Temp 503

I don't have my manual handy but I will tell you that vacuum and temperature are intimately linked. If you do not have a good vacuum in the chamber then you will NOT have good or even close temperature control. That is why you are seeing the two different issues at the same time. Insure that the vacuum issue is taken care of and the temperature issue will probably go away after you CLEAR the error message.

Don

Thank you for your reply!  I wish I had a service manual!!!

With that said, I set the centrifuge to 4*C from 25*C.  It only took 30 mins to acheive 4.4*C.  It maintained for 3 hours, uninterreupted before closoning time.  No rotor installed to do this vacuum check. No errors or faults popped either.

I believe it may be the rotor itself.  I will acquire the rotor today from the researcher, as she keeps it locked in her office.

Moving forward, what more can I do at this point?  Especially, if the TEMP 503 comes back.... I have no other way to get the part number than to remove the "fuge" from the lab to diasassemble it to find the pump (I assume) and to get the part number from it.

If you could provide any more guidance and/or serive manual that would speed up my reaction time on this work order.

Thanks,

Sarah

Sarah, Trying to evaluate ANY Beckman Counter ultra centrifuge cooling performance without a rotor actually running is not considered a valid test.  You really need to precool the user's rotor to the temperature they desire to run at and also precool the chamber before placing the rotor inside.  The specification for a full vacuum in a dry chamber is less than 30 minutes although 20 minutes is typical depending on the condition of the vacuum system itself.  If the centrifuge fails to hold the set temperature because of poor vacuum performance then that is where you should focus your efforts. Without knowing any of the particulars about the centrifuge as to its service history it literally is shooting in the dark.  The more you can tell me about it then the better I can help you out.

Don

I would also caution you on taking any advice from "Floyd" as he has been booted from this site at least twice for solucuting business which is strictly prohibited. His next banning will probably take place next week after I contact the administrators yet again.