In the first few minutes of me using the compressed air to clean the MoMag, this is where I believe to have fractured the igniter causing the failure.....
Thank you for your video. I really appreciate it. When I first purchased this machine it worked just like you stated. The second year of operation was less reliable and required CO2 cartridges and a ridiculously expensive CO2 cartridge attachment to clean out the propane burning unit. From this point on the operation was sporadic and VERY frustrating. I also found that the mosquito magnet CO2 cartridges where expensive to purchase and it was suggested that every time I swapped out the propane tank, I was required to use a CO2 cartridge to clean out the working parts. I did this as per Mosquito Magnet instructions. All in all it cost me about $100 to $150 to run for the first season. This expense excludes the purchase of above mentioned equipment ie the cartridges and attachment. In year 3 (this year) I fired up my mosquito magnet and spent an entire day trying to get it running. As the warranty on this useless machine had expired after the first year I had no issue opening it up. After watching a few RU-vid videos I diagnosed a problematic "Thermistor" I believe this temperature probe regulates the internal temperature of the mosquito magnet and keeps it running. I went online to purchase a replacement part and found that there are no available parts for the mosquito magnet. The only item they allow to be sold online is the igniter part (on ebay) I called the mosquito magnet service people and was rudely informed that they do not have part numbers or are able to send me any parts at all. I was referred to a service center in Canada. Although Mosquito Magnet worked well for a year and caught basket loads of mosquito's the subsequent years year of operation were terrible. I paid $400 for something that has a shelf life of approximately a year to two years max. There is absolutely no customer service or parts available. I WOULD NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT. Its finicky and expensive to run! I will be posting this to other mosquito magnet youtube videos sites in order to warn other people of this gimmick. If anybody wants to purchase my broken mosquito magnet and resides in Ontario please let me know and maybe I'll be able to re coop some lost money:)
Yes, the igniter failed on mine in the first season and I have to ignite it with a torch, but once ignited, it works. This is the 4th year with mine (where I have to manually fire it up for each propane tank or power outage). When I called for parts, they wouldn't talk to me until I gave the serial number of the unit, and then it was only to void the warranty. I would not buy another one, but will keep the current one going for as long as I can. I don't use the CO2 cartridges, I use simple compressed air with a tire-filling attachment, seems to work OK. I purchase the attractant from 'urefillit' and was able to get things a little bit more affordable.
Here's an addendum to my comment. These systems are flameless. What you're doing really is heating up the catalyst bed (platinum-coated ceramic) so that when the solenoid opens, the propane can easily react, leading to a self-sustained reaction process. IF the catalyst isn't hot enough, the thermistor resistance doesn't fall sufficiently and so, the solenoid is closed, the fan speeds up to clear any propane and you then get the rapid flashing light It's been my experience that these new OPD valves can get stuck, preventing any gas from flowing. Rap the tank bottom on some concrete, reconnect the regulator , turn the unit back on and SLOWLY crack open the valve on the tank. For me, even carefully, it doesn't work 'first time, every time' but eventually the solid red light indicates success!
Just want say thanks for making this video. 1 day after the warranty ended it broke. I thought it was the regulator but not. After seeing this and checking the igniter it was cold and not getting warm. Tried your instructions and it fired right up
Robert Andrade - That is super, glad it helped. This is the 3rd year like this and I still cannot find a replacement igniter. On my 3rd tank this year- so far.
thanks for the video, it seems like every time a run out of gas it's hard and harder to restart. with these it's also a good idea to get your propane tank refilled rather than exchanged, you get alot more gas refilling them
For sure, Andrew. It seems to be the same PITA to start for me each time with very little noticeable change to the amount of time. Maybe try and use compressed air on the cleanout valve (Or a CO2 cartridge per mfg recommend.) if you aren't already. See if that helps.
This thing is a major pain in my untanned parts, but when it works, it's great!! I've taken apart 3 that I've owned, bought new parts and my present one worked for 3 months total. Working on that now. Watch the videos and see what you can do with this POS and keep the company from screwing you.
What I find fascinating is they believe that by not sending you part and sending the whole unit in that they’re doing you a favour yeah right thanks. Frankly I was gonna buy a second unit for my burn area not with this kind of service
Hello ! Just a French guy who say you "Thank you very much !" ... if anyone know where to buy an ignitor or a compatible spare, I will thank him once ! ;-) Best regards.
je suis à la recherche également de cette pièce , et je ne l’ai trouvée que sur amazon ou ebay mais version US.. donc avec frais de port conséquents pour un total d un peu moins de 60€ … dites moi si vous voulez un lien ou pas
Hi Larry- It is an uncomfortable amount of time..... What happens is - when you turn on the unit- all of the fans run as if it were running, then it stops (after a minute or two) that is the point where I hit the sensor opening with the torch. It takes ~5 minutes (literally ~600 seconds) and I shut the flame off and replace the broken sensor in the hole after the light on the power switch goes solid/stops blinking.
Awesome! Mine won't start this year. It worked great all last year, now after 10 times of trying to start I get the fast blinking light. You think it's an igniter problem too?
meter the igniter you should have some resistance with an electronic multimeter, if it is open, likely it is bad. My igniter was only one screw and once taken apart, tht problem was obvious. I can't diagnose your MM's issue, but this is scary dangerous each time (torch near a 20lb propane thing) but the risk is a mosquito bite!
It is a significant investment either way. If you get the new one, and don't void the warranty, it will give you years of service, and if your igniter fails like mine did, you can send it back for repair.... But you could save a couple hundred bucks for a chance used one. I think the Mosquito Magnet folks will repair it for a fee.... Good Luck Omair.
Totally agree Jay- it is the ignition system. I completely rewired my Defender with an Arduino Mega microcontroller. Google "mega defender mosquito magnet palomoney"- make sure to start with the first page if you want the full story
