apex turning my alk doser from auto to "ON" on three occasions emptying my alk container. On top of that it did not notifying me when my Ph went above 8.4. I no longer rely on it for anything critical.

Sounds to me like you did not have it set up properly with the proper redundant alarms

 

[laverda]

Sounds to me like you did not have it set up properly with the proper redundant alarms

It always sent me alarms prior to this if my Ph got out of a specific range. But assuming that was the case. That does not account for all the other failures or it turning my dosing pump from auto to on 3 times.

 

[((FORDTECH))]

It always sent me alarms prior to this if my Ph got out of a specific range. But assuming that was the case. That does not account for all the other failures or it turning my dosing pump from auto to on 3 times.

Very true

 

[2mk]

I would think they would be as they are both 12v supplies. Looks like the meanwell is only 0.42 amps. Does anyone know the Amp rating of the other one. I can not see a fan hook up in the photo however, so it may need to be hooked up somehow different. Should be easy enough.

I opened a DEC 2020 production eb832 and I see a Meanwell PSU as shown in the picture of a previous post.

To answer you question concerning the fan hook up. It is plugged into the mainboard as did before, but somehow the recepticle appears to be further away from the PSU conmpared to V1.3 if I am not wrong.

 

[headdr]

Trying to diagnose my malfunctioning EB832. LED lights are functioning, but the solenoids on the individual plugs are not clicking. Is this PSU-capacitor issue the most likely culprit? Again thanks for the write up, your truly an asset to this community. Wish I had seen this kind of reporting before purchasing. Had I done more research, I wouldn't have wasted so much money on a 2016 and gone with the classic. I actually bought a EB8 to replace the failed unit. METAL CASE! Wow. Really makes the plastic look like junk.

 

[_AV]

Trying to diagnose my malfunctioning EB832. LED lights are functioning, but the solenoids on the individual plugs are not clicking. Is this PSU-capacitor issue the most likely culprit? Again thanks for the write up, your truly an asset to this community. Wish I had seen this kind of reporting before purchasing. Had I done more research, I wouldn't have wasted so much money on a 2016 and gone with the classic. I actually bought a EB8 to replace the failed unit. METAL CASE! Wow. Really makes the plastic look like junk.

Thank you! And yes, this is likely the PSU. Among other things, it provides power to the eight relays that switch the individual outlets on and off. When it can no longer provide enough power, relays will not click. In some cases they actually start clicking like crazy on and off (aka "EB832 click of death"), but the cause of this is the same.

Here's one way to tell even without taking the EB832 apart:
Take EB832 to a darker area and plug it in. Look closer at the actual outlets #4 and #8. If you can see a dim red light blinking inside, barely visible through the orange plastic around those outlets, the PSU is bad. The red light is the LED on the PSU. It stays solid red if the PSU under load is working properly, but flashes red if it's "overloaded".

 

[robbyg]

There have been other failures as well. Like my apex turning my alk doser from auto to "ON" on three occasions emptying my alk container. On top of that it did not notifying me when my Ph went above 8.4. I no longer rely on it for anything critical.

I got my Apex strictly to run my Trident and I am happy with it doing that task. I started to feel a bit confident in it so I played around with the Idea of taking my Chiller off my Aquatronica controller and using it on the Apex short term just so I would have some idea of the power usage and cycling.

In preparation I plugged a cordless phone and a Lamp into two plugs just for a trial and then low and behold over a one month period that cordless phone and Lamp socket on the EB832 just change status from On to Off not once but two times during that month for no reason.
I have no code running so I have no idea what caused it, but that was enough for me to abort the chiller migration plans. In fair disclosure it has not done it again.

Honestly I love Fusion but the Apex and EB832 needs to be re designed to a higher standard, even if it means a higher price tag.

 

[minus9]

I got my Apex strictly to run my Trident and I am happy with it doing that task. I started to feel a bit confident in it so I played around with the Idea of taking my Chiller off my Aquatronica controller and using it on the Apex short term just so I would have some idea of the power usage and cycling.

In preparation I plugged a cordless phone and a Lamp into two plugs just for a trial and then low and behold over a one month period that cordless phone and Lamp socket on the EB832 just change status from On to Off not once but two times during that month for no reason.
I have no code running so I have no idea what caused it, but that was enough for me to abort the chiller migration plans. In fair disclosure it has not done it again.

Honestly I love Fusion but the Apex and EB832 needs to be re designed to a higher standard, even if it means a higher price tag.

It should be of higher quality at the current price tag.

 

[robbyg]

It should be of higher quality at the current price tag.

True but I doubt that Neptune will ever change their normal margins unless they are forced to by an aggressive competitor.

 

[headdr]

Thank you! And yes, this is likely the PSU. Among other things, it provides power to the eight relays that switch the individual outlets on and off. When it can no longer provide enough power, relays will not click. In some cases they actually start clicking like crazy on and off (aka "EB832 click of death"), but the cause of this is the same.

Here's one way to tell even without taking the EB832 apart:
Take EB832 to a darker area and plug it in. Look closer at the actual outlets #4 and #8. If you can see a dim red light blinking inside, barely visible through the orange plastic around those outlets, the PSU is bad. The red light is the LED on the PSU. It stays solid red if the PSU under load is working properly, but flashes red if it's "overloaded".

Got me a blinker, gonna order new caps and replace the junk.

 

[headdr]

I'm going to order the new caps and have a friend solder them on for me. Is it obvious by size which cap goes where or are they marked with those rings to tell you the size?

 

[AJsReef]

Very intrigued by this thread. I have had 2 EB832s fail right around 12 months of operation. Both times the EBs would work if I connected my brain to a power supply. I wonder if this fix would work... FWIW, my electronics are all stored in a dry room away from my tank so it’s definitely not a water issue. I’m getting pretty tired of Neptune myself. Considering I’ve now spent $600 on EBs to keep my multi thousand dollar ecosystem functional.

 

[_AV]

I'm going to order the new caps and have a friend solder them on for me. Is it obvious by size which cap goes where or are they marked with those rings to tell you the size?

Polarity is marked on the board. Capacity is marked on the original caps.