york YCAL chiller problems

[barnum]

i have a 70 ton Ycal york chiller .
has anyone had a chiller barrel problem with gasket failure on baffel plate
which causes crossover of refrigerant back to suction line
thank you . mr freeze

[referteacher]

Izombie from Brisbane, "Down Under" posted last week on 8-13-07 the same problem you have. Take a look at it. He may come back with more info for you.

[absrbrtek]

I have had this problem multiple times. The fix is to get the head milled flat and install a Garlock gasket, I also use Permatex #2 on the gasket. If you use the York supplied gasket you will be doing it again. Don't ask me how I know.

Oh ya, the gasket is a real PITA to cut.

[RichardL]

Well put Craig, and very good advise.
I had one that had the tube sheet protruding about 1/4" in the middle...With several cans of Dykem, a framing square and a side wheel grinder with the Abrasive pads on it along with about 5 hours of grinding-polishing I managed to get the thing virtually flat surfaced and stopped the circuit to circuit leakage that was driving me nuts!!!

[absrbrtek]

Nice to hear from you Richard. Hows retirement treating you? You doing alot of fishing or just catching up on the honeydue list?

[RichardL]

I could'nt stand it Craig.....In the one year of retirement I watched the damnable "Honey-Do" list grow beyond belief....
I mean....How many times can one trim the damn hedges???
Or...Just how damn clean do you want ths swimming pool????
Sooooo....After the bane of my existance left the "Big-Blue", I went back to grind of following the windshield agan from here to yonder..
I reaaaaaaaaly' missed the Atlanta traffic jams....ex: Due to a teeny brush fire in the Cloverleaf of I-20 & I-285, the Atlanta fire department CLOSED all 5 lanes of I-285 for 3 hours this afternoon....
Time for me to go 11 miles was 3 hrs 15 min....In 106 deg. afternoon.....
Kinda' having second thoughts about this "Back-To-Work" escape of the Honey-Do list...

[JKD]

So are you saying york gaskets are no good? I believe you after spending a week pulling a head off a 300 tonner only to find out the hard way. Who mills the heads? Machine shops? Can they do it with 3-3"X12" and 3-1-5/8"copper stubs sticking out of it? Also ,what about the baffle ring , wouldn't they need that to check squareness with the head? Where do you get these Gortex gaskets?

I have had this problem multiple times. The fix is to get the head milled flat and install a Garlock gasket, I also use Permatex #2 on the gasket. If you use the York supplied gasket you will be doing it again. Don't ask me how I know.

Oh ya, the gasket is a real PITA to cut.

[jpsmith1cm]

Moved to open chiller forum

[JKD]

So are you saying york gaskets are no good? I believe you after spending a week pulling a head off a 300 tonner only to find out the hard way. Who mills the heads? Machine shops? Can they do it with 3-3"X12" and 3-1-5/8"copper stubs sticking out of it? Also ,what about the baffle ring , wouldn't they need that to check squareness with the head? Where do you get these Gortex gaskets?

Well it's a new season and the York we put a new gasket on is now leaking;should of used Gortex gaskets. Anybody know where to get them, and also can you really
guarentee the customer the it will not leak and for how long , if so?

[RichardL]

I'm sorry, but I cannot find where anyone mentioned Gortex gakets on this thread. The very wisened Absrbrtek however did refer to Garlock gasket material and what a PITA the gaskets are to "Cut". Garlock gasket material. I prefer is the "Blue Guard" and is available thru Grainger in 15" X 15" or 30" X 30" sheets. One sheet of the 1/16" X 30" X 30" cost over $500. And one little slip cutting out the wiggly portion of the gasket will upset those bean counters whose job it is to insure that we all perform "Flawlessly" in this field. If you are not confident in your ability to take on such a task, I would strongly advise you to continue to use the factory supplied gaskets. Have you verified the flatness of the Evaporator Crown sheets and the End bells as well?? If they are not "FLAT" then NO gasket will ever hold.