DN 501 leaking water

[AngryChris]

I have a DN 501 that is leaking water out of the back of the machine.  The problem seemed to have started about a month ago.  At first, I thought there was a separate leak inside the building that was finding its way under my machine but it is definitely coming from my machine.

 

It is leaking at the back of the machine where there (I think) should be a weld where the rear part of the cabinet meets with the base of the "shelf" that holds the drop tray and the evaporator (if I am not mistaken, the evaporator is on top of the refrigeration deck). 

 

It is clear that, where the leak occurs, there are two different pieces of sheet metal that meet here.  The question is.... with the water coming out, is that enough of an air leak to allow humidity to produce MORE water?

 

I have done two things so far.  

 

1)  I made the machine more level.  It was leaning more toward the back than I had originally thought.

2)  I put some puddy in the seem where the leak was occurring.  All it seemed to do was to cause the leak to migrate further along the seem.

 

So far, I only have one more idea of what the problem could be (other than getting technical with refrigeration, which I am not very good at).  I think the door seal could possibly be old or my delivery door might not be closing properly.  I plan on going back to this location and trying to check that out.  My biggest pain was trying to find where the air leak was coming from.  There appeared to be about 1 tablespoon worth of water on the floor after having the machine shut for 1 day.  I am trying to avoid pulling the refrigeration deck out (due to laziness) but I don't mind doing that if it's possible to permanently seal the water leak.

 

Note:  My drain is working fine but the "shelf" that the evaporator sits on is kind of bubbly in that the lowest parts of the "shelf" are around the edges of the machine.  The only thing I can think of to do is to pull the deck out, dry everything out, and seal it all with silicon or something.

 

Any ideas?

[Walta]

The shelf under the evaporator may have rusted threw the “bubbly” part may have been someone repair attempt.

 

Another possibility is the drain fitting may be cracked or loose.

 

If it is a rust repair that is a job better done off site.

 

Walta

[AngryChris]

The shelf under the evaporator may have rusted threw the “bubbly” part may have been someone repair attempt.

 

Another possibility is the drain fitting may be cracked or loose.

 

If it is a rust repair that is a job better done off site.

 

Walta

 

That's kind of what I was thinking.  There is clearly a line of rust that goes from the source of the leak down to the bottom of the machine where the water is.  I have absolutely no idea how to fix such a leak.  Can the "shelf" be replaced?  Does anyone even sell that part?  It seems like, if I can simply get the seems to be waterproof again, the water may accumulate but it should go into the drain like it is supposed to.  By the way, it seems as though the water problem is slowly getting worse... which leads further to the suspicion that it is simply rusted through and the gap is getting larger causing an even greater air leak.  I may have to replace the machine if I can't fix this and I do have another machine that can take its place.

 

Do you think I can simply pull the deck out and waterproof the entire perimeter so that the water can only go toward the drain?

 

Thanks.

[Walta]

First thing I would do is pull and inspect the drain fitting.

If that is not the problem I would get the machine in the shop.

As a good repair will take time, make a lot of noise and will smell up your location and most will not stand for that.

Step 1 remove refer unit

Step 2 remove drain fitting

Step 3 clean tray back to bare metal.

Step 4 Dry machine totally if insulation is wet may take weeks

Step 5 cover damaged tray with fiber glass cloth and 3 coats of resin.

Step 6 install new drain fitting

Step 7 plug drain fill pan with water leak test 24 hours.

Step 8 install refer unit and test

The shelf is weld in when they build the machine making replacement all but impossible.

Walta

[AngryChris]

First thing I would do is pull and inspect the drain fitting.

If that is not the problem I would get the machine in the shop.

As a good repair will take time, make a lot of noise and will smell up your location and most will not stand for that.

Step 1 remove refer unit

Step 2 remove drain fitting

Step 3 clean tray back to bare metal.

Step 4 Dry machine totally if insulation is wet may take weeks

Step 5 cover damaged tray with fiber glass cloth and 3 coats of resin.

Step 6 install new drain fitting

Step 7 plug drain fill pan with water leak test 24 hours.

Step 8 install refer unit and test

The shelf is weld in when they build the machine making replacement all but impossible.

Walta

 

Will this problem get much worse if not corrected?  If not, I could easily put it in a location that is not sensitive to the water.

[mission vending]

Will this problem get much worse if not corrected?  If not, I could easily put it in a location that is not sensitive to the water.

 

 

It will never get better.

 

Do you have water pooling in the bottom of the cabinet or is it just not flowing towards the drain?

[AZVendor]

As Walta said, the only fix for rust holes under your evaporator is to cover the area with new material that is completely sealed to good sheetmetal.  The water is in the insulation and won't stop seeping until it dries out.  Like Walta also said it will need to be repaired off location.  We usually take a thin piece of sheet metal and silicone it down to good sheetmetal around the patch.  This is after sanding and grinding down to bare metal and coating with a rust inhibitor.  After the metal patch is siliconed in place and sets, then we prime and paint the tank (that's what this area is called) with a waterproof silver paint like what is used in evaporative coolers, but not as thick.  It sprays on rather than being brushed on.  You don't want any brush marks that will prevent water from migrating to the drain.