Helix problem

[BG123]

My helix is letting the heat tape run wide open. Any suggestions.

[DutchHerp]

Yup.

Get a different stat ASAP.

Have you tried unplugging the stat and plugging it back in?

[BG123]

Thats what i figured. I tried that but it didnt work. It seems to work fine as far as reading temps and setting temps but it doesnt regulate the tape.Thanks

[Dave763]

Get a new Helix. If you are into electronics you might fix it.(bad regulator?) I have never had trouble with mine and I have 5 of them.

[Peter Williams]

Ok please tell me you have put the probe on the heat tape. If not, I'm sorry but I'm probably gonna laugh, really hard.

[BG123]

Yea the probe is on the heat tape on the middle shelf of the rack.But even if it wasnt why is the heat tape getting hotter then what its set to.

[Peter Williams]

How do you know its hotter than what it is set to? Are you checking it with a temp gun or something? Or does it just feel too hot to you?

[kc261]

Yea the probe is on the heat tape on the middle shelf of the rack.But even if it wasnt why is the heat tape getting hotter then what its set to.

I hope I'm just misreading your post or you mistyped. This should be obvious. If the probe isn't on the heat tape, the t-stat has no idea how hot the heat tape is, so of course the setting on the t-stat will have nothing to do with the temp of the heat tape.

[mechnut450]

if your using flexwatt make sure that the probe on the printed section and not a section were it design to be cut as they don't heat up.. I did that the first time i set my probe on I missed the pritned part by less than an inch and I could not get the reading to read about the room temp and i happen to check were I placed it, and sure enough I had missed the printed area ..

[muddoc]

The only thing I can interject, assuming that as you stated, the probe is on the heat tape, then since you are using this t-stat on a rack, I am going to assume there are more than one pieces of heat tape. Make sure that the heat tape the probe is attached to is actually working. You may have a connection problem with that strip of heat tape.

To answer your other question, if the probe is not attached to a piece of tape that is actually working, this is what the t-stat thinks is going on. Your t-stat is set to 90 degrees (theoritical). The heat tape the probe is on does not work(or if the probe happened to fall off (it's happened to me)), then the probe is reading the ambient temperature of the room, 75 degrees (again theoretical). The probe sends a signal to the t-stat that it is 75 degrees. The t-stat continues to route juice to the tape that works in an attempt to get it to 90 degrees (set temp). It never gets there, so the t-stat continues to route juice, and your tape that is working gets to 120 degrees plus/minus. I believe that 120 degrees is about max for 6 watt/ft 3" flexwatt (assuming that is what you are using).

Essentially, the probe is what tells the t-stat to shut off when the set temperature is reached.

I hope that helped and wasn't too confusing,