Heatcraft PT0068 Top Mount

[Rvandelft]

Is anybody else having issues with excess condensation on Heatcraft PT0068 top mount refrigeration systems?
Condensate pans don't seem to have the capacity to boil off the water fast enough and I am seeing pans overflow into the coolers.
Open to ideas or feedback from anyone.

Thanks in advance

[crazzycajun]

Ambient temperature and humidity? Door seals good are they in and out 20 times a minute?

[Rvandelft]

Ambient temperature and humidity? Door seals good are they in and out 20 times a minute?

All the usual things have been checked. Typical humidity levels as other coolers and freezers in the same space are not affected.
Only coolers with this unit have the overflow issue.
Having a hard time thinking I am the only one having this issue with the Heatcraft model.

[pecmsg]

All the usual things have been checked. Typical humidity levels as other coolers and freezers in the same space are not affected.
Only coolers with this unit have the overflow issue.
Having a hard time thinking I am the only one having this issue with the Heatcraft model.

NO

ALL the usual things have been checked

Typical humidity




Are not troubleshooting! We need #'s.

[trippintl0]

I have seen this issue a few times over the years with different units utilizing hot gas condensate loops, though I never noticed it being related to one particular model number.

Obviously limiting the humidity entering the cooler is step 1. Spring assisted door hinges are essential to getting door to self close after employee walks in. Too often people open door and leave propped open for 30-60 seconds, and by that time box temp is 50f and unit basically has another 30 minutes run time. Strip curtains can help but can be a double edged sword as the employees hang them over shelves, or they get stuck in door and then door will not close at all. Door gasket and door sweep need to be sealing. If sweep drags and door doesn't self close then trim it or adjust.

The next thing to look at it refrigeration system, of course clean coils and proper charge are essential. But a few other things if you want to dig deeper - discharge line temperature. Discharge temp is directly affected by superheat. I have seen some units running 6-10f superheat at compressor. Problem is that makes discharge line too cold at 150-160f and doesn't evaporator the water very well. Close TXV to get 20-30f superheat at compressor and get discharge line temp at 180f or so, you will see water evaporate faster. If you starve evaporator too much you may end up with frosting issues that will require additional defrost.

Last thing is control. A 34f setpoint will make much more condensation than a 36 or 37f setpoint. Also most package unit coolers nowadays are using electric defrost, but some of them are set for only 2-3x a day. Problem is after 8-12 hours there is enough frost to overflow the condensate pan. On heavy use coolers you may benefit from more frequent defrosts - say 4 to 6 per day. This way each defrost cycle is shorter and therefore less overall water per defrost.

And finally if the water is still too much, of course you could just tie into drain and plumb it to a floor drain. If no floor drain exists, I have seen small self regulating electric heater elements added to the pan, sitting on top of the hot gas loop. This has the negative effect of adding extra heat to the ambient space, but sometimes its the only way. One of my favorites is the 300w heater from Case Parts TR-611 or TR-613. One must look at total circuit ampacity as this heater adds 1-2 amps to the electrical circuit, and make sure the circuit can handle it.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

[VTP99]

Nice post trippintl0

[TechmanTerry]

Nice post trippintl0

I'll double that!