Community Forums

Tcatrider99 · 07-14-2016, 10:14 AM

Hello all. I'm new to the group and new to owning a camper so I apologize if my questions seem silly.

I recently bought a 94 coacan Catalina 27' fifth wheel. The guy I bought it from knows even less than I do about campers so he was no help. I have been able to figure out how to get everything working with the exception of the heat and a/c. I do not see any switches or valves on the furnace nor do I see any on the roof mounted a/c unit. It appears like both are controlled by the thermostat unit on the wall. I've tried adjusting the temp, switching from heat to cool, turning the fan setting from auto to on and nothing seems to have any effect. Breaker is on, fuses are good.

Any suggestions on where to start?

Thanks.

BFlinn181 · 07-14-2016, 10:45 AM

The thermostat is 12 v, powered by the house batteries. Make sure any battery disconnect switch is on. The furnace should be controlled by the thermostat and is also 12 v, LP gas burner with forced air fan. The A/C is 120 v, and if no controls on the ceiling is controlled by the thermostat.

Check that furnace fuse in house fuse panel is good, if standing outside next to furnace while someone else has thermostat on 'Heat' and pushes temperature selector down it should trigger on. First the fan will start, then ignitor should snap and gas flow.

If you do a Google search for your make and model of A/C, furnace, and thermostat you should find manuals available online. Good luck with it!

nothermark · 07-14-2016, 10:53 AM

FWIW easy check for the state of the battery cutoff is to turn on a light. Your lights are run off 12 VDC so if they light you have power.

Also worth noting that there is a bit of delay with both the A/C and the furnace. Just to be sure time a minute or so after setting the thermostat to turn on.

jelag · 07-14-2016, 09:38 PM

I think both Bob and Mark have great suggestions... once you check out their suggestions and you've still got problems... please share the brand of the furnace...

FaithBowls · 07-16-2016, 11:30 AM

Both are controlled by thermostat. Your thermostat may be bad or wiring may be disconnected if nothing comes on.

monkey · 07-16-2016, 08:04 PM

As said if you have 12v AND 120 volt power to the trailer,, its probably the wall thermostat.. We had to replace the one on our 95 MH...

Tcatrider99 · 07-29-2016, 05:19 AM

Than you for the replies. The camper does have 120V hooked up currently and the inverter is working. All fuses are good. Everything else seems to work with the exception of the AC and the Furnace. I was leaning toward the problem being in the thermostat as well. Is there a way to test the thermostat and/or the furnace and AC (temporarily bypassing the thermostat to see if either of the units will fire up?). I have attached a pic of the thermostat and of the furnace since someone asked about the brand. Thanks again for all the help.

kkeever · 07-29-2016, 05:38 AM

To have the furnace start, turning the thermostat temperature down won't do it. For heat the thermostat needs to be set to the highest setting. For cooling the thermostat needs to be set at the lowest. You can also check for power at the thermostat with a meter. There are time delays for both systems.