SLR Repeater error on log: Fan Alarms

[tropiradio]

Yesterday went to check up on a SLR repeater and read the log with RDAC. The errors shown in the log, aside from a few AC mains power loss ones where mostly related to fans as in "Modem Fan alarm" and "Power Supply Fan alarm". Has anybody seen these errors? Other than that, repeater seems to be still operating normally.

Assume these errors mean fans might be on their way out? This repeater usually has substantial use, and has been in service for about 5-6 years in a -mostly- environment controlled location, meaning sometimes the A/C cooling goes out so temps raise a bit back to regular ambient until it gets fixed. Errors logged almost on a daily basis anywhere around 2-3 to 8-12 times between "Detected" and "Released" status. The log entries I managed to read only go back about 2 weeks, but I think the memory space for the log might limit the amount of entries so probably errors may go further back in time.

Any information on this would be welcomed. Thank you.

 

[Tech21]

Disassemble the unit and clean the fans. They are right behind the front cover.

 

[tropiradio]

You mean just some dust accumulation on the fan blades could be causing this error?
Out of curiosity, have you had to do this yourself on a SLR with same issue?
Thank you.

 

[Firebuff880]

@topiradio

The muffin fans in the SLR product are known for their high failure rate. Yes, cleaning excess dust from the cabinet can help, but most of the time simply replacing them is the right course. Or of course, turning off RDAC so you don't see the alarms works as well.

 

[tropiradio]

Thank you for your input. I've used SLR repeaters frequently in my projects in the past and had never seen these fan errors except in this case of these two high usage repeaters that have been in service estimate about 5 years and I think the room was not always environmentally controlled, which was one of the first things I insisted on after the customer brought me in.

Looked into the SLR basic service manual and there seem to be a total of 3 fans behind the front panel. Also manual lists PMLN7244 as PN for fan assembly. Hopefully this will still be a valid PN.

As an alternative, has anybody successfully used the equivalent commercial model fans that would be identical to the original? Not sure if the originals do have ball bearings, but if not that would probably be a good idea as an upgrade.