Switched from hydraulic to MRL systems last year and finally saw the maintenance savings add up

After tracking 18 months of callbacks on our old hydraulic units versus 12 months on the MRLs at the same building downtown, the difference in monthly service hours was almost 40 percent less with the machine-room-less setup, and the quiet operation sold me completely, but has anyone else noticed the controller boards are way more finicky with power surges?

3 comments

3 Comments

king.derek23d agoTop Commenter

Had the exact same issue. Lost two controller boards in six months on separate MRL units. One from a little power flicker during a storm, the other just died for no reason. Electrician told me the same thing about the tiny components crammed together. We now put a dedicated surge protector on each controller panel and it's helped a ton. Still way happier with the MRLs overall though, the savings on maintenance hours are real.

the_morgan1mo ago

Solidarity here man, I swapped out two old hydro units last year and the difference in noise alone is worth it for the tenants. But you're spot on about those controller boards having zero tolerance for voltage hiccups. Had a brownout take out a main board on one of mine three months in.

paigep201mo ago

Have you looked into putting surge protectors on just the controller board circuits? I did that after losing a board to a lightning strike that came through the building, and it made a world of difference. The quiet operation is huge for tenant complaints, I agree, but those boards are definitely the weak link in an otherwise solid setup. My electrician buddy told me the newer MRL boards are more sensitive because they pack so many components onto a smaller footprint, which makes sense but is annoying. We actually started installing a simple whole-building surge suppressor at the main panel for our MRL installs, and the maintenance guys say it's cut down on random faults by maybe 70% compared to the ones without it. The hydro units just hummed through that stuff, but these new ones shut down at the first little spike, you know?