Heater coming on during the summer

[fblair301]

I have a 2005 Itasca Suncruiser.

We have been parked in Houston, TX for 3 months, connected to 50 amp service and everything was working fine.

Disconnected today to move to a temp. location and went to start the generator; it acted like the batteries were dead, just clicks, no start. Checked the batteries, all had plenty of water and tested 12 v; batteries are less than 2 yrs. old.

Re connected to 50 amp, started the generator fine.

Now ready to leave the park. Got the generator running, disconnected the 50 amp service and started down the road. Next thing that happens is that the gas furnace was running while the thermostat was in the off position. Changing the thermostat to air, ac started, but the heat kept going.

Finally I stopped, got out, and turned off the propane to kill the furnace, it finally stopped.

Any ideas?

We have had some problems with the batteries charging before, but a dealer check said the converter was working fine. We also have liquid level indicators that do not work correctly when connected to 110, always show full. When we are on 12v, they work correctly.

Many mysteries.

Thanks for any ideas,
Fred Blair

[Ray,IN]

Sounds like you have narrowed the problem to the 12V on-board system. I would have the batteries checked at Interstate or other specialty shop, usually free testing. Next I would take apart every 12V cable connection, clean everything, reassemble, then spray with battery protectant spray. If the cables are old(bulges under shielding or corroded at cable/ clamp) they may require replacing. I think a fully charged, rested, battery should read 12.65 VDC.(may be wrong there,if so, the sparkys will correct me).

[RV Wizard]

Fred, a shorted furnace control wire feed will cause the furnace to run continuously. What make and model is the roof air conditioner? The reason I ask is that I can look up the wiring schematic and tell you which wires go to the furnace and have you disconnect them. If it still runs then the short is between the A/C and the furnace.
You may also have a loose ground to cause the generator starting issue.
Be sure to have the unit checked for a hot skin problem. Years ago most RVs were metal sided and if the body was not grounded and a shorted happened on the 110 vac circuits, it could hot up the skin of the RV. A test of the grounding of the frame and for a shorted AC circuit is done during a PDI; therefore calling it a "Hot Skin Test".
If present this might cause your monitor to malfunction.

[wa8yxm]

Did you clean the battery terminals? Now I've never had your problem but from time to time my coach refuses to start till I hit the AUX-START button. Then it fires right up. I get to my next parking spot, crawl under to where the chassis battery hides, disconnect, load test (Passes with flying color.. Green) clean and re-connect and I'm good for another year or two.

[Bill Killen]

Great thoughts!
1.Batteries: they might show full, but they might not be able to handle the load of the generator starting up. the test at a shop will tell you if there is still life in those babies. Its not uncommon for the stock charging unit to be "not that good" at conditioning the batteries. (General statement, my rig ended up coming with a fairly good setup, but not all are created equal).
2. Heater: Pop open the door to the furnace and take a peek (looking for clues!) on the circuit boards that run the furnace. Make sure your connections are all solid, nothing looks funny (if you know what that looks like) I think RV Wizard got you going in the right direction here.

Hope these are simple fixes!
good luck,

bk