CruisAir Component Repair

[saltshaker]

Glad to hear you got the problem resolved reasonably.

I have repaired quite a few AC control units for boaters in the marina, and for friends.

I currently am repairing several boards just for something to do when I am not busy. I have considered taking this on more seriously. I intend to approach this situation with a credit less repair format. You order the board, it is sent out immediately, you return a repairable defective board, and are charged only the cost of repair, with a maximum repair charge agreed upon beforehand. Comments appreciated. I would appreciate anyone having a copy of the schematics to send me a copy. Anyone sending in a unit for repair that I do not have a copy of the schematics for, will receive a discount if the send a copy with the repairable unit.

I have always been under the impression that bad mouthing vendors on the forum was a no no. Did I miss something?
Whine about CruiseAir all you want, but from my view as a service engineer, they put out as good a product as one can find.

The industry all around has taken the attitude that repair is a thing of the past, the new name of the game is replace.

Greta idea for the service and board swap.

[captddis]

A good AC tech described cruiseair as an aggregator(sp?) and not a manufacturer. I guess that is really what Apple is also, but does anyone know if cruiseair actually designs any of the components ?

The SMX was designed in house. As stated, three companies have been merged and a lot of the controls are made by an outside company

[MikeP]

"Designed by" and "made by" are now usually two different things but if the "designed by" company exercises sufficient QC over the "made by" product, where/who it's made by doesn't matter much.

Lots of products made in China, for example, are overseen by the parent companies from outside China and the products are as good as they could be made anywhere. OTOH...lots of them aren't!

[fissioneng]

Lots of products made in China, for example, are overseen by the parent companies from outside China and the products are as good as they could be made anywhere. OTOH...lots of them aren't!

Apple is the obvious example of great US designed products, made in China.

I think we all know examples of Chinese-made products that are junk. The difficult thing is how to figure this out ahead of time!

[Avenger]

"Designed by" and "made by" are now usually two different things but if the "designed by" company exercises sufficient QC over the "made by" product, where/who it's made by doesn't matter much.

That's how Boeing builds airplanes. And we'll all walk onto one without thinking about it.

[MikeP]

True enough, and as the saying goes (re Boeing/Airbus), "If it's not a Boeing, I'm not going!"

[Boatsb]

Great thread! Over the years I've bit the bullet a few times and replaced the boards. Typically because time or not having the proper schematic. Those boards are pricey and most of the time can be repaired. Years ago there was a Sony broadcast cam that would blow a board when a particular cable was plugged in while the unit was on. The repair was about $3600 for the new board. After a few repairs we figured out what was going on with the boards and started repairing instead of replacing. Repair took about 1-1.5 hrs and about $5 in parts.

Sounds like the firewire port jack.

[saltshaker]

Sounds like the firewire port jack.

Paint box connection on the BVP900

[Angela]

The industry all around has taken the attitude that repair is a thing of the past, the new name of the game is replace.

That is exactly how I look at air conditioning anymore - it’s disposable. It’s no longer a fixed asset on my books, but rather, it’s categorized as an expense. I can buy a brand new unit, drop it in place like a “plug and play” thing for anywhere between $1,100 and $1,400, depending on the room, and the cost of an AC tech chasing gremlins for a day would cost me at least half of that, if not more, and that’s no guarantee it can even be fixed. I seen too many tech just aimlessly throw parts at stuff hoping to find the problem. It's just not worth it to me.

lots of all blue compressors out there still running!

You got that right!! I still have two 32-year-old blue condensing units that run strong. The new white ones...well, I can’t even get through the warranty period on those. So, I went to another manufacturer when the white one puked again.

[OBXTucker]

Along these lines, I've had two compressors lock up this this week c
Anyone have a good source? Need a 16k and 24k for the SMXII.
My local dealer is quoting about $3,000 and $2,200 each plus 2 days install (another $1,500).

Reversing valves shot, blowing breakers (already spent most of a day chasing start up capacitors and other stuff).

$6,500 is a lot of boat bucks....