Saxon SolarStar Heat Pump

Fixed after being told by many tradies that it was unfixable – Purchased residence in 2015 after unit was installed by previous owner on 2009. Although water was warm to hot on most occasions, it was never "hot, hot". About two weeks ago, it finally died with only luke warm water being produced. The overflow was working as was the fan but no clicking on and off by the compressor. Went away for a week and… Read more

upon return, the water was hot but a bit below average. 24 hours later, it was back to luke warm. I was aware that Saxon had ceased to exist so potentially no parts. Rang around and received the following comments from Aircon, HWS and Refrig firms. "Can't get parts", " Needs regassing ", " It's dead, buy a new HWS " ëtc. Found this site with a common comment being that a new capacitor fixed the lack of hot water. Called out an aircon service team who stated they were aware of Saxon operational idiosyncrasies and he checked the capacitor. " Surprise! Surprise! " as Gomer Pyle used to say, it was dead. A quick trip to van and a new capacitor was installed. About 15 mins later, the system rebooted with the compressor obviously operating and several hours later we had hot water which was hotter than we have ever experienced in the last three years of ownership. My guess is the capacitor was on it's way out and was just barely doing it's job for the past three, three years at least. It was like an early Xmas being able to have a steaming hot bath or shower. Have just ordered from a Sydney supplier on Ebay two spare capacitors. Should arrive in the next week. Cost about $24 plus about $10 postage. Can be purchased cheaper from China but be prepared for a longer wait. Yet to receive bill for aircon call out and their capacitor. The tradie let me watch the replacement operation and feel, being a semi - DIY operator, that i could install a replacement one adhering to appropriate safety concerns. My advice is, if you loose hot water, at the very least, replace the capacitor. Could save you lots of money. If you have the large 400 L tank, it has copper internals and seems to last for ages. The overflow valve is readily replaceable and all that remains is the evaporator, fan box and electrics. When checked the water temp had dropped to 28 degrees which explains the luke warm water. Best of luck re repairs if you experience no hot water. Capacitor required:- CBB65 35 uf +- 5% 450 VAC 50/60 Hz 40/70/21. Not sure what last 3 figures are but they were stamped on cannister which is approximately 4.9cm x 9 to 10 cm long (looks like Mini can of soft drink fitting inside circular bracket like old school car coil mountings). There are 2 double connections on top making four potential connections but only 3 connections are made. Ensure you know which connections go where and switch off at fuse board when operating around 240 V. PS inside the grey housing on the RHS of compressor/evaporator box, is a digital readout which confirms current temp in red. Immediately to right are two small black buttons which can be used to set temp up to about 65. If not previously taken off, there should be a small wooden dowel a bit thicker than a barbeque skewer taped inside lid of cover. Use it to press buttons. If you have the installation/operational manual, use it as I couldn't find one at home or on Ebay. Hope my experience helps others.

Sorry we bought this product – We recently found we were not getting any hot water, this product is no longer made & we weren't successful in getting anyone to look at it. I found some good information on this product review site where others had the same problem & suggested it possibly was the capacitor in the unit , so then we found an electrition who would come & test it &… Read more

yes that was the problem so this review site saved us a lot of money by not having to replace it. In hindsight we wish we'd never bought it, it is so big & bulky & never saved us the power bill we were promised.

SAXON HEAT PUMP - Dan's good advice and thanks for the Reviews – Thanks for this page of reviews. Have a 9 year old Saxon Heat Pump. Never a problem in all that time. Stopped heating yesterday, and after reading the reviews, suspected it was the Capacitor but as we live in FNQ (hard to get a Refridg. mechanic at the moment), rang Dan (great help) in Brisbane - Performance Heat Pumps 0400 688 430 (thanks to… Read more

one of the Reviewers). He gave me a contact in Cairns, Heatcraft in Buchan St., 0740354300 (Phil) who was most helpful. Gave me a new capacitor (take in the old one as there are 2 + sizes - same number) approx. $50.00. Heat pump now 100% heating.

Got it fixed after being told it wasn't worth fixing/was unfixable – I have had a Saxon Solar Star heat pump for 9 years. It has never been any trouble until last Friday when the water ran cold. Called an electrician first who didn't want to work on Heat Pumps, especially one where the manufacturer was out of business. Then called a plumber who over the phone, sight unseen said it was the compressor. We weren't… Read more

convinced as the fan was still running and we could hear a humming sound every couple of minutes of 5 seconds duration as though something was trying to work. When the plumber arrived after our resistance to the idea that it was the compressor and not worth fixing he stated that it needed regassing, and he wished us luck getting a refrigeration mechanic interested in gassing it and at 9 years it needed replacing. He did not even take the cover off or perform any tests. He then gave us a grossly overpriced quote for a standard electrical HWS and left. I immediately telephoned the air-conditioning people who annually service our ducted air conditioning. They sent a technician out next morning (and I live in a country area) who tested the unit with a multimeter and declared (as many people have said on this forum) that the capacitor was dead. He replaced the capacitor and for the first time in 5 days the system was fully functional and we now have hot water. We will probably have to pay for two call outs and the capacitor. But from now on we will do this ourselves if it happens again. Here's the detail of what was done. First leave the system on at the fuse box while you undo the bolts around the top. Then if you have a multimeter test the capacitor which looks like a small silver can with two double electrical points on the top. Once you are sure it is the capacitor, or if you want to change it anyway (fairly cheap component) turn off the HWS in the fuse box. The capacitor probably sits in a bracket and the bracket will need loosening so that the capacitor can be removed. Make sure no metal object touches both the electrical connection points as capacitors themselves can be partially charged and give off a shock if the points are touched simultaneous with a metal object (such as a screwdriver). Note particularly the attachment of the wires to the old capacitor marking if necessary before disconnecting. Then pull out the cream plastic cover on the heat pump (RH side) with a handle to ensure that the other end of the wires attached to the capacitor are not corroded and if so clean up and reattach. Then attach the new capacitor at the top making sure that the wires are attached correctly and the bracket holding the capacitor is tightened up. The job is done. Put back the side and top panels and screw the top one on. Turn on HSW in fuse box. It will take up to 10 15 minutes for the system to start up again. Depending what electricity tariff you are on you it will start to heat (so long as nothing else is wrong) as soon as your particular tariff cuts in and heat the water within a few hours. This whole process takes about 10 minutes. Advantages to doing it yourself are obvious. First hot water problem (if it is the capacitor) repaired within minutes, second no $100 call out fee. And best of all, no unscrupulous company/plumber trying to rip you off and sell you an overpriced system. Even if your Heat Pump is working well, it's advisable to get a capacitor of the right sort for unexpected repairs on standby. They are available on line and if you are not in dire need, they can be got very cheaply from China where the original Saxon heat pump capacitor was from. Details of the capacitor you need are as follows: CBB65 35 uf + - 5%, 450 VAC, 50/60 Hz, 40/70/21 (not sure if the latter is critical as some online are 40/85/21) Size is approx 4.9 cm across and 10 cm long (minus connectors) I've just sent away for a spare and the cost is $7.05 free shipping each but with a shipping time of around a month or so. More urgent supplies may be available to you locally or online from Sydney suppliers. Good Luck folks, hope some of this long ramble helps you fix your Saxon heat pump (or other Heat Pump) and keeps you out of the hands of unscrupulous companies playing on the fact that Saxon is out of business and you haven't had a hot shower in days!!

Saxon Heat Pump Repairs – My six year old Saxon heat pump stopped working. Numerous plumbers told me it couldn't be fixed and I would have to buy a new hot water system. I called Dan from from Performance Heat Pumps in Brisbane and he was able to come out the next day and diagnosed the problem. The capacitor had died and the pump had been programmed with the wrong… Read more

temperature. Dan was able to put in a new capacitor and fix the settings. I now have hot water again thanks to Dan and didn't have to purchase a new hot water system. The Saxon heat pump is very efficient on electricity and only costs me about $20 in electricity every quarter.

Very disappointing – Cost alot of money and thought i was doing the right thing by using less energy was instored less then 8 years ago and now stopped working and as company has gone burst it to bad to sad not enough people know enough about fixing them so now to fork out more money for a new system im not very impressed to say the least.  Show details

Saxon Heat Pump Repairs – I have a 6 year olds Saxon Heat Pump and the compressor started to cut out which of course stopped the water heating. I had a refrigeration mechanic visit twice but he couldn't find/ fix the problem. I searched the Internet for someone who specialed in servicing/ repairing Saxon heat pumps. On contacting four organisations who advertised that they… Read more

repaired Saxon systems, one admitted he didn't have the expertise, two told me that they were impossible to repair as there were no spare parts for the system and the tried to sell me a new system. On contacting the last firm, Performance Heat Pumps (0400 688430), the owner Dan told me he could help as he specialised in heat pump servicing and repairs and had access to Saxon parts. On visiting my place he immediately identified the problem (faulty fan capacitor) and had it fixed within half an hour. He also reassured me that the system it is possible to repair the compressor regardless of the problem as he had the parts and the expertise to completely rebuild it. I would DEFINATELY RECOMMEND Dan to anyone that that is experiencing any heat pump issues.

saxon heat pump not hot,plumbing doctor says its the compressor,be carefull get the pcm checked – my pump was doing the same I got the plumber out who put it in 6 years ago wanted me to spend $5500 on a new system, he said hear that noise its the compressor, and its not any water or relief valve that wouldn't affect anything...my 20year old who is a aircon mechanic looked at it and checked the pcm with a multireader found it gone and it wasn't… Read more

the compressor as the plumber said,, he fixed it for $10 wonder how many people out there have been ripped off when they say its the compressor and no good, my water now is better than then the day they put it in, water always hot now

Saxon service is poor – My Saxon 6420 is only producing warm water.There is no printed schematic or service info with the heater. The display in the control box shows a tank temperature of 36 deg. and a flashing error code of E4 It does start again after 10 minutes but stops soon after still reading 36 deg.. Energy efficient Very little service backup

Liqidation, no warranty, no one responsible - terrible – My saxon heat pump is not even 5 years old. Had a repair after 2 years which ,if i remember correctly, i had to pay myself. Now it has stopped heating water, keeps on running though. Trying to find someone who will fix it..... Phone numbers are redirected to businesses which don't service Saxon heat pumps......?. Very disappointed When it… Read more

worked it was fine, albeit noisy Doesn't work anymore and company went into liquidation, no service, no warranty anymore....

Not enough hot water – Have had Saxon 400 litre heat pump with split system it only heats once a day and not enough hot water for washing up or two showers .It was heating twice on off peak but has gone to heating once a day are there any suggestions ? Maria , We purchased this system 4 years ago. Was inexpensive at first Can't get enough hot water

Inherent Problem With Heater – We were having trouble getting sufficient hot water for a shower or to wash up. Initial flow was hot but quickly reverted to luke warm, not good enough for a shower. Enquiries revealed Saxon is broke and no longer with us and a Plumber in the Newcastle area advised we throw it away. However, on viewing the DVD which came with the heater I… Read more ·  2

discovered that the overflow needed to be tested twice a year.

On viewing two labels adhered to the heater I did just that and held the lever down until water came from the overflow pipe. Eureka, we now have permanent hot water all the time, the whole system runs perfectly. a week later I tested the overflow again and was surprised that the system eas not totally full, so will do the trick every couple of weeks. Hope this helps some others.

Seems to be a good system – I recently bought a house with one of these already installed. The unit has been running for 8 + years and still going strong. From my limited exposure to this type of hot water system I think it works quite well and much cheaper than my old straight electric one. I would rate it as a 3 and a half star performer.....but it is a bit worrying that… Read more

the company has gone bust. Worked better for our household (3 adults and 1 kid) when taken off just the cheapest off peak electricity option.....and not much more costly to run either. Quite, efficient and reasonably cheap to run. Condensate from the heat pump can be a bit of a pain.

Seemed great but now a lemon!! – I bought the 400L solarstar unit and has worked well until recently. Trouble over easter costs a fortune to have a call out only to be told that company gone bust and warranty void!!!??? Appears that parts are non existant and advised to replace if cannot be repaired. Seems like another great australian rip off in the making as average… Read more

working family can not afford rip offs in the eco "smart" world.

Last electric unit lasted 20 years? certainly saved on power, but means nothing if unserviceable! No parts no warranty no one cares

OK – If I knew it was going to be this noisy when operating I would of got another brand. It makes a loud humming noise when operating. Apart from noise I cant fault it. Good size tank, always hot water available. Very noisy when heat pump operating. Broshure stated it was no louder than a modern day airconditioner.

never have any hot water – first shower of a morning i get about 1 minute with hot water then its just flat out on hot and only just warm.. i have rung numberous times for someone to come out but all i have been told is thats normal and release the valve.. with a family of myself and 3 kids that doesnt work for me i would never recommend this hot water system..… Read more

inexpensive costs next to nothing for the water it provided but still doesnt deliver hot water never any hot water and when i ring they tell me its normal???

Big Savings on Power Bills – I owned a saxon copper electric unit for about 25 years and when it finally died thought that staying with the copper tank would be a good move because you don't get many appliances that work that long. Was going to replace with another electric and checked the website and got onto the heat pump which is the same type of copper tank as the… Read more

electric. Installation was quick and we were up and running in about three hours. We were running on economy tariff and were able to keep the new system connected to that to keep the cheaper electricity tariff. Been using for about 12 months now and amazed at reduction of hot water bills - was using about 1300kWh a quarter and now only 400kWh a quarter. Bill is a third of what it was and no hot water problems for two adults and two teenagers who love hogging the bathroom with long showers. I wish we had got onto this years ago. Noticed some other people commenting on noise but we don't notice it to be honest. We run a couple of aircons as well and it is no louder or softer than them.

What a JOKE!!!!! – We bought this heat pump to try and save on power bills which we did at first but now leaking and told they have gone bust. So now we have to fork out heaps of money for a new one. So much for the money we saved. I'm sure they opened under another name and are ripping people off again. Lasted 2 years.

Terrible – I would not recommend this unit to busy people with an average family size. Only households with people who can shower at different times of the day would find this unit a good alternative. Cheap to run I have a household of 4 adults who all need to shower at the end of the day. I have a 400 litre unit.The first to shower geats relly hot water the… Read more

4 th person gets a barely lukewarm shower. I would not recommend this unit to people who like lots of hot water.Unit broke down when it was 17 months old. Cost me $320 to be repaired. Difficult to find people to service the unit.

Does what it is supposed to do Heat up with minimal power – I got this installed couple of weeks ago and is working really well. The installer DINGO SOLAR was very helpful and knowledgeable on the product to suit my budget and application. This unit works well when the flow rate is 9LPM, so it does not support multiple bath rooms and spa. excellent design features listed makes this unit unique in the… Read more ·  1

market

1) Non pressurised pure copper tank for long life.

2) electronic Thermostat for accurate temperature adjustment.

3) split design to accomodate better installation.

4) reasonable out of pocket costs ($2400 before govt rebates)

So far this unit has delivered hot water in winter with temperature reaching 2 degrees in fairfield (suburb where it is installed).

This unit does make noise similar to any modern day airconditioner and is not recommended to be installed next to bedrooms.

Excellent product overall and I will update this post if I find any problems with it. economical to run, superior design nothing so far.

Looked like a winner, but – It started as a great product, but now has been leaking at relief valve. The installers say that our water on the central coast NSW has a high ph and has possibly damaged it. 3 years old, warranty over! Told to toss it and get an electric one. Not happy. saved pow noisy, relief valve broke down running waer all the time.