Hatco Booster Water Heater Troubleshooting
If you run a commercial kitchen and wash a large amount of dishes, then you’re well aware of how useful your Hatco booster water heater is. They not only help clean and sanitize dishware, but they also make sure your dishes dry quickly, so you can churn out more product to guests or customers. If something is wrong with your heater, you need to know what the issue is and get it resolved fast.
The tips below help you with troubleshooting a Hatco booster heater, so you can get a service tech out fast to fix it. Please note that this guide is to help you identify an issue easier. If you’re operating this piece of equipment and encounter any of these issues, contact an authorized service technician to make necessary repairs or resolve any potential problems.
Problem: Booster Heater Isn’t Heating Water Properly
If your Hatco booster heater isn’t heating the water at all, or it’s heating the water partially (between 120°-150° F), there are several possible causes for this issue.
Possible Causes
- Booster heater may have been dry fired and caused the element(s) to burn out quickly.
- Blown fuse or tripped circuit breaker.
- Blown over-current fuses.
- Temperature is out of calibration or is inoperable.
- Contractors aren’t pulling.
- Tripped or defective high limit switch.
- Transformer isn’t working properly.
- Low water cutoff is inoperable, or the contacts don’t close.
Problem: Dish Machine Water Isn’t at Proper Temperature
Possible Causes
- Gauge(s) aren’t working properly.
- Thermostat is set too low.
- Booster heater’s water pipe is longer than 5 linear feet, causing the water to cool inside the pipe before it can get to the dish machine.
Problem: Relief Valve is Dribbling
Possible Causes
- Pressure reducing valve isn’t installed OR the incorrect valve is installed and is causing pressure build-up inside the booster tank.
- Pressure reducing valve may be blocked by a bypass.
- Anti-siphon valve or check valve may not be installed in the feed line.
Problem: Relief Valve Opens
Possible Causes
- Unit is overheating.
- Contractor may be stuck in closed position, and the unit cannot cycle off.
Problem: High Temperature Limit Switch was Tripped
Possible Causes
- The high temperature limit switch is defective.
- Thermostat is set too high.
- The incoming water temperature is too high and is causing nuisance tripping of the high temperature limit switch.
Problem: Chattering Sound from Contractor or Low Water Cutoff Circuit Board
Possible Causes
- Loose connection OR the wire connection has insulation under crimp.
- Low voltage.
- Probe may be dirty.
- Bad contractor(s).
Problem: Heating Elements Have Burned Out
Possible Causes
- Tank has drained inadvertently and elements are now dry.
- Lime buildup in the tank has caused element(s) to split and burn out.
If you have any more issues, or need general maintenance and cleaning tips, take a look through our extensive library of Hatco manuals for assistance.