Now my dang heat is out!!!!

[thecityman]

THanks again Old Biscuit. Somehow you manage to give highly technical information but in a way that even a non-mechanically inclined person like me can understand.

I called Dometic today and got the number of a different RV mobile repair guy who is on their approved list. Now, I live out in the middle of NO WHERE - 40 minutes from even a small town. But to my shock, there is a mobile RV repair guy about 9 miles from my house!!! That is so awesome. Also, dometic said that while I'd be responsible for service call, my warranty will cover parts, LABOR, and shipping. That is good news (unless its something not covered of course and I'd guess a mouse chew wouldn't be). I've called and left a message for the guy so we'll see what happens.

btw....the more I listen and feel, the more I think that my furnace is actually lighting just for a few moments and then going out. WHile i never hear that jet-engine sounding WHOSH, I am pretty sure I hear the very start of that sound. Also, as I've told you guys before, I can feel just a tiny bit of heat coming out of the duct work/vent closest to the furnace along with the forced air blowing. I'm sure its warmer than room temp, but its still barely detectable. If there was no ignition whatsoever, I can't see how I would get ANY warm air at all. SO based on the sound I hear (sounds like the first 1/4 second of the regular WOSH sound that happens when furnace fully lights) and on the fact that I'm getting a tiny bit of warm air, I do think that rather than it not lighting at all, its lighting for a moment and the going out. That could explain how I get a tiny bit of heat and the very very beginning of the WOSH sound. And remember, the blower keeps blowing the whole time, even while I hear it trying to light (or relight) itself every 30 seconds or so. Now I'm not 100% sure I'm right about this, but I think so. I also don't know why it matters. But I wanted to be sure you all had all the information I can provide. But hopefuly I'll have repair guy soon if he calls me back.

[winniman]

I had a similar thing happen on my furnace on my 2000 Winnebago. It would light for a second, then go out. First thought was it would be a flame sensor, or something along that line. It ended up being the thermostat was just worn out, and the internal parts were not connecting correctly. I found if I slid the button in just a certain position, it would work. I found this out completely by accident after fiddling with it for hours. I replaced the thermostat, and no more problems. Since you unit is brand new, its a crap shoot as to what it could be. Something is defective. Please make sure to come back and let us know the results of the repair. This helps others in the future who, like yourself, come here looking for solutions to problems. Cheers

[tuffr2]

You have a great chance if you get the mobile repair guy to have heat tonight. Again I am thinking it is something simple. The RV Repair guy will have all the tools and know how. Wow, only lives 9 miles away. That is lucky.

I was going to recommend a good sleeping bag but you beat me to it. Heck a good sleeping bag and a dog sure makes it better.

Good luck for tonight.

[1st-tt2018]

I just meant that mouse damage may not be covered under warranty...thats all. I hope your mobile tech can come out soon and resolve this for you.

Originally Posted by thecityman

Well, one tiny little thing just got resolved thanks to your help.....hamm2018 your tip about the fan thermostat setting did fix the little issue where the AC fan was coming on each time I scrolled past it to turn the heat on. Once I set it to "auto" as you described, it no longer comes on before the heat does each time. But that is the limit of my good news.

I did the test where I turned on all stove burners fully, then turned on the hot water heater. When the hot water heater came on, the burner flames didn't even flicker and certainly didn't get smaller or go out. Also, I was able to loosen the fitting where the gas line connects to the furnace. All I can tell you is that it did spew gas (I mean I could hear it rush out). However, I have no way to know if it had full/high pressure or just enough to make the spewing sound. All I know is SOME gas is getting to the furnace connection. And based on the test you had me do with stove and water heater I'm inclined to think I have full pressure...but I can't measure it.

I can't find our sales agreement tonight but you are probably right...it probably does say I have to take it in for warranty stuff. Its my own fault for taking a salesmans word...very very stupid on my part. You said I should call the service department to get preauthorization before calling an independent mobile repair guy to come work on it. Do you mean the service department for the Dometic furnace or the service dept at my dealership. Because I called the dealership today and while they gave me an independent mobile repair guy phone number but said they didn't need to be involved nor mention approving me calling him.

1st tt2018 when you say this is sounding like it won't be covered by warranty, do you mean because a mouse probably chewed it? Other than that I can't think of any reason it won't be covered???? Thanks.

[puttin]

Coincidentally I just got this today- much of it duplicates Old Biscuit's posts but here it is:




https://blog.coach-net.com/2019/12/1...e-maintenance/

[raeburn2000]

I had the exact same problem this week. Sounds very similar to what you are describing. You can hear the ignitor clicking but no whoosh that indicates that they main burner lights and no warm air blowing.

Finally called a Mobil RV Repair guy who got on the phone with Dometec (Atwood) and they agreed that it was a gas supply problem. After a couple hours of troubleshooting they pulled the burner assembly. The propane injects into a sleeve with holes and 80% of the holes were plugged with rust. Cleaned out the holes with a wire brush and everything worked like new. He said he’s seen this type of problem on rigs that spend a lot of time in the coast.

The RV Repair guy wasn’t cheap, but definitely found the problem and gave us heat.

Hope this helps.

[hamm2018]

Originally Posted by thecityman

Well, one tiny little thing just got resolved thanks to your help.....hamm2018 your tip about the fan thermostat setting did fix the little issue where the AC fan was coming on each time I scrolled past it to turn the heat on. Once I set it to "auto" as you described, it no longer comes on before the heat does each time. But that is the limit of my good news.

I did the test where I turned on all stove burners fully, then turned on the hot water heater. When the hot water heater came on, the burner flames didn't even flicker and certainly didn't get smaller or go out. Also, I was able to loosen the fitting where the gas line connects to the furnace. All I can tell you is that it did spew gas (I mean I could hear it rush out). However, I have no way to know if it had full/high pressure or just enough to make the spewing sound. All I know is SOME gas is getting to the furnace connection. And based on the test you had me do with stove and water heater I'm inclined to think I have full pressure...but I can't measure it.

I can't find our sales agreement tonight but you are probably right...it probably does say I have to take it in for warranty stuff. Its my own fault for taking a salesmans word...very very stupid on my part. You said I should call the service department to get preauthorization before calling an independent mobile repair guy to come work on it. Do you mean the service department for the Dometic furnace or the service dept at my dealership. Because I called the dealership today and while they gave me an independent mobile repair guy phone number but said they didn't need to be involved nor mention approving me calling him.

1st tt2018 when you say this is sounding like it won't be covered by warranty, do you mean because a mouse probably chewed it? Other than that I can't think of any reason it won't be covered???? Thanks.

Glad the issue with the fan is fixed now.

By customer service I meant the manufacture, you did say Highland Ridge, OPEN RANGE correct? Call them for the pre-approval. If you are still under the original warranty being new, call them NOT the dealership. The dealer cannot give you pre-approval, but the manufacture can and may do it.
Call the manufacture and start the process for a warranty claim.

What I did was when the mobile repair guy came out because of a water leak I called Heartland while he was there and I had him explain to them what the issue was and Heartland gave me a approval number right then. I still had to pay the complete bill but I was later reimbursed for the cost except the service call portion, as they told me. So do not be surprised if you have to pay the bill first then get reimbursed for most of it.
It could be the mouse damaged it or a issue with the control board you will not know until checked out

If you like please send me a PM and I will give you my phone number so I can talk to you. Currently we are sitting in Biloxi, Miss. but Friday we are moving to Sulphur, La. for 2 nights.

[keymastr]

There is a possibility it is the burner orifices being plugged as mentioned. It also could be your propane regulator is faulty. Just because the stove and water heater work does not mean there is enough gas flow for the furnace. There is also a valve in the regulator that is supposed to cut off the gas if it detects a fast leak as it would if the hose was ripped off in an accident. If you do not open the propane tanks very slowly it will activate. I have seen them activate partially and allow some gas flow but not enough for larger appliances.

You could try resetting the whole trailer by turning off both tanks, unplugging from shore power and turning off the battery switch or if you do not have a battery switch then remove a battery cable for 30 seconds or so. Just removing shore power will not reset the furnace or most other systems because the control boards operate off of 12 volts, not 110 ac so they are still powered up until you turn off the batteries, (or remove a cable). That is my first step whenever I have some issue come up like this.

[Nudge]

Sorry~Completely off TOPIC
But hey Ol’ Biscuit hope your doing well with your ankle/foot.
Good to see ya posting!

[swagn]

x2 on Ol Biscuit...I believe he had surgery Monday and noticed Wed he was posting...how's the pain?

[tuffr2]

Any update on the Furnace? Either the furnace is fixed or you went to the Humane Society to get another doggie to help stay warm. I am thinking in Tenn. you will not need 3 dogs and 2 should be good.

Remember the old rock group 'Three Dog Night'? Brrr - I think that term started in Alaska when they used the sled dogs to keep warm.

[Nudge]

[Tcounty1]

Well what was the problem? Did it get fixed?

[thecityman]

This is one of the hardest posts I've had to make and I put it off 2 days because of it. I am 100% you guys are going to think I'm much more of an idiot than even I admitted to being. But no matter what you believe, I am 100% certain that this whole thing wasn't just my stupidity.

Let me explain. I finally did get a mobile repair service to come and work on my furnace. Turns out he came from a city that was 1.5 hours away (1 way) so I agreed to pay a $200 service fee before he came. Well, he came on Friday afternoon. The first thing he asked was for me to turn it on so he could hear what it was doing. SO I did.

Now please listen and believe me....turning on my unit is so simple and straight forward that it just can't be screwed up or confused or done incorrectly. All you do is hit the "Mode" button 3 times, and I ALWAYS watch it when I do it. So on Friday just like always, I hit the mode button once and I get the fan symbol. I hit it again and I get the snowflake symbol (for AC). I hit it the third time and I get the wave heat symbol meaning it is on furnace mode. And of course the temperature has been sit on 90 degrees the whole time for the last week to be sure it would come on.

Well, there stands the repair guy and about 5 seconds after I turn it on I hear it myself...I hear the Woosh and the sound of it burning like a jet engine. I hadn't heard this sound for 4 days. Then sure enough, about 1 minute later warm air is blowing out like gangbusters. In short, it worked perfect.

I know....you're thinking I had to of been doing something wrong. I wasn't!!! It would be different if HE had turned it on...perhaps you could argue that I wasn't operating it correctly. But I turned it on this time and did so exactly the same way I've done about 10 times lately, Only this time it worked.

I've never felt so dumb just like I do as I tell this story. But no matter what anyone else believes, I know in my heart with absolute certainty that I turned it on the sane then as I had the last several times.

What this means, of course, is that we will never know what was really wrong with the unit. The service guy was super nice about it (he get paid either way, so why not!) and he said it almost had to be air in the line. Problem with that is I checked my stove and hot water heater several different times while my furnace wasn't working- and they worked each time. Now, I did unhook the tanks to lift them up and see if they felt full or not and I did this 2-3 times over the course of my furnace not working. ANd I switched the selector from one tank to the other to be sure maybe one tank or valve wasn't working- so I guess its possible I introduced air into the system a few times be doing that. I also concede there may have been a few- but all- times when I didn't let it run long enough to light. Now that its working I'm realizing the blower runs as much as 1 minute before the furnace actually ignites and heat is produced. So there may have been SOME times that I turned it on, waited 30 seconds, and decided it still wasn't working and turned it back off too soon. But again, there is NO WAY this was what I was doing wrong all the time because there were SEVERAL times that I let it run for several minutes AND, don't forget. I would hear the igniter clicking and trying to light about ever 30 seconds. Now that it is working I only hear that click and ignition one time.

Listen folks, I am very sorry I cannot give you definative answer for what was wrong and I guess we will never know unless it was air in the line but I don't see how other gas appliances worked or why the furnace would work for several days then after not being used for 3-4 days would get air in the line (unless it was just me unhooking and re hooking the tanks) So many of you tried so hard to help me with this and I feel awful that I can't now tell you who was right or what it was. Its a little like when your car makes a noise to you take it to repair shop and it won't make the noise then. FRUSTRATING!!!

All I can say and thank-you everyone for helping. I'm you'll assume that I'm such a newbie that I was probably just not turning it on correctly or doing some other dumb thing, But I will believe until I die that in this case, it honestly wasn't user error. It didn't work, and then it did. Nothing was done different. I know that sounds impossible.

For what its worth, you may recall my hot water heater did exactly the same thing for 2 days and then suddenly worked. But of course that made a lot more since because it was the first time I ever turned it on- so having air in line was more understandable. THen again, they told me at the dealer that they had tested it the day I picked it up so it seems like that would have gotten the air out of it. SO it didn't work at first, I'd hear it clicking, then after trying about 15 it suddenly worked just like my heater did Friday.
Hopefully I don't have some kind of problem where air continues to get in my gas lines, but furnace has worked perfect for 2 days and hot water heater has worked perfect for 2 weeks. I also won't unhook tanks again to lift them....I now know I dont have to.

Sorry I can't give more information but I still appreciate everyone's help. I just wish we had a clear answer so future readers of this thread with same problem could get answers that might help them. But thanks again.

Kevin