Coleman Spa tripping circuit breaker


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Old 03-06-19, 11:07 AM
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Coleman Spa tripping circuit breaker

I have a Coleman spa, it is 14 years old. It has 2 pumps, I replaced pump1, the one that heats the water and cycles on schedule last April. Pump2 only runs when manually turned on.

A few weeks ago, I noticed the spa had no power. I tried to reset the outside breaker, no go. I had a friend test the breaker and power. He disconnected the wires from the spa control panel and the breaker reset. I disconnected all components including the heater from the spa with the wire connected to the control panel and the breaker would reset fine. I reconnected each component one at a time. The breaker would not reset when I connected pump2. I let the spa run for about 2 weeks like this with no problem.

I removed pump2 and took to a spa store. They tested it and it ran fine. They said on low speed it draws a bit more amps than they expected but didn't think that would cause a problem. I took home and reconnected it. This time I turned off the inside breaker and left the outside breaker on. After installing pump2, I turned on the inside breaker. I turned pump2 on and off several times with no problem.

2 days later, the spa had no power again. The outside breaker had tripped again. I disconnected pump2 from the control panel again and now the spa has been running for about a week with no problem.

I can't understand what the problem is and why pump2 would cause the breaker to trip given that pump does not even turn on by itself. Would it still be drawing some current just plugged into the control panel? Is there a chance the breaker is weak and just plugging in pump2 is causing it to trip?

Any help or insight is appreciated.
 
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Old 03-06-19, 01:49 PM
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Have you ruled out the heater element. How long have you had it running with pump 2 disconnect?Are you 100% sure it's pump 2 causing the trip? If it is, my best guess would be a leak somewhere near pump 2 that's dripping water on it.
 
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Old 03-06-19, 02:02 PM
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Thanks for the reply Dan. The heater is the first thing I had disconnected and the spa ran fine after I reconnected it and the spa is running fine now with the heater connected so I am confident it is okay. The spa has been running for about 1.5 weeks now with pump2 disconnected. But you make a good point about a water leak. In fact I know that I do have a small leak near pump2. It drips occasionally on the housing but I didn't think it would hurt but perhaps the moisture is getting inside. I'll have to wait for warmer weather to partially drain the tub, repair the leak and test it out.
 
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Old 03-06-19, 05:20 PM
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Yes..... water dripping into the motor can easily cause it to trip a GFI breaker.
 
 

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