Community Forums

Kliwks · 08-20-2012, 06:04 PM

This is a followup to a previous post. On my last trip the water heater continued with the on again off again stuff. It would light, go out, light, go out, etc. Usually on the third try it would stay lit and i would have hot water for a couple of days before it would act up again. Tonight I cleaned everything. The tube the igniter, flame sensing probe, electrical contacts etc. When I flipped the switch... Nothing.... It seems I have to pull one of the connectors off of the module and reconnect and presto, it will light. I noticed that the first time I turned on the heater switch this little red light was on right next to it. (see pic) However after I disconnected the module connector and re-connected it and went back inside the little red light was out and the heater would respond to the remote heater switch.
I hope I didn't butcher that description too bad.
So, What is the little red light?

DonDee · 08-20-2012, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kliwks

This is a followup to a previous post. On my last trip the water heater continued with the on again off again stuff. It would light, go out, light, go out, etc. Usually on the third try it would stay lit and i would have hot water for a couple of days before it would act up again. Tonight I cleaned everything. The tube the igniter, flame sensing probe, electrical contacts etc. When I flipped the switch... Nothing.... It seems I have to pull one of the connectors off of the module and reconnect and presto, it will light. I noticed that the first time I turned on the heater switch this little red light was on right next to it. (see pic) However after I disconnected the module connector and re-connected it and went back inside the little red light was out and the heater would respond to the remote heater switch.
I hope I didn't butcher that description too bad.
So, What is the little red light?

Flame out.

Kliwks · 08-20-2012, 06:35 PM

So is the red light lit any time the flame isn't lit or just in an error condition?

djbmsu · 08-20-2012, 06:44 PM

Correct it is a fail lite that the igniter did not light.

corvettec3 · 08-20-2012, 06:52 PM

When you figure it out, I have the identical problem. If I pull the plug off the board and shove it right back on, go in and push the switch, the tank ignites. Will work for a few hours and then the pilot out light comes on. Then same thing all over again.

Kliwks · 08-20-2012, 06:56 PM

I will follow up. I also noticed a very faint high pitch sound coming from the module. It goes away when I pull the connector and returns when I plug it in. Not sure if that is normal or not. I bought an RV repair book on sale at CW. I will look in there for some tips as well.

IMDSailor · 08-20-2012, 06:59 PM

Yup, thats the "Pilot Out" light. Even if you don't have a standing pilot, but rather electronic ignition it still come on briefly when the unit lights up. It should be on and off very quickly, or so I've been lead to believe.

BeltoneMagoo · 08-20-2012, 08:03 PM

Used to have a TT with the same problem. Drove me crazy(er). On a trip out West I got PO'D and went to an RV repair place in Moab, UT and purchased a new ignitor/sensor assembly. ($38) Installed it and it worked until the next day. I kept messing with it and it worked well enough to make it home to Texas. I did a LOT of reading on several forums and found out that the ignitor/sensor assemblies have ceramic which holds the ignitor/sensor rods in place. They develop minute cracks that drain the flame sensor signal (~200 micro amps) and that causes the the system to shut down. I then broke down and bought another NEW ignitor/sensor and installed it. It is still working some 3 years later. I also cleaned the black box connector and all connections including grounds, according to the instructions I found. I think (?) that may solve your problem.
Good luck and safe travels!

Muddypaws · 08-20-2012, 08:13 PM

Does it sound like a rocket taking off when it starts? It's possible that it's actually blowing itself out with too much oxygen. I've seen it happen more than once.

If that's the case you can change the mixture by moving the mixture sleeve to allow a little less air into the burner.

Dunner · 08-20-2012, 11:53 PM

Here's my control panel and WH. Just tested it with the gas off. The switch does not light, but when you first turn it on, a RED DSI FAULT light comes on for about ~5 seconds, then goes off for ~9 seconds as it tries to light the WH. If the heater does not light, the RED light comes back on again for ~5 seconds, then repeats the cycle for three tries. The RED will come back on and stay on to let you know it did not light. You can manually turn it off, then on again if you don't want to wait the 10 second delay.

The "Holding Tank" always showed 2/3 full, even when empty. Turned out to be a defective 14 pin integrated circuit on the display module.

Here's the little trouble shooting guide that came on my little 6 gallon Atwood.

Dunner · 08-21-2012, 05:09 AM

I had a display like Steve's in my 5er and had to replace the display only part. I forget how much, but it was not too expensive.

Kliwks · 08-21-2012, 05:52 AM

Thanks for all the tips. What I thought was odd was that with the heater off for several days, I took it apart and did my cleaning. And when I turned the heater on it did nothing until I did the disconnect, reconnect thing. I would have thought i would have tried to light 3 times.
BTW, BeltoneMagoo, It does sound a little like a jet engine. I did adjust the flame a bit last night. I tried to make it mostly blue. If it seems like it is blowing it out, I will close the shutter a bit.

Dunner · 08-21-2012, 05:10 PM

When you do the disconnect thing, do only one connector disconnect/connect at a time and try it. It might tell you which direction to look.

Kliwks · 08-21-2012, 05:27 PM

I think I have done both at one time or another. Doesn't seem to make a difference. It just seems to reset things and it will attempt to light 3 times.