Synopsis: The job site has experienced multiple actuator failures on different units due to fatigue on the assembly.
Problem/Symptoms:
The factory-installed actuator X13612122001 (ACT00945) is showing signs of cracking or a hairline fracture in the plastic molding of the body. The actuator will stop turning the damper blade to adjust the airflow.
Possible Impacts
Product Family: VariTrane™ Variable Air Volume (VAV) Terminal Units; Shutoff and Fan-Powered CoolSense™ Sensible Cooling Terminal Units.
Model Prefix(s) & Configuration details: VCEF, VCWF, VCCF, VDDF, VRRF, VSEF, VSWF, VSCF, VPCF, VPEF, VPWF, LDCF, LDEF, LDWF, & LPCF, LPEF, LPWF, LSCF, LSEF, LSWF.
Ship Date range: 1/1/23 through 10/1/2023
Solution:
The factory caught most of the Hankscraft-built actuators with fractures during internal quality audits, but some may have escaped. Technical Support has received a few calls about this issue, but it has remained extremely isolated given the vast number of units shipped from the Rushville plant. If you see these symptoms and signs of cracked housing, please submit a field quality alert https://support.trane.com/hc/en-us/articles/19886619512717-Field-Quality-Alert-FQA-Program-Overview. The Quality Manager/Team may contact you for more information. The only solution is to replace the failed actuator. When the new actuator(s) are received, inspect the housing for any small hairline fractures.
Example of a typical VAV damper actuator
Broken/Cracked actuator housing examples