Community Forums

97residency · 12-27-2020, 09:44 AM

You guys are awesome, and my appreciation couldn't be overstated.

I live in my beloved RV, so the help here is SO critical at times

OK.. 1997 class A Thor Residency. You've heard it before: furnace turns on, air comes on, no heat.

Made it through one round of researching, trying things, no luck so far.
Was told my coach batteries not being charged is the issue...
BIG QUESTION: Does the furnace system really need the 12V DC system from the coach batteries to fully ignite??? Even with all that power coming in from the generator???

I was told it needs DC power to "ignite". I can see on the outside acess what i believe is a lit pilot, which I swear wasnt lit before I started troubleshooting. I saw that fire and thought i fixed it. Outside the RV i can hear and see the flame for the water heater. Now I also hear the heater running, about 5 feet away. The whole system is humming, the air it pushes is very strong...if somethings not working, it must be silent..i dont know

BIG QUESTION #2: Can I put one regular 12v car battery in place of the two deep cycle batteries? Because that's what I did, just to try it .. (With a $50 returnable Walmart battery...vs the $450 I originally paid for my 2 Trojan coach batteries).I only want to know if it technically works, so I can run my heat for a bit until the next steps...i know why it's not ideal. But will it help turn the heater on??
All other appliances that would seem to also need the DC connection seem to work fine...fridge works perfect, which threw me off of the whole DC thing, (its running on propane option not AC) lights, water...but I think the water heater seems to be affected, too. Doesn't maintain hot water. I would have just popped two new coach batteries in, to answer that issue, but $ right now.

BIG Q #3: The role of the converter. Shouldn't I always have it on while getting external power? Doesn't it convert the AC to DC power as to avoid needlessly uskng up the DC power? If its off, wouldn't you be using/draining your coach batteries everytime you run shore power, and lose the trickle charge back to the batteries? Ahhh..god i feel like i should know all this..😅

Oh my god. Just walked over to what I've thought was my converter for two years, to share a picture... It's an INVERTER!! I'm dying. Where is my converter then??? Is it automatic?

I've looked everywhere for the controversial main sail switch.. couldn't find one. The concept makes sense though, I've cleaned and cleared out any chamber i could find.

I've included pictures. Going to take my two coach batteries that I thought were dead but probably aren't to an RV shop Monday morning to get charged hopefully.

Last note: out of the 93 things that have "stopped working" or gone wrong in some way in this RV, maybe 3 times at the most something was actually broken. Hear that WebMD?????? It's not always terminal!

Thanks a trillion guys (and gals?)

Skip426 · 12-27-2020, 10:25 AM

All the first pictures you've posted show the back of the fridge .

Is there not another access panel, on the outside of the coach, below the one you removed to take those pictures? That cover would be for the furnace.

The inverter you've pictured would only be for a television set . Probably 400 watt.
An inverter/converter/charger would be 5 times that size.

My converter/charger, comes on automatically when the coach is supplied shore power . It does have it's own circuit breaker in the coach 120volt distribution panel.

Mr Lars · 12-27-2020, 10:41 AM

Your furnace is blowing cold air, no heat?
Your thermostat has the ‘fan’ selector on ‘auto’?

There may be a valve in the gas line to the furnace that is shut off.
Possible electronic malfunction at the furnace burner. (poor connection, faulty safety, etc.)

David 70 · 12-27-2020, 10:41 AM

Yes, you are looking at the refrigerator. The furnace will have two round ports for the air intake and exhaust.

Unplanned Tourist · 12-27-2020, 10:43 AM

Do you have a voltmeter? Simple to use, and cheap to buy.

Check you battery voltage with and without shore power hooked up (no genset running).

You should see the voltage dropping down from around 13.5 or less to 12.6 or so. Then it will drop slowly as you use the battery power to run everything that's 12 volts.

David 70 · 12-27-2020, 10:49 AM

The furnace will most likely be located in the back of the coach.

Skip426 · 12-27-2020, 11:00 AM

Is there a manufacturers name or model numbers, on either of these decals ; yellow boxes; that could help us get you an owners manual for your furnace.

Skip426 · 12-27-2020, 11:09 AM

Is this power cord , coming from the back of the inverter ?

Is there an outlet close by that it should be plugged into ?

Can you post any model info from this unit so we can locate a manual for it.

David 70 · 12-27-2020, 02:02 PM

The OP must have succumbed to the cold as he has not answered any questions.

Gary RVRoamer · 12-28-2020, 12:24 PM

No Heat is simple enough - the furnace didn't light its propane burner. Why it failed to light is a more difficult question. Lack of propane, lack of incoming air flow, fan speed to slow, or a faulty igniter. Need to get down to more details to determine which of those is the likely culprit.

Q#2: Yes you can substitute one 12v battery of any kind. Car, boat, RV, or motorcycle even. Some provide power longer and some some longer useful lives, but any of them will work.

Q#3: The converter/charger provides 12v and charges batteries when external power is available. Yes, it would typically be on at all times and operate whenever 120v power is available. Rarely would it have an Off switch, but its possible in some models.

okcnewbie · 12-28-2020, 12:39 PM

Big Q 1; All of your RV appliances need 12VDC.
Big Q 2; A walmart battery would be fine. I suspect you could even get by without a battery if you're plugged in. The battery will help act as a filter though AFAIK.
Big Q 3; Leave converter on. Many have inverter/chargers that take place of the converter plus provide AC from batteries. Your inverter is probably just an inverter.

97residency · 12-28-2020, 02:19 PM

Oh my god, I didn't realize I got all of these responses... Last time I posted I received email alerts for every reply, didn't get those this time... Thank you so much!

I was looking at the freakin fridge, thinking it was my furnace... Wow.. Cream of the crop level gaff right there.

So..
1) where the ____ is my actual furnace to then? Near the back was a very helping suggestion.. my water pump is back there under the bed.. I will look.

If all appliances need DC (thank you), doesn't that immediately eliminate the house batteries as an issue? Everything else works.

I will look at the "auto" function while in heat mode, didn't know those options could combine.

I'm going to end this now and explore some other suggestions and will repost very soon..

David 70: I'm guessing that was a joke? Hard to tell. Definitely got the callous part down, though

Aside from that, thank you so much, will repost soon..

HarryStone · 12-28-2020, 02:34 PM

Walk around the outside of the RV, look for a mesh covered port in a metal cover. That will be your furnace. Mine has 4 screws holding the metal cover on. You'll have to remove that to gain access to the guts of the furnace.

Gary RVRoamer · 12-28-2020, 02:40 PM

Can you hear the furnace fan run? That ought to lead you to at least one (you may have two).

From the look of the interior fridge picture, there is a furnace under the fridge. Ought to be able to see the exhaust & air intake ports below the fridge vent on the outside. Could be a large removable cover there, or just two small ports fr the air intake & exhaust.