Thread: Visual Effects V-950 fog machine won't stop

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We have a Visual Effects V-950 fog machine that won't stop blasting fog some times unless we unplug the power cord. Even when we unplug the remote control from the fogger, the fog keeps blasting. Dampness? Wet inside? Circuits corroded? Please help. What can we do to remedy? Any suggestions? Thanks! Kevin.

never heard anyone complining about to much fog

sounds like the pump is staying on maybe a leak in the pump or the on off switch inside the machine unplug open it up and see if there is anything you can see.Do not do this this is unsafe.that being said I would then plug it in making share you not touching the machine then see what is happening inside pump running all the time,leak,etc.then unplug and go from there.

I don't have that unit but on mine I pressed a button on the remote that gave me continuous fog. I didn't know why it was doing this till I focused in on the remote and noticed it said continuous,

The insides are all soaking wet with what appears to be fog juice. I have a fan blowing on the internal components to try to dry it out. It doesn't seem to be drying much. Could moisture be causing a problem here?

I tried to trace back the wires from the pump, but can't seem to find any signs of a short circuit. Once the V-950 heats up to the proper temperature, there is a clicking noise...like a relay...and the fog blasts continuously even without the remote control plugged in. It will continue to blast fog until I run out of fluid or until the V-950 goes back in to reheat mode. There is no end!

There is a red LED on the circuit board with the letters DB near it...it lights up occasionally, but I'm not sure it is related to my problem.

Any ideas where to look on the circuit board or inside the unit for a particular area where the short could be occurring to cause the V-950 to blast fog as soon as it heats up?

I tried to take a picture last night & attach it to this message, but it is a little blurry. I'll try another soon.

Am I right to assume the pump is getting power somehow...without my command... and that is why it is blasting fog?

Thanks for any help at all.
Getting this fogger back in action is really, really important to our yard haunt this year.
Thanks!
Kevin.

I was thinking...If we can't find the short circuit causing the unit to remain ON, do you think it would it be possible to break power to the pump further down the circuit and hook up an alternate power switch there?

I have had the same problem, I replaced the circuit board and was good to go. Call Greg at Neatlights, he keeps the parts in stock.

Thank you scarethekids! Hey, we ended up trashing that faulty fogger last year & actually invested in the same model because it worked so well for so long hoping this one won't go bad. Is there any way to prevent this problem from occurring again? Thanks!

Sounds like a bit of a smart a$$ answer, but buying a spare circuit board should be enough to prevent the same problem from happening.
At the very worse you will have the means to fix it should it occur.

The main thing you do not want to do is enclose the fogger. My guess is the fog juice short circuited the board. Foggers are pretty basic. When you turn them on the heater receives 110 volts. There is a relay that has a temp probe much like the kind used on aftermarket fan kits for cars. Once the temp of the heater reaches the set temp, the relay latches from NO to NC. In a car this turns on the fan to pull air through the radiator. In a fogger this turns on the circuit to the pump. It does not turn on the pump. It just closes an open portion of the 110 volt circuit. Then the timer, remote or demand switch completes the circuit, via a solid state relay. That relay and or the control of it is what got fried and caused the relay to maintain a NC state. The pump is 110 volt with a diode on one line. This causes the 110 to become a chopped 65 volt pulse at 30 cycles per second. That is the buss you here when the pump goes off.