Greetings,
Well, I went out to fly my 320 last night and was
disappointed to find that the left VisionMicro fuel gauge showed no reading at
all (like it was disconnected). In the limited time I had available I
began hunting for the problem with the following performed:
- Checked all connections (reseated connectors, etc.) –
no change
- Disassembled the D-sub connector at the VM I/O board to
check for shorts – none found
- Removed the pins from the D-sub and connected the right
fuel probe (known good one) to the inputs for the left gauge. The
left gauge read the correct level in the right tank. Conclusion: VM
computer is okay and either wiring or probe to left side is bad.
Then, as I was about to leave for the night I recalled some
discussion on the list a couple years ago that started when Rick Argente flew
in some rain and his VM fuel levels went nuts. Well, guess what? My
last flight (4 days ago) was in actual IMC with about 40 minutes of significant
rain and taxi, take-off, and landing on wet pavement. This sure is looking
like a leading contender…
In the last few minutes at the hangar I warmed the wheel
well area around the fuel probe with a heat gun but that was not enough to
bring back a reading. If it is water inside some heat shrink or
something, I will likely need more forceful drying out.
Have any others of you had a similar problem and, if so, how
did you seal up the probe to keep this from happening again?
Best Regards,
Dan Olsen