Girard Tankless Water Water Problems

Leo V · 07-29-2017, 02:23 PM

I have a 2017 Precept 31UL with a Girard Tankless Water Heater Gen 2.

I get an "Fd" error code in cold weather. Anyone have any thoughts as to what the problem and fix is?

Turn on the kitchen faucet hot water or shower hot water and the water heater comes on as it should. Turn on the bathroom hot water faucet and the water heater DOES NOT come on. Anyone have any thoughts as to what the problem and fix is?

pconroy · 07-29-2017, 02:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Leo V

I have a 2017 Precept 31UL with a Girard Tankless Water Heater Gen 2.

I get an "Fd" error code in cold weather. Anyone have any thoughts as to what the problem and fix is?

Turn on the kitchen faucet hot water or shower hot water and the water heater comes on as it should. Turn on the bathroom hot water faucet and the water heater DOES NOT come on. Anyone have any thoughts as to what the problem and fix is?

According to the manual:

Fd: Water heater operating in Winter Use Mode (Freeze Protection):The unit will run for a few seconds and shut off. This will occur when in freezing conditions if the LP gas and 12Vpower are ON. This Mode will only protect the water heater Heat Exchanger and not the RV's plumbing system.

For the record, if you have a digital control panel, you have a Gen 3, not a Gen 2. The model number makes it confusing as it's GSWH-2

Rice1951 · 07-29-2017, 03:24 PM

I have not been able to get hot water out of the bathroom faucet since I brought my rig home in April. I spoke to Jayco CS about it and my next step will be to replace the faucet when it gets higher up on my priority list. Since the kitchen faucet, outside shower and inside shower work OK I can live with it for now. I'm thinking the BR faucet is restricting the water flow since it is so slow that the hot water heater is not getting the rate of water it needs to operate properly. I cleaned the screen but it did not make any difference. I think the faucet is the issue because the cold water pressure is just as low as the hot. I'll follow up after I get it replaced.

Coachhark · 07-29-2017, 04:53 PM

We have to run the shower in order to get the hot water flowing to the bathroom sink then we turn off the shower and the hot water will work fine. There must be a better way. If you find it let me know.

blujay40 · 07-30-2017, 02:20 PM

Although we ended up replacing our faucet, to get the stock one to work right with our Girard (did the same with the new one) was to simply remove the flow restrictor from the faucets and the shower.

Tyeee · 01-04-2018, 01:22 PM

I have a similar problem on my 2017 Greyhawk 26y. I have the GSWH-2 Girard tankless water heater with the Gen 3 control panel. My RV is now stored and the water system is drained and winterized. The propane is turned off. The outside temp. is around 35 degrees. Today I turned on the 12volt master switch just to check a few things and immediately heard a beeping sound from the control panel in the bathroom. It displayed error code Fd. After a few seconds, it went to E1. I do know what the codes mean. I tried to turn the heater off by pushing the on/off button on the control panel but it did not turn off the display panel. I ended up turning off the master on/off switch on the water heater. My questions; why wont the water heater turn off at the control panel? Is there a reset button on the heater? I did turn off the master on/off a few times to see if the control panel would reset but it continues to beep and show the error codes. I can hear the blower and igniters run. I was not trying to turn on the tankless water heater system. It came on by itself. Do I have a problem?

blujay40 · 01-04-2018, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tyeee

I have a similar problem on my 2017 Greyhawk 26y. I have the GSWH-2 Girard tankless water heater with the Gen 3 control panel. My RV is now stored and the water system is drained and winterized. The propane is turned off. The outside temp. is around 35 degrees. Today I turned on the 12volt master switch just to check a few things and immediately heard a beeping sound from the control panel in the bathroom. It displayed error code Fd. After a few seconds, it went to E1. I do know what the codes mean. I tried to turn the heater off by pushing the on/off button on the control panel but it did not turn off the display panel. I ended up turning off the master on/off switch on the water heater. My questions; why wont the water heater turn off at the control panel? Is there a reset button on the heater? I did turn off the master on/off a few times to see if the control panel would reset but it continues to beep and show the error codes. I can hear the blower and igniters run. I was not trying to turn on the tankless water heater system. It came on by itself. Do I have a problem?

It's my understanding that you cannot turn off the water heater from the control panel. The only way to truly turn it off is either via a switch in the RV's control panel or on the unit itself. What worries me is you saying you could hear the ignitors. The unit should not attempt to light unless you have at least a .9 gal/min water flow thru the unit.

If it were me, I would be calling Girard directly. In my dealings with them, they have fast and excellent customer service. 866.559.1221 M-F 8-4PM EST.

Tyeee · 01-04-2018, 04:23 PM

Thanks for your reply. I took your advice and contacted Girard Tech support. They informed me that my water heater was in fact operating correctly. When the outside temp. is near freezing, it will automatically go into the (Freeze Protection) Winter Use Mode (Fd) then attempt to fire the igniters when the 12volt system is turned on. It will then display an E1 error code for ignition failure or accidental flame off during ignition if the propane is turned off and no water is present. He stated that in the cold weather periods, I should turn off the power at the furnace. It will not turn off at the remote controller in the bathroom. When the outside temp warms up (40 degrees approx) the system will not go into the (Fd) winter use mode. At that time it should operate normally. Until then, I'll keep the main power switch turned off at the water heater while the 12volt power is on. Hope I explained it OK.

hawkster · 01-04-2018, 05:23 PM

Makes sense. We are in cold Florida with temps in high 20s. My water heater has self ignited early in the morning a few times to keep from freezing.

For the bathroom faucet, I would remove the screen in the faucet. It helps but I agree the pressure there is less than the rest of the camper. I was using a 40# restrictor in the main water hose but changed to an adjustable model when I learned the girard likes 52 or 53#s to work properly.

nolosrv · 01-07-2018, 09:53 AM

I too switched to an adjustable water pressure regulator, set it to 52 and now all faucets/shower etc flow better but more importantly we can adjust shower temps to any desired temp and the Girard delivers consistent flow & temps. Solved all of our tankless heater issues for about $30 thru Amazon.

Dbrown · 01-11-2018, 11:00 AM

nolosrv,
Which pressure regulator are you using? This is for when you are hooked up to campsite water supply correct?
Dave

nolosrv · 01-11-2018, 11:16 AM

I bought the RV Aqua adjustable water pressure regulator, found it on Amazon, for about $30 and it's made a significant improvement! I set the pressure at 51/52 and water flow rate is much better, the Girard Tankless water heater works much better too. I spoke with Jayco CS Rep and he confirmed that pressure level is very acceptable and won't create any warranty issues. It's probably the best $30 I've spent on the MH.

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