Hurricane Ventilation Controller – Setup & User Guide
Variable-speed fan control for Ameriwind fans, with Modbus and 0–10v output. Wiring, sensor setup, and the complete parameter reference. Version 1.0.
The Hurricane system
Thank you for purchasing the Hurricane system. The Hurricane is designed for easy installation and operation. The system is designed to control variable frequency drives (VFD). VFDs are typically utilized to vary the speed of large ceiling fans.
Main features
The Hurricane system is designed for the unique challenges of livestock facilities. The Hurricane system:
- Controls up to 20 fans
- The 20 fans managed by groups
- Up to 6 groups, each with their own temperature setting
- Adjustable temperature settings per group
- Manual override for speed and direction for each group
- (1) temperature probe with the Hurricane
- Optional temperature probes at any fan VFD
- 1 zone 0–10 volt output
- Wind sensor to shut all the fans off when it is windy, to prevent damage to the fans
Installing the Hurricane
Consider the following before installing the Hurricane:
- Protect the enclosure from moisture-mount it in a secure and dry place.
- Important: only drill holes in the bottom of the enclosures.
Wiring the onboard temperature sensor
Place the temperature sensor in the middle of the building, or in a location which represents the building’s average temperature. It is important to not allow sensors to come into contact with direct sunlight.
Connect the temperature sensor to the terminals 5 & 6. Polarity is not important. If you need to extend the sensor wire, see below.
Extending the temperature sensor
- Run 18–22 AWG wire (twisted or shielded wire if possible) from the sensor to the Hurricane. Keep the sensor wire away from high voltage wire by at least 24 inches / .5 meter. Specifically keep it away from the VFD output wires.
- Solder or use gel-filled crimps to connect your wires to the temperature sensor.
VFD temperature probes
The Hurricane control has a temperature probe directly connected to it – Probe A. However, you can add a probe to any fan with the diagram below.
Fan zone’s probe
To select which probe a fan zone uses, parameters P80 thru P85 set the probe.
Connecting the wind sensor
The wind sensor gets mounted on the exterior of the building. When it is windy outside, the fan will turn off to reduce the chance of damage.
Mount upright, in a location where it will sense wind from all directions.
Wiring the sensor
Keep the wind sensor wires 24 inches / .5 meter away from high voltage wires.
Wire color connections
Wind sensor black → terminal 35 (ground)
Wind sensor red → terminal 36 (24v)
Power the Hurricane
The controller requires 120–240v. Supply power to the power supply in the bottom of the controller. Terminal identification is stamped into the sheet metal: L, N, and earth.
- Connect L1 to L.
- Connect L2 or neutral to N.
- Connect Ground to the earth symbol.
Humidity sensor
A 2nd temperature sensor or humidity sensor can be connected. The ceiling and humidity sensor share an internal function, so only one of the two can be used. To connect the humidity sensor, wire as shown below.
Humidity sensor connection
Humidity sensor black wire → terminal 2
The humidity sensor can be extended with shielded wire to 500 ft. Route 2 ft away from any high voltage wires.
Humidity jumper position
Jumper 1 in the upper left corner must be set for the 2nd sensor to operate properly. When connecting a humidity sensor, Jumper 1 must be in the I position.
Connecting to the fans
The Hurricane uses a Modbus RTU network to talk to each fan individually. Modbus radios eliminate any need for control wiring.
Overview of the controller screen
The screen shows you what is happening. You can see the temperature and the fan’s speed. Select a zone to override or change its temperature settings by pressing a button across the bottom of the screen.
Adjusting a zone’s temperature setting
You can turn a zone off or auto with the Manual / off / Auto buttons. When it is in manual, buttons will appear to manually adjust the speed.
There are 3 temperature settings for each zone: full speed°, accelerate°, and start°.
Start° is the temperature at which the fan will begin to spin. The fan will idle along until the air temperature reaches the accelerate temperature. The fan speed ramps up between accelerate and full speed.
Parameters
There are several parameters that you can change. The parameters are labeled P1, P2, and so on. These parameters are temperature setpoints and values you can adjust.
Temperature parameters
The temperature parameters control the starting temperature and how fast the fan will be running. These parameters can easily be adjusted at any time.
Controlling the speed signal
The speed signal sets how fast the fan will run. The fan will turn on when the barn temperature reaches the “start temperature.” The VFD will run at the minimum speed until the temperature reaches the “begin accelerating temperature.” As the temperature continues to rise, the VFD will run faster until it reaches 100% speed. The VFD is at 100% speed when the temperature reaches “Full speed.”
| ID | Description | Default | Min | Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P210 | Start°, the temperature for group 1 at which the fan begins to run. Fan will run at minimum speed above this temperature. The idea is between start° and begin accelerate° the fan will flatline at a low speed to keep the air fresh in cold temperatures. | 65° | 1° | 99° |
| P211 | Begin accelerating temperature. Set this to the temperature at which you want the fans to begin speeding up. The idea is between this and high temperature the fans gradually accelerate as the temperature increases. | 80° | 10 | 99° |
| P212 | Full speed temperature. | 90° | 1 | 120 |
| P213 | Minimum speed for group 1. | 1% | 0% | 99% |
| P214 | Winter’s maximum speed. The fastest the fan will turn. Use this if you don’t want the fans to spin full speed. | 100% | 10% | 100% |
| P217 | Group: direction. Forward or reverse. 1 = reverse. | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| P218 | Group: 0 = Auto, 1 = off, 2 = Manual on. | 0 | 2 | |
| P219 | Group 1 manual speed. | 0% | 0% | 100% |
| P220–129 | Group #2 – repeat of the above parameters for group 2. | |||
| P230–189 | Group #3 – repeat of the above parameters for group 3 thru 9. |
Fan wind sensor functions
The FanChief can shut your fan off when it is windy outside. It uses a 2 second gust average and a 3 minute average. The gust average function is intended to stop the fan quickly. The 3 minute average provides lower wind speed, slower response.
| ID | Description | Default | Min | Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P200 | Shutdown wind speed for the 3 minute average. | 20 | 1 | 99 |
| P201 | Gust shutdown. 2 second average wind speed shutdown. | 30 | 1 | 99 |
| P202 | Minutes the fan will remain off after a shutdown. | 2 | 1 | 15 |
Configuration of controller
The setup menu configures the hardware and sensors on the unit. Do not change them unless you understand.
| ID | Description | Default | Min | Max |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P0 | Fahrenheit° or Celsius°. | F | ||
| P2 | Wind sensor calibration. 24 = MPH, 15 = KPH. | 24 | 1 | 99 |
| P3 | Wind minutes – how many minutes the wind is averaged across. | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| P4 | MPH deadspan for wind shutdown. I.e. if you have 10 MPH turning fan off, and this set to 4, then fans will turn on at 6 MPH after a wind event. | 4 | 1 | 30 |
| P5 | Number of fan groups. How many zones or groups of fans you want to manage the fan in (how many buttons you want across the bottom of the screen). | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| P7 | Number of fans connected to the system (i.e. highest Modbus address used). | 1 | 1 | 16 |
| P7 | 2nd sensor type; 1 = humidity, 3 = temperature. | 0 | ||
| P8 | If control should use humidity index (humidity sensor required). | No | ||
| P9 | Enable input. If you want an external digital input to turn fan off. 0 = not used. Developer feature. | 0 | ||
| P10 | Enable wind sensor. If a wind sensor is connected. 0 = NO, 1 = Yes. No wind speed will be displayed if No is selected. | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| P15 | KW price – used to calculate cost of running the fans. | 13 | 1 | 255 |
| P16 | Output volts at minimum speed, i.e. when it is cold. For the analog output (only if connecting a non-Modbus fan). | 0.0 | 0.0 | 10.0 |
| P17 | Maximum output volts, voltage output when fan is at full speed, i.e. when it is hot (only if connecting a non-Modbus fan). | 10.0 | 0.0 | 10.0 |
| P18 | Fan stays on below zero if starting temperature set to 0°. Depending on application you might want the fan to run at minimum speed regardless of temperature. 0 = not used. 1 = fan will be on if it is below zero and the starting setpoint is at zero. | 0 | 1 | |
| P19 | Reset control to its defaults. Set to zero and power cycle the control to wipe out all of your settings and return it to defaults. | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| P20–P39 | Max Hertz for fans. Fans 1 thru 20. | 1 | 18 | 120 |
| P40–P59 | Fan’s assigned group. Which group a fan is in. A group can have many fans in it. | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| P60–P79 | Minimum Modbus speed per fan. This is because the fans have a minimum speed. This rescales that minimum speed to 1% to make the settings more intuitive. | 5 | 0 | 100 |
| P80–P86 | Group’s temperature probe assignment. 0 = group will use Onboard Probe A, 1 = group will use probe out on fan #1, 2 = group will use probe out on fan #2. Note any fan can be used – make sure you install a probe on that fan. If the fan is not communicating, the Hurricane will default it back to probe A. | 0 | 0 | 20 |
Specifications
| Size of enclosure | Nominal 8″ H x 11″ W 5″ D |
|---|---|
| Input voltage | 24vdc |
| Output | Modbus network. 2 normally open relays, pilot duty. 1 (0–10v) signal. |
| Temperature sensor | 3 foot cord, can be extended to 100 ft. |
| Warranty | 1 year |
Modbus connection
The Hurricane communicates via Modbus. Modbus is a network that sends messages to each fan individually. The Modbus messages are sent wirelessly. You can actually see the messages by watching the LEDs on the radios.
The system consists of a radio at each fan’s VFD and the temperature controller. The temperature controller is the master. The fans are slaves. They never initiate conversation and only respond if spoken to correctly.
Each slave has a changeable identification number (from 1–255). Parameter P36 sets the identification. If 2 fans are set to the same number, you will have problems. This identification is called Modbus ID by engineers.
Usually we will preset the ID at time of manufacture and try to avoid duplication by starting with number 21 and adding sequentially. However, if you add to the system or replace a component, it might be wrong.
Always write the ID number on the outside of the enclosure. Make it visible from at least 20 feet away, so there is no question what its ID is. This ID number is very important for trying to figure out which fan is not working.
Wireless connection & troubleshooting
Wireless models have an antenna on the side of the FanChief. They talk directly to wireless fans. This eliminates control wires.
While it is most likely set before shipping to the end customer, P12 and P13 need to be set to the correct amount of Yaskawa and Invertek VFDs.
If a fan doesn’t run, make sure the fan shutoff is not enabled.
Wireless theory
- The Power LED needs to be on all the time.
- The TXD is when the radio talks.
- The RXD is when the radio hears something.
The FanChief commands the conversation. The fans only talk when asked. The RXD & TXD lights are useful to figure out if it’s a fan or temperature controller problem.
On the FanChief, the RXD should blink after each TXD. If any fan is not present, out of range, or not talking, the FanChief will not get an RXD blink.
The FanChief talks to Fan #1, then Fan #2, and on up. There is a 1-second pause after the last fan before it restarts. You can estimate which fan has a problem by closely watching when there are no RXD blinks in relationship to the 1-second pause.
Wireless troubleshooting
Fan not running:
- Open FanChief: make sure the radio power light is on solid (if not, check FanChief wiring). Make sure the TX LEDs is blinking (if not, check the config menu). TX blinks, no RX blinks: turn off fan power for at least 2 minutes.
- Fan not receiving any messages: make sure both M0 & M1 switches are pushed down (2021 – only if it doesn’t have channel dipswitches). FanChief not powered on. Radio could be stuck from a brownout sequence. Turn fan power off for at least 2 minutes.
- Fan RXD blinks but not TXD blinks: the fan’s VFD ID may not be set correctly (Invertek P36). A wire may be loose between the fan’s VFD and radio.
- Fan RXD & TXD blinking: the fan’s VFD settings may not be correct. On Invertek VFDs make sure there is a jumper between 1 & 2. Make sure the fan is not disabled in FanChief.
- FanChief’s TXD not blinking: P12 & P13 might not be set to zero. Power cycle the FanChief after setting changes.
Wireless channels
The FanChief Commercial is intended to wirelessly connect to the fans via radios. As of March of 2022, the radio has a channel and power level selector.
Channel selection
Dip switches 1 thru 4 set which channel you are on. The default is 0, which is all switches off. But if you have more than 1 system within range, select an alternate channel for the new system. Push a dipswitch to the ON position to select any of the first 4 channels.
If 4 channels are not enough, any combination of on/off switches is unique. Just use the same combination across the fans you want in the system. There is a maximum of 16 combinations.
Boost
The boost switch increases the radio power. Don’t use boost unless it is required for consistent communication. Boosted power increases the chances of interference with other devices. Boosted power may reduce the total possible life of the radio. The only time you would need the power boosted is if a fan seems to be out of range.
Things to check from down at the temperature controller
Check if the temperature controller is hearing back from the fans. TXD means it’s talking, RXD means it is hearing back.
A normal blink pattern for the temperature controller’s radio is it should hear as much as it talks. If it only talks (only TXD LED blinking) and no hearing (no RXD blinking), you might be out of range. If it only hears half of what it talks, some slaves are out of range.
If no fans are working, check to make sure the temperature controller’s TXD light is blinking. If not, check for loose wires at the temperature controller or contact AutoVent.