TROUBLESHOOTING AND REPAIR INSTRUCTIONS FOR L&L KILNS
troubleshoot-general.pdf
REV: 4/15/2017
Page 18
2017
L&L Kiln Mfg, Inc. 505 Sharptown Rd, Swedesboro NJ 08085 856.294.0077 F:856.294.0070 [email protected] hotkilns.com
what you will see.
Err1
can mean either you need new
elements or a new relay. An ohms test and a voltage test
can tell you which it is. If you recently changed locations,
power supplies, elements, or did any repairs, then closely
examine what changed between your last successful firing
and this one. There may be some other issue besides bad
elements or a bad component.
2) A new location can mean a 208 volt power supply rather
than a 240 volt supply (about 25% less power).
3) In re-wiring the power supply you may not have used
thick enough copper wire (line, conduit and connection
points will be very hot).
4) The elements are the wrong resistance. Check new
elements with your multimeter just to be safe. Mistakes can
happen.
5) If you rewire anything improperly or incorrectly the
potential for anything from a blown breaker to just no power
at all is possible. (Using wire with a temperature rating of
less than 150°C for the power wiring can seriously limit the
life of the circuitry and can be dangerous as well, especially
when the wires are close to the kiln. Use a wire diagram
and trace every wire to check yourself). You can buy high
temperature wire from L&L (see the Parts List).
ErrP
ErrP
is displayed whenever there is a power interruption
that is long enough to stop the firing. If the power
interruption is brief the kiln will continue to fire when power
is restored; in this case there will no indication of a power
failure. To clear the error, press any key.
This error can also happen as a result of RF (radio
frequency) noise that resets the microprocessor. If this is
suspected, the control panel should be returned to L&L for
testing and possible modification. Also see
hotkilns.com/
noise
ErrF
ErrF
indicates the temperature in the kiln is decreasing
during a down ramp less than 15°F/hr. If this rate continues
for 8 minutes the firing will be stopped.
ErrF
may be an
indication that a relay has stuck in the on position.
tC-
tC-
indicates that the red and yellow thermocouple wires
are reversed. Make sure they are right all the way through
the circuit.
FAIL
See the section in these Troubleshooting Instructions called
DISPLAY READS
FAIL
and
tC
.
Can you restart the kiln after it stops because of
Error Codes?
You can try to restart the kiln after getting an error code.
Some messages, like flashing
ErrP
and
FAIL
, will not
necessarily turn off the kiln. Depending on the problem
though, re-starting it may or may not let it finish the firing,
or even start up again. An
Err1
at the end of the firing
will re-start but will probably re-occur in about 22 minutes.
Worst Case Scenario for Restarting After an Error
Code
Keep in mind that you run the risk of over-firing if you
re-start while the kiln is very close to the final temperature.
A pyrometric cone melts with the proper combination of time
and temperature. Add more time and you don’t need as high
a temperature, go to a higher temperature and you don’t
need as much time. When an error code shuts down the
kiln near your final temperature (within about 50 degrees)
and you do not know exactly how long it has been cooling,
or what temperature it reached before the error code
appeared, you run the risk of having too much unaccounted
for time in your time-temperature equation.
If you have cones in the kiln that you can see through the
peepholes, then use these after you re-start and turn off the
kiln manually when the target cone bends over.
If you do not have cones visible then you can gamble and
estimate a final temperature based on how many degrees
per hour the kiln has risen, including the time it was off.
For example, you come in and the control says
2200
(degrees F) and everything seems fine in your slow glaze to
cone 6 firing. But twenty-five minutes later you come back
and see
Err1
.
The first thing you want to do is press
1
to clear the error
code. Look for the temperature and write it down. It might be
2175
. You have no cones in the kiln but you really need
these pieces fired.
Wait a few seconds until you see “
IdLE
,
2175
”. Press
START
to re-start the program and note the time on your
watch. Note the 25 minutes the kiln was “holding” from
the last time you saw it at 2200°F until this time, where it
says
2175
. It must have continued to climb somewhat,
but because the
Err1
will appear after 22.5 minutes
of holding when the kiln is programmed to be climbing, it
probably never got over 2210°F. So the kiln has held at an