I have a question : if the ampere (actual reading) of a chiller is low, does it mean that the chiller has a leakage in its cooling system (tubing)?

What is your parameters,when u observed your chiller at low ampere?parameters e.g.chilled water temperature , gas or refrigerant pressure etc,chillers compressor has a lot of gauges,do u observed anything at all not at normal parameters?

If you have leak in to your tubing , you can check with your chilled pumps pressure,is it normal pressure, when I was working , I used to monitor these equipment , and we have parameters that must be meet by these HVAC equipment , I am sure you have also , my suggestions go back and read all the parameters of all of gauges and consult your data with your superiors

In addition, please clarify your reference to "leakage" please state where on the circuit test are performed.

Ampere is directly proportional to the load, if there is any leaking in the chiller, should be have alert and turn off the chiller.
If there is no alert and chiller still ON, the chiller is surely could not meet the required load.
If there is no load ampere must be low, if highest load appear ampere surely high.

Regards,

@Torres.....yes sir, it's a chiller compressor. one of my colleagues says that it should not be below 24 amp. and he began troubleshooting if there is a leakage in the tubing. the normal ampere reading we have in the monitor check sheet is 28 amp to 40 amp but it should not be lower than 24 amp...in its AHU Pump, my colleagues conducted preventive maintenance before it happened... (greasing of the coupler and checking the motor)

@Norman....leakage in the tubing of the chiller sir. the ampere reading was seen from the monitor of the chillers then we connected manifold in the chiller to get the actual reading, and we got the same reading from the monitor and the actual reading.

hmmm... just check if the lower current readings appears to have some effects on other parameters like suction & discharge pressure, suction temp, your chilled water temp, etc. Your recent maintenance activity in your drive motor may influence the current rating of your chiller, since re-lubrication in drive motor bearings and couplings will smoothen its motor rotation.

Just check the trend of your current rating compared to the chilled water pressure and other related parameters.

OK i understand your question it is a bit tricky. The answer is yes; in other word you are seeing no load current. Before checking tubes, check plungers for seeping. it means therefore that your system is not cooling. in addition ensure the correct refrigerant is been used.

ok friends thank you to all of you. i appreciate your comments and opinions. we still don't know the cause but when we applied freon, it went okay, the amperage went normal...