General

Service Bulletin

Low Oil Pressure Due to Debris in the Regulator of

CenTraVac™ Chillers

ATTENTION: Warnings, Cautions and Notices appear at appropriate sections throughout this literature. Read
these carefully:

Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could result in death or
WARNING serious injury.
Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could result in minor or
CAUTIONs moderate injury. It could also be used to alert against unsafe practices.
NOTICE: Indicates a situation that could result in equipment or property-damage only accidents.

WARNING
Proper Field Wiring and Grounding Required!
All field wiring MUST be performed by qualified personnel. Improperly installed and grounded field wiring
poses FIRE and ELECTROCUTION hazards. To avoid these hazards, you MUST follow requirements for field
wiring installation and grounding as described in NEC and your local/state electrical codes. Failure to follow
code could result in death or serious injury.

SAFETY WARNING
Only qualified personnel should install and service the equipment. The installation, starting up, and
servicing of heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning equipment can be hazardous and requires specific
knowledge and training. Improperly installed, adjusted or altered equipment by an unqualified person could
result in death or serious injury. When working on the equipment, observe all precautions in the literature
and on the tags, stickers, and labels that are attached to the equipment.

January 2012 CTV-SVB62A-EN

 WARNING
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Required!
Installing/servicing this unit could result in exposure to electrical, mechanical and chemical
hazards.

• Before installing/servicing this unit, technicians MUST put on all Personal Protective
Equipment (PPE) recommended for the work being undertaken. ALWAYS refer to appropriate
MSDS sheets and OSHA guidelines for proper PPE.
• When working with or around hazardous chemicals, ALWAYS refer to the appropriate MSDS
sheets and OSHA guidelines for information on allowable personal exposure levels, proper
respiratory protection and handling recommendations.
• If there is a risk of arc or flash, technicians MUST put on all Personal Protective Equipment
(PPE) in accordance with NFPA 70E or other country-specific requirements for arc flash
protection, PRIOR to servicing the unit.
Failure to follow recommendations could result in death or serious injury.

Introduction
The purpose of this general service bulletin is to inform the field of recommended actions before
changing the oil filter on a CenTraVac chiller when low differential oil pressure is encountered.
This is an informational bulletin.
Any CenTraVac chiller oil filter changed due to low differential oil pressure issues could
be affected.
This is NOT a potential safety issue.

Background
Engineering has examined oil filters that were returned after changing due to low differential oil
pressure issues. Nothing was found in the filter that would cause the pressure drop reported. Thus,
it is suspected that debris in the oil pressure regulator was present and when the new filter was
installed and the regulator adjusted, the debris was washed off the valve seat and the differential
pressure was restored. Engineering has examined oil pressure regulating valve blocks that had
debris located at the diaphragm seat area that would cause loss of differential oil pressure due to
bypassing oil around the diaphragm.

2 CTV-SVB62A-EN
Action
Before changing the oil filter when low differential oil pressure is encountered in the field, Trane
recommends:
1. Back the stem screw out enough to relieve pressure on the diaphragm.
Note: Do not back the stem screw out so far as to remove the screw or cause excess force on
the stem.
2. With the chiller off, cycle the oil pump on and run for one minute.
3. Repeat the process described in Step 1 and Step 2 a total of three times to flush the debris off
the valve seat.
Note: Starting and stopping the oil pump in combination with the regulator stem backed out
causes the valve to open and flush the debris off the valve seat and into the oil filter.
4. After cycling multiple times, leave the pump on and try adjusting the oil pressure regulator to
maintain the correct 18 to 22 psid oil pressure.
a. If the pressure is able to be regulated, allow the chiller to operate and observe the oil
pressure to see if it maintains stable pressures in the 18 to 22 psid range. If the oil pressure
remains stable, then debris on the valve seat was the most likely the cause of the low oil
pressure; because the debris has now been removed, the chiller should operate properly.
b. If the oil pressure still will not regulate to 18 to 22 psid after cycling and stays low, replace
the filter and see if the oil pressure returns to normal.
c. If the oil pressure still does not return to normal, replace the oil pressure regulating valve
assembly and inspect the seat in the block when the original diaphragm is removed.
i. If the valve seat has debris that can’t be easily removed, the regulator block should be
removed and the valve seat and oil passages cleaned.
ii. If the valve seat in the block is damaged, the entire block assembly must be replaced.

Questions
Contact the CenTraVac Technical Support Team with questions regarding this general service
bulletin. To contact them, send a message to TechService@trane.com.

CenTraVac, Trane, and the Trane logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Trane in the United States and other countries.

Trane optimizes the performance of homes and buildings around the world. A business of Ingersoll Rand, the
leader in creating and sustaining safe, comfortable and energy efficient environments, Trane offers a broad
portfolio of advanced controls and HVAC systems, comprehensive building services, and parts. For more
information, visit www.Trane.com.

Trane has a policy of continuous product and product data improvement and reserves the right to change design and specifications without notice.

© 2012 Trane All rights reserved

CTV-SVB62A-EN 23 Jan 2012
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