Aquarium canister water sensor fault

[neil2014]

Hi all looking for some advice

My aquarium external filter has a water sensor that has an intermittent fault.

The sensor switches off my internal heater if no water is present. The canister is full of water so there must be a fault with the sensor. The wiring to the sensor has three wires connected to the circuit board which are, V-W-G, on the photo it is the red-yellow-black wires.

Would there be away to bypass the switch .

thanks in advance

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

Hi Neil and welcome to Electronics Point

There probably is a way to bypass that sensor, and you should definitely do that if you want to set your house on fire. Just make sure that your hack gets destroyed in the fire, otherwise your insurance company may refuse to pay out!

Alternatively, post some photos of the switch and we'll see if we can all figure out how it works, and fix it.

 

[shrtrnd]

Most of the aquarium problems like this I've had, are a result of corrosion on the sensor. If the sensor is in direct contact with the water, try cleaning it.

 

[neil2014]

Hi all,

Thanks for the replies.

Sorry for the delayed response, the water sensor is shown below could it start a fire if there is always water in the canister.
Unable to see any corrosion but i am not an expert.

 

[Bluejets]

What Kris is saying, is if you start bypassing saftey cut out devices in any equipment there is a potential for disaster.

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

could it start a fire if there is always water in the canister.

I don't know. But if you bypass it, the pump will try to run even when there isn't any water in the canister, right? And that's why the sensor is there, right?

The proper attitude to safety isn't to say "OK, you show me how a problem could occur"; it's "I will show you how no problem can occur".

Sorry, I can't tell anything about the water sensor from that photo. Perhaps shrtrnd can help with that.

 

[neil2014]

Kris
The sensor is a safety feature to protect the inbuilt water heater from damage, if the filter is turned on and no water is present.

Have you any idea what the connections V-W-G are on the circuit board, which each wire is connected to
If it has gone faulty would this be a easy fix

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

Have you any idea what the connections V-W-G are on the circuit board, which each wire is connected to
If it has gone faulty would this be a easy fix

All I can suggest is that G is ground. As I said, I have no experience with these things. Sounds like shrtrnd does though.

 

[chopnhack]

Can W stand for the water heater element or the water sensor element?