Good news... Tractor supply has propylene glycol in stock!!! :-)
21 bux a gallon...
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Good news... Tractor supply has propylene glycol in stock!!! :-)
21 bux a gallon...
Yeah it's time to pull a vacuum on this thing and put some gas in it. We need to find out how it's going to work. :D
Agreed !!! :clap:Quote:
Originally Posted by runmc
I'm hoping for a first start-up tomorrow evening... Though, no guarantees hehe...
I was always told to mount the vibrasorber on the discharge line parralel to the crankshaft to properly isolate from compressor vibrations. When your compressor is running the torque and vibrations will be side to side, which would just push your vibrasorber in the direction it's pointing, the way its mounted currently. Maybe this rotary won't vibrate, I don't know. That's the only thing that stuck out as "wrong" in my eyes. Otherwise, this is the most impressive build I've seen. I'm very inspired by this project and I've already begun designing my own chiller. Great job.
I suppose I misunderstood the "perpendicular" to the source of vibration. :(
I guess I could hard mount the compressor. It isn't necessarily required to spring or rubber mount... I just thought it'd be better for the overall system noise. Something to research this week. I didn't get to do any testing today (obviously), but probably better that I didn't. :p:
What do the rest of you guys think???
`
This is what we think ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by runmc
True.... hehehehe.... But should I be worrying about my vibration absorber alignment??
I never use them but I always use soft copper and a loop or some other type of flexible bend.
Does the vibration absorber allow for any movement the way it is? It may be fine.
The reason I wanted you to test it out was because you need to make sure it's working close to the way you want it incase you have to do some major change. If that makes sense. It will be easier to change now than when you get stuff built up around it.
I agree.
Not going to build anything up. At this point I just need to wire the relays and run the last few pieces of pipe. I got a bit behind Saturday helping my old man with some other things. I did get Propylene Glycol today, though. :) I need to have a good long period to evacuate the unit. I can get it down to 500 Microns, but never lower because I run up against time. This coming weekend I am getting ready to begin the testing phase. >=^)
Be sure to triple evac. Run it down as far as your pump will take it, break the vacuum back to 1 - 2 lbs pressure with nitrogen and then re-vacuum three times doing the same thing. That does the trick. On the last go round add the refrigerant to break the vacuum and put about 50psi in for start. IMHO of course.
Well, to be honest I've probably triple evacuated it three times by now.... LOL...
The past several weeks, I've run the pump while working. When I ran out of supplies and tuition took over... I just ran the pump. Broke with nitrogen several times.. There can't be a drop of moisture left... hehehe
That said, I never did take it down to the sub 200 Micron level... just got it to 475. The pump can go that low, I just never had the time. Hopefully this weekend I do. I'm getting bloody eager to see what it can do.
So are we !! ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Stewie007
Just messing with ya Stewie :)
That reminds me, I've gotta get some pipe insulation too... :p:
My lights dimmed a little this morning, thought you might have powered this beast on...
If only it were so.... :p:
Well, So far no run. I ran my pump for quite a long time, but it wasn't able to get where I needed it to get until about 10:30, and had to pack it up at that point. I did manage to finish some important parts. I was going to test it without the cold coil functionality given that I haven't completed the drain pan yet. So, alone it sits, more complete, and charged with nitrogen. The good news? I did get it to 350 Microns and performed the first standing vacuum test. It held at 345/350 for roughly 5 minutes until it rose to 430 Microns by minute 10. So we had a 85/80 rise. More than acceptable. :)
So what did I do? Well, I wired the A419 switch and tested it for operation. It works as expected. The radiators are properly wired to the power supply. All I have to do is wire that PSU to the main circuit. Finally, next week I will wire the final circuit and hopefully I'll hit <200 Microns and then a'chargin we will go.
Really sorry to disappoint. :( I was fully anticipating a test this evening. Next weekend will be the charm (I hope). I'll post some pics later. Right now I gotta do some homework.
Picture number one is a view of the power supply location. I wanted it to be underneath the stream of air. Moving air will keep it cool. :) I'll have to put a splash guard behind it, though, given the location of the reservoir.
Second picture is a shot of the protruding valves for the inlets, and the single outlet. It took quite some time getting all of this together, but I am pleased with the results. Underneath, it can be seen as far as how it all laid out. It works quite well. :)
http://imageshack.us/a/img62/1514/elnu.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img546/9894/q2xc.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img62/7066/97bu.jpg
Have you done a pressure (leak) test on it yet? Put 150 - 200 psi of nitrogen in the system and see if it will hold. You can loose pressure through your hoses, so I try to leave no hoses attached if possible.
If you want to put down more microns and you have no leaks, change your pump oil.
Pressure tested a while ago. Tested for differential too. 250psi high side 30 psi low side. Then equalized to 200 psi. No leaks. I even did a standing pressure test at 50 psi for a week. No leaks. :)
I did neglect to mention that I forgot to change the oil until a bit later in the process.... :(
It pulled from 500 to 350 very quickly after that ... I was just so concentrated on the piping and the wiring that I didnt change it until late hehe... oops..
It would not have mattered though. I didn't get the wiring finished on the main circuit. I also had to go to the hardware store twice, which slowed me down.
I suppose I have a tendency to make a lot of mistakes so I am making sure that I take my time to get everything right. That said I got the wiring right. Tested for continuity and all is good. With the way I have it wired I cannot activate any of the circuits until everything is complete and the reservoirs are filled. I used two triple circuit terminal blocks and each circuit has one input and four outputs. In other words a pump is connected to the same circuit as the radiator fans and timing relay. If I were to activate that circuit the pump would run dry since I don't have the reservoirs filled. Not to worry I only have one circuit to wire. :)
Sorry guys, not going to be doing any testing today. Unanticipated plans.
Well, I didn't do any testing, but I did give it an initial charge on Sunday morning. System held a Vacuum well with acceptable rise on equalization. I charged it, but unfortunately, I had the wrong solenoid active. I made the switch and we've got equalized pressure of around 64PSI. Overdid it a bit, but that should be fine. I used a leak detector to sniff out any leaks, and found none. The system is leak free. :)
I won't get to start tuning until next week. Though, I finished the wiring job, and installed the hoses to the radiators. One thing I will do before testing is complete the drain pan for the cold coil and partially insulate after a brief leak check. Shouldn't be an issue.
So, we're 97% there. I like how the orange tubing color matches the radiators so well, too. :)
http://imageshack.us/a/img854/6950/dgtf.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img713/3694/92ux.jpg
Its funky just how bent that tube loops in the middle there... It actually bends only slightly... weird camera positioning there.. :p:
A bit of a better shot of how I routed the radiator tubing. It would have been too difficult for it to go from one radiator to the other in short runs, so I planed for long runs between radiator assemblies. Well... maybe not a great shot.. you can't really trace it here, but at least you can see the general idea.
http://imageshack.us/a/img594/7734/ovbr.jpg
Stay with it man. It looks great. Don't rush on our account. We all understand life gets in the way of our hobbies sometimes. Keep up the great work. We'll still be here when it's finished.
Alright, I've been planning for some time now, and I've determined what needs to be done (with some help).
I'm going to be removing the oil separator from the discharge line. It will be on a contingent basis. If the unit shows no signs of oil slugging at the TXV, or otherwise doesn't exhibit signs of oil hampering the HEX process, then I'll leave it off.
I am going to redesign the isolation loops on the suction and discharge lines. At the same time, I'll install a suction and discharge service valve in the event that I have to ever change the compressor out. I'll post a render later.
The filter drier will be up sized, and the liquid line redesigned. The drier and sight glass will be isolated by additional service valves. An additional solenoid service valve will be utilized to evacuate the drier if it needs to be changed again in the future. I figure I'd find a new use for the freed up solenoid valve.
If necessary, I could also use it as a liquid injection bypass, but I'd need to include a capillary line of undetermined length if that is the case. Basically, if I have a mass flow problem I can take steps to ensure that the compressor gets sufficient cooling.
Either way, I'm going to be doing some more work in a few weeks. I'm going to leave the TXV as it is, since it passed the troubleshooting phase. Given the fact that the glycol will not be dropping below -10F, it shouldn't be an issue. It didn't seem to be an issue originally.
Nice to see proper vibrasorber orientation ;)
Well, I've retooled and tore some things apart. I've actually redesigned the coolant loop a bit to accommodate a less restrictive coil within the shroud so that coolant pressure is not restricted when redirected.
I cut the discharge down to remove the oil separator, and I removed the suction line and equalizer line. The new equalizer was made from an thicker walled tube that I had left over that bent particularly well. I've closed off the discharge and suction loops, and have yet to install the new liquid line as well as service solenoid.
So far, so good.
http://mdmccue007.org/images/cam00269.jpg
http://mdmccue007.org/images/cam00272.jpg
http://mdmccue007.org/images/cam00275.jpg
http://mdmccue007.org/images/cam00276.jpg
This is truly impressive. Exceptional. I cannot wait to see it in action.
Me neither. Hopefully, this time, I will have trouble free operation. :)
Aside from taking care of some nagging problems, my filter drier will now be replaceable in the future. :)
nice work here can you give a little info on actual electricity usage?
also noise levels PLEASE
Thanks, D
I hadn't gauged power usage as of yet, I wanted to have everything fine tuned first.
It is likely that we're talking about 1700W total (~15A).
That greatly depends on actual usage and temperature settings at the thermostat. It tends to take it from 65 to 10 in less than an hour, and 65 to 25 in less than 15 minutes. Once that is done 12.5A is no longer drawn and we're left with ~ 2.5-3A of pump power demand. When I am able to finish the modifications, I'll be running it once again and we'll have a good sense of actual power usage.
Noise wise? hehe, not too bad, considering the equipment. Without having a noise meter, I can't really say. Under normal operation (before the problems occurred), it was mostly pump noise. I'm going to build a chest for this thing, and it will include sound dampening materials. I have yet to install the dampening pads beneath the chiller itself, that will help absorb some of the vibrations through the base.
Did some more work today. Closed up the system real tight and now I only have the modifications to the cold coil left to do. I've got some EPDM rubber hose for the return lines. Its a much better solution than the hard piping I had before. Much less restrictive regarding what I can do with it.
The F/D has been strapped into place, but there are a few pieces left that have to be secured. Mainly, the discharge and suction lines after the absorbers. The liquid line looks pretty busy, but it'll be fine. :) It actually looks pretty good in person. I like this particular sight glass better, too. It has a replaceable lens. I ordered it special, since the local refrigerant shops didn't carry them.
http://www.mdmccue007.org/images/3292014.jpg
http://www.mdmccue007.org/images/32920142.jpg
http://www.mdmccue007.org/images/32920143.jpg
I'm sure the watchful eye noticed my mistake.... I forgot to install an access port to the isolated loop on the liquid line.... :p
No worries, I'll ensure that one is installed prior to the filter drier. I'll have to drill, but at least the shavings will be caught by the filter. Oopsie...
How's this coming along?
Slowly. As I've gotten busy, I have less time to work on the thing... Although I did a little work this past weekend and will do a little more this weekend coming up. It has largely been idle for the past few weeks/months. I'll post some pictures of the coil I made last weekend if I get a chance later.
Just a look at the new coil. Not much in the way of interesting pictures.... The top one is in proper orientation.
http://www.mdmccue007.org/images/IMG...417_224100.jpg
http://www.mdmccue007.org/images/CAM00325.jpg
Time for a little Hiatus... Sister's wedding this week, then we're buying a house at some point. A lot to do, so needless to say the chiller takes the back burner.
I managed to finish most of it, and started to evacuate. Got it down to 530 microns, but it still rose a bit faster than I would have liked. Either it is moisture, or I've got a leak. Holds pressure, however, strange as that may seem. The leak detector found no leaks either. There is a third contingency that I may have a part of the system that is slightly isolated (compressor internals). I've got a game plan for that later. Though, still... Gonna be a little while.. :p: Maybe 2 months or so