Our Trojan UVMax C4 water purifier started beeping continuously. The install date was April 2009, so it’s been a year — according to the manual, time to replace the UV bulb!
I dutifully ordered a new UV lamp ($90) & installed it. Wiping my hands in smug homeowner anticipation of what was sure to be the return of super clean water for my family, I plugged the C4 power supply back in… green lights all around… but the beeping didn’t stop.
I unplugged the unit, waited a bit, plugged it back in… more beeping. Pulled out the manual. The only mention of the beeping alarm is in the troubleshooting section, which refers you back to the Control Panel section, which has all kinds of useful information about the status lights but absolutely nothing about a beeping alarm.
The manual says there’s supposed to be a model-specific reference card stuck behind the power supply. Sure enough I could see the tab sticking up — I felt a wave of relief, as surely the reference card would have an answer to The Meaning Of The Incessant Beep.
Nope. No mention of an audible alarm whatsoever.
By now I could feel a beeping-induced headache. Putting my hope in the Internet for a solution, I ran upstairs to the computer. Sure enough, the top result had the answer (thanks, Google) — but it wasn’t from the Trojan UVMax website — a random reseller had taken the time to post the answer … Apparently TrojanUV produced defective C4 power supply units between January 2009 – January 2010. Yep, a whole year of defective units. But although they’re now four months into people discovering the problem, there’s nothing about it on their website. No notice, no press release, nothing (or am I just not seeing it?)
The solution is to contact Trojan for a replacement power supply. In the meantime, I’m stuck with choosing between unsafe drinking water or constant beeping.
So in review:
- There is nothing the Trojan UV Max manual about what the beeping alarm means,
- There is no way to silence the beeping alarm,
- The Trojan UV website lacks any information about this year-long manufacturing defect.
Just to make life a little harder, the email link on the Trojan UV Max support website (Viqua) goes nowhere.
I called their customer service line & the rep I spoke with knew about the C4 problem right away. Apparently they had mistakenly installed firmware for the “Plus” version — which have a reset button to silence the alarm — into the “regular” C4 units, which don’t.
I asked the rep if the replacement C4 power supply was shipping via overnight express. He mumbled something to the effect that I should have it “within a day or two”. However it’s been 3 days & I still don’t have the replacement Trojan UV Max C4 power supply, so it’s becoming clear that Trojan doesn’t care enough to ship these via overnight or 2-day mail.
By now I’ve lost count how many ways Trojan UV customer service has completely failed their customers.
I too have the same problem, but my unit was manufactured 12-Dec-08 I have sent 4 e-mails to Trojan & or Viqua and no one has responded yet.
I am still waiting !!!!!
I called and left a voice message today, I will see if they respond.
i just installed it a week ago and i have the same problems.I am pissed because i will end up doing a ton of work to get the crap out and take it back to home depot.why get a replacement only to find out the unit is crap again. Steve
Mine started beeping this morning and I found this in a google search. I guess I’ll try to contact their customer service or else try through Home Depot.
I called the 800 number on the Viqua site and they said they would ship me a replacement unit right away. Mine was manufactured in June 2009 btw.
Trojan is one of the worst companies I have ever dealt with. My commercial leasee has had to send patients home on many days because the water is not working correctly, resulting in losses of thousands of dollars. If I could contact others who have this system I’m sure there could be a class action. There are a few issues. You have to change the bulbs every 4 months (not every 2 years as stated) and the bigger issue is that the sensor goes bad quickly and prevents water from getting through – water condenses inside it naturally after about 4 months (they claim only if you turn the plunger towards the ground, but it happens both ways for me) and then the sensor is ruined and you need to buy a new one. Upon threatening suit they always come through with a new sensor which tells me they are aware of the problem. What a pain though!