Super 5000 troubles

[WyoWaterWorks]

I'm new to the car wash business only 3 years in, and I'm fighting a Gantry failed to home problem with a DS Super 5000. The wash will run about 4-6 test washes and then stop, flashing (F1 and gantry failed to home message). Things I've done so far listed,

• traced wiring looking for bare spots and water related issues. (everything looks good)
• Replaced both gantry home prox sensors. (even thought when it's home they both light up)
• Replaced the feedback cable on the passenger side. (even though the feed back lights are good on PLC)

The gantry encoder seems to be counting steady, should I replace that now also? Need some helpful suggestions to get back up and running, Thanks in advance.

 

[JGinther]

Watch the encoder count while manually going to bottom exit and bottom entrance. The count should be very close to the same each time at the rail extents and throughout the travel up to home where it should be close to 5000. I'm assuming re-homing the gantry works fine... I suspect the encoder is slipping or failing in some manner.

 

[WyoWaterWorks]

yes the re-home works fine and 5000 is the home. I just ran the gantry to complete stops on entry and exit the numbers were only of by 1. I did this 3 times. I had done the re-set to get the gantry and carriage both at 5000, and still have the same issue. Sometimes it just soaps up and then it kicks the vehicle out but the F1 gantry home failure. Other times it'll complete the wash and after the dryer stops the carriage doesn't roll back to home and the F1 gantry home failure. I appreciate your help, any other suggestions would be helpful.

 

[semocarwasher]

yes the re-home works fine and 5000 is the home. I just ran the gantry to complete stops on entry and exit the numbers were only of by 1. I did this 3 times. I had done the re-set to get the gantry and carriage both at 5000, and still have the same issue. Sometimes it just soaps up and then it kicks the vehicle out but the F1 gantry home failure. Other times it'll complete the wash and after the dryer stops the carriage doesn't roll back to home and the F1 gantry home failure. I appreciate your help, any other suggestions would be helpful.

Just curious, did you ever find a solution. I have a couple of these super 5000's that we fight every once in a while. Tough to find anyone with any expertise on this machine. If you havent figured out I can suggest a couple of things to look at.

 

[WyoWaterWorks]

Just curious, did you ever find a solution. I have a couple of these super 5000's that we fight every once in a while. Tough to find anyone with any expertise on this machine. If you havent figured out I can suggest a couple of things to look at.

Unfortunately I'm still having the same issue, after a couple washes the gantry seems to always get a little off home but the home sensors are still lit up just barely on the drive wheels. I'm not sure if this is related but sometimes during the wash cycle the gantry doesn't travel down to the front of the vehicle?

 

[Waxman]

Unfortunately I'm still having the same issue, after a couple washes the gantry seems to always get a little off home but the home sensors are still lit up just barely on the drive wheels. I'm not sure if this is related but sometimes during the wash cycle the gantry doesn't travel down to the front of the vehicle?

on my machine ( different from yours ) there is a wheel count prox that keeps track of gantry travel fwd and rear. if this prox is bad or the cable end or cable is bad, the machine will travel more or less than it should...

 

[MEP001]

Where are you located? I'm very familiar with the original 5000 and somewhat familiar with the Super.

 

[WyoWaterWorks]

on my machine ( different from yours ) there is a wheel count prox that keeps track of gantry travel fwd and rear. if this prox is bad or the cable end or cable is bad, the machine will travel more or less than it should...

I have an Encoder that counts, I just replaced it to see if that was the issue, and it wasn't that. I have changed out the passenger side proximity switch and wiring harness, I will change out the drivers side and see if that helps.

Where are you located? I'm very familiar with the original 5000 and somewhat familiar with the Super.

We are located in Marbleton Wyoming.

 

[JGinther]

At this point, the next thing to do is probably get out the voltmeter and monitor voltages on the plc inputs for each of the prox signals and the encoder A/B inputs. Also, seeing the lights on the proxes tell you that the proxes are 'trying' to output to the plc... However, it doesn't mean that it actually is. you have to check the voltage. I know from experience that just below 17 volts dc will make the light turn on on the input card, but the computer wont read it as actually being 'on'. Need to make sure your getting a 0VDC and 24VDC not really anything in between. Also, have seen where a shorted dc coil on the hydraulic manifold had pulled down the DC bus enough that the plc 'missed' reading inputs for a while until the voltage came back up high enough...

 

[MEP001]

I have an Encoder that counts, I just replaced it to see if that was the issue, and it wasn't that. I have changed out the passenger side proximity switch and wiring harness, I will change out the drivers side and see if that helps.

We are located in Marbleton Wyoming.

Check the encoder wheel too. If it's metal, make sure it's tight on the shaft. If it's the newer plastic wheel, make sure the metal disks in it are all at the same level. They can work themselves out of the wheel for some reason.

I don't remember if this will work on the Super 5000, but on the original one I found the main shaft bearings would get loose and the shaft would move back and forth when the machine changed directions, so it would count the pulses in one direction but miss some in the other. You have to remove the load of the gantry from the rails to check the bearings.

 

[JGinther]

Mep001 is right on the 5000, but the super 5000 uses a true encoder on both the gantry and the carriage. The advice is the same though: Make sure its reading properly. One super 5000 i worked on had a rubber hose connecting the encoder to the output shaft of the hydraulic motor and the hose inner lining broke free and was spinning on the shaft, so the encoder was sometimes not reading properly.

 

[semocarwasher]

That gantry encoder never seems to be the issue in my experience as long as it is counting forward and backward with similiar results forward and reverse. Is your sonar still active or have you tied it in with the safety eyes? We did that a couple of years ago with no negative affects.

 

[WyoWaterWorks]

Sorry for the late response, I found a bad feedback cable for the drivers side gantry home prox switch the machine is running pretty consistant now.

I do have another question does anyone know how to edit the washes or have a screen shot example on how to edit the washes? I would like to add 1 more rinse pass on my top wash and not sure how to do it. Thanks in advance.

 

[MEP001]

I think the password is 3071. If it's an option, it should be easy to enable it. You have to enable custom wash for it to take effect or it will default to factory settings. After you set it, power it down and back up and see if it holds the custom wash setting. If not, you'll have to re-enable it every time it loses power.

 

[WyoWaterWorks]

I think the password is 3071. If it's an option, it should be easy to enable it. You have to enable custom wash for it to take effect or it will default to factory settings. After you set it, power it down and back up and see if it holds the custom wash setting. If not, you'll have to re-enable it every time it loses power.

I have the password, thought I had added another rinse but now I have a Recipe Error and the wash wont do anything!!! I should have left it alone, dang it!

 

[JGinther]

The last time I programmed one of those was probably 5 years ago... Maybe 10 even. No way I could walk you through it. Have you tried to contact D & S? I know that machine is discontinued, and don't know if anyone there might remember the nuances...

 

[WyoWaterWorks]

The last time I programmed one of those was probably 5 years ago... Maybe 10 even. No way I could walk you through it. Have you tried to contact D & S? I know that machine is discontinued, and don't know if anyone there might remember the nuances...

I called the 800# and it say's call back during M-F during office hours, so I will keep hammering at it until I hopefully stumble on a fix. I will try them again on Monday, it's hard to find support on this old of a machine. I'm sure it has something to do with loading the washes somehow?

 

[MEP001]

Ask for David Brigance at Scotch Plaid out of Dallas, he should know how to set it.

You should be able to switch it back to default wash program to get it working until Monday.

 

[Rabbott]

Any help with super 5000 that doesn’t return home at the end of the wash cycle? It runs to the end of the track until if times out. No error codes.

 

[semocarwasher]

Are you saying the carriage or the gantry runs to the end of the track? Does it happen on any wash package? Programming been changed?