Furnace issue.

scott321968 · 10-23-2015, 11:54 AM

I am the owner of a 264bh. We went for our first cool weather trip this past weekend and had a problem with our furnace not firing the second night there. Temps got down to 28 degrees. I had one tank full and another about half. Furnace tried to fire a few times and couldn't. The auto changeover valve didn't kick in, so I switched over to the full bottle and reset the furnace. Fired up fine. Coupled next to us also had the same issue and used the same fix. My question is, how do I prevent this from happening again? Can bottles be heated with a magnetic oil pan heater or lines with a heat tape? Not sure how hot an oil pan heater gets. I didn't know if someone makes a kit for this or not.

Jagiven · 10-23-2015, 01:45 PM

Where you connected to shore power or running off of battery?

It sounds like you were running off of battery, If so, the furnace will not light if the battery is low on voltage. However, I do not know at what voltage it stops lighting at. Typically, you can get one night of run time off of a single Group 24 battery.

scott321968 · 10-23-2015, 02:35 PM

No. We were on shore line and everything else was working. As I said in the original post, worked fine after full tank was turned on. Camper in the next lot had same issue. He also had a 26 with slideout. I tried to reset the furnace before switching to the full tank and the furnace would try to light a few times. I guess after not lighting a few times the safety would cut in and the furnace stopped trying to light.

DocBrown · 10-23-2015, 03:22 PM

I had this happen once on our old trailer. I wonder if the issue had anything to do with lack of gas in the line. When there is no gas, like an empty bottle, the furnace will attempt to fire but then shut off. When you switched to the full bottle you restored gas flow. I wonder if it would have failed if the second bottle was low? I know that's an unlikely, and yet I had an empty second bottle in the spring when I know I had it filled last fall.

Jagiven · 10-23-2015, 04:18 PM

Humm. I run my furnace into the low 20's with no issues.

By chance did you try the furnace reset before flipping tanks? You should be able to run until the tank is empty. If it had been real cold maybe around 0 degree F, you can freeze up the tank by drawing to much fuel compared to the rate it can evaporate, but that would not have the case.

I have had issue with lighting if air is in the line, but as you stated, it had been running.

Tex1961 · 10-23-2015, 04:30 PM

Did you run any other gas appliances before then to make sure the lines were purged? When we setup I always turn the stove on and keep a lighter lit until the air is purged out of the lines and we have gas... It can take up to almost 5 minutes sometimes. Also on the auto change over valve??? Did this come standard on your unit. I have a 2013 and mine is not an auto change over.. I just turn on both valves when I get to the campsite and the tanks bleed out evenly.

scott321968 · 10-23-2015, 05:03 PM

This was our second night and had been using other appliances. Lines should have been purged. I did not try and run the stove to see if it would burn during the furnace issue. The bottle I was using was low, but not out. Probably 1/2 to 1/3 full. Did try to reset the furnace before switching tanks. I figure the cold lowered the flow in the lines coming from the lower tank. Not a big issue for a short trip, but on longer trips in cold weather, could be a pain. The other camper had the same issue and he said his tank was almost empty. Neither of our auto transfer valves had switched. Talked to Dealer service rep and he said he had never known one to cause problems in the cold, but one of his service techs did. Service tech said there was not a fix. Find that hard to believe. Have sent notes to Jayco and Atwood to get there opinion. Is still under warranty.

scott321968 · 10-23-2015, 05:05 PM

Did come with the auto change over valve. The valve was leaking when we purchased the camper and they had to put another one on for us.

SmokerBill · 10-23-2015, 06:44 PM

Could be a bad pigtail hose going from the cylinder to the regulator. They do go bad, and not allow adequate propane flow. The furnace sucks a lot more propane than other appliances.

scott321968 · 10-23-2015, 06:48 PM

Setting up an appointment to have it looked at.

scott321968 · 10-23-2015, 07:37 PM

Unit is a 2014 that we purchased new this spring. The regulator was leaking and a new one was put on. Still could be bad.

Rock · 10-24-2015, 08:07 PM

I have had numerous bbq tanks run out of gas while still at least a third full. They all have that shut off internal valve for overfills and u might have a bad one
Rock

scott321968 · 10-24-2015, 08:37 PM

Thanks Rock. My neighbor thinls the same thing.

Rock · 10-25-2015, 06:29 AM

Scott321968
That was another great gov move putting them junk valves in. I finally going two good blue rhino BBQ ones that let u empty the full tank and I just refill those instead of swap outs. Every time the government gets involved they make it worse like the new epa gas can spouts
Rock

**Crabman** · 10-25-2015, 06:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock

Scott321968
That was another great gov move putting them junk valves in. I finally going two good blue rhino BBQ ones that let u empty the full tank and I just refill those instead of swap outs. Every time the government gets involved they make it worse like the new epa gas can spouts
Rock

Yeah those new gas can spouts are a real PITA. Luckily I bought several of the old style cans on ebay after the new ones came out.

Rock · 10-25-2015, 07:25 AM

Crabman
I just got got some replacement spouts from Amazon. Someone posted that on the forum. Everytime I filled my portable Jenney I spilt gas. Did not want that to happen in my new pinnacle. Do u know if the ten gallon tank is built in or can u remove for filling? Still waiting for my babies arrival hope this week
Rock

hausknwa · 10-25-2015, 08:02 AM

It is my understanding (I may be totally wrong) that LPG used is a blend of Propane and Butane and that the blend is changed depending on the temperature or time of year. The different blends cause the LPG to vaporize better at lower temps. So if you have tanks that were filled say in FL or during the summer and you are using them in NY during the winter you could have a problem. Having said that, my guess is that you have a bad pigtail from the tank. I have had this happen twice making me think that the tank is empty. However, the tank should have switched over as the bad pigtail would indicate low pressure or lack of fuel to the transfer valve.

hausknwa · 10-25-2015, 08:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crabman

Yeah those new gas can spouts are a real PITA. Luckily I bought several of the old style cans on ebay after the new ones came out.

I saved the spouts from several old cans but found that the threads did not match the new cans. Probably designed to foil my end run.

Rock · 10-25-2015, 08:26 AM

The replacement spouts come with several caps to fit different cans.

The easy way to eliminate the valve swap the tanks around
Rock

RodgerS · 10-25-2015, 09:03 AM

Propane is stored and delivered as a liquid, but used by your heater as a vapor. The liquid propane volume in any LP Gas container is directly related to its temperature. Propane volume rises as temperature rises and falls as temperature falls. 60 degrees fahrenheit is your reference point. Propane users can become quite confused during periods of cold weather because their propane tank gauge may read less than what they expect it to read.

As to troubleshooting, the manual will have troubleshooting and maintenance procedures, and you can find those procedures on youtube videos. It is valuable to learn the furnace sequence of operation. I'm an advocate of RV owners expanding their service skills properly, rather than applying "try this or that" procedures.

One good water heater reference (yes the thread is re: furnace, but same advice), is at Atwood Water Heater Troubleshooting

Some of your basic tools you will need are a manometer, multi-meter, and circuit board tester, plus some common hand tools.

If you make it a point to perform maintenance twice a year, you can become more familiar with your water heater and keep the components in great shape. Water heaters tend to be out of sight and therefore out of mind. Get in a habit of opening your access door and keeping and eye out for rust, insect nests, and other visually problematic issues.

If you have a Suburban then you need to inspect the anode rode twice a year and replace it well before it is completely used up as it is protecting the inside of the tank from rust.

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