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Minivap
Start-Up Instructions
With installation, plumbing and electrical connection
complete: Turn on the water supply to the Minivap.
Close the fused disconnect or circuit breaker on the
electrical supply to the Minivap.
Put On/Off switch on facia panel to position 1.
The Minivap is now ready to operate when the
humidistat/ hygrostat switches the unit On.
Commissioning / Start-Up
With the correct electrical and water connections
completed, the Minivap unit can be switched on. When
the humidistat/hygrostat switches, electrical power is
applied to the electrodes and cold water flows into the
cylinder. The Minivap programme arranges for the water
to be introduced in stages until the full operating current
is reached. The level of electrical current depends on the
minerals present in normal town Water supply. It is
unlikely that the full operating current will be reached
when the cold water first enters the cylinder, in this case,
the cold water feed valve will close when the water
reaches the water level detection electrode, which is
located at the top of the cylinder and prevents the
cylinder overfilling.
The current which flows between the electrodes will heat
the water until it boils. The steam produced will be carded
up the steam hose to the steam pipe/nozzle. As the
boiling continues more cold water will be added, bringing
in more minerals until the mineral concentration required
for full output is reached.
Thereafter the Minivap system will continuously monitor
and control the concentration of the boiling water by
adjusting the amount of water drained from and fed into
the cylinder.
Features of the Minivap Operation
The Minivap system of control is designed to adjust the
function to keep the unit operating in the face of changing
water quality in the cylinder and changing electrode
condition even if, in an adverse operational circumstance,
this results in some reduction in output while the situation
exists.
Note: The Minivap PCB disconnects the power to isolate
the electrodes during drainage to avoid earth leakage.
The Minivap unit will stop operating in response to
extreme fault conditions identified as:
High Overcurrent STOP
Drain Fault STOP (no drain function)
Feed Fault STOP (water not reaching cylinder)
The 'stop' condition on the Microvap PCB will be cleared
by switching the unit off and on. When a 'stop' condition
occurs, follow the service and maintenance procedure to
inspect the steam cylinder and drain pump.
End of Cylinder Life
The steam cylinder needs to be exchanged for a new one
when the output of the unit is excessively reduced by the
build-up of scale deposits.
Cylinder Exchange
Cylinder Life
The water hardness and the humidity demand at site will
determine the effective life of a steam cylinder. Units
located in areas with naturally soft waters will experience
the longer cylinder life, possibly upwards of 12 months in
calendar terms. With hard waters, a more frequent
cylinder exchange must be expected and cylinder
exchange 2 or 3 times a year can be the average
situation. The normal scaling up of the Vapac steam
cylinder is outside the Vapac warranty.
Procedure for Cylinder Exchange
1. With power connected to the unit, use the Manual
Drain position of the switch to empty the steam
cylinder.
2. Disconnect the Vapac from the electrical supply by
means of the external disconnect switch or circuit
breaker.
3. Open the lockable door to the cylinder chamber and
carefully ease off the red electrode caps and the
white electrode cap.
4. Loosen the hose clip and disconnect the hose from
the top of the steam cylinder.
5. Using a twisting movement, lift the cylinder clear of
its seating in the feed/drain manifold and carefully
remove the used cylinder from the unit.
6. Inspect the feed/drain manifold to ensure this is clear
of sediment.
7. The small drain pump can be removed for
inspection/cleaning, by applying steady hand
pressure on h inlet housing to ease it back on its
mounting and to release it from its '0' ring connection
in the side of the feed/drain manifold. The diagram
shows the assembly arrangement of the feed/ drain
manifold and pump. The pump motor body is a
sliding fit onto its mounting plate.
8. With the pump back in position after cleaning, make
sure the O-ring seal and capping ring are in position on
the manifold then insert the cylinder into the feed/drain
manifold, pushing it down firmly, and reconnect the
steam hose.
9. The electrode caps must be reconnected in accordance
with the details on the collar supplied With the new
cylinder electrode no. 1 on the electrode nearest to the
white cap.
10.The Vapac unit is supplied with electrode cables routed
to avoid contact with the door. After a cylinder
exchange, it is important to replace the cables as close
as possible to their original route.
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