Water Heater Does not Start

[Bereniceyormany]

We have a 2018 Jayco Travel Trailer. The water heater does not want to tun on. I hear it wants to start, but after a few tries it stops. The gas stove is working so I think we have gas. Any ideas?

[Cannon]

Make sure it is full of water and not in bypass.

[damammel]

https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...-new-post.html

I’m assuming you might have the gas only model.

[Bereniceyormany]

Originally Posted by damammel

https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...-new-post.html

I’m assuming you might have the gas only model.

Yes. It is gas. We check the Gas and it has Gas. We check Water tank and it has Water. I hope it is cover under the Warranty. For now I guess cold Water only.

[JeremyFr]

Originally Posted by Bereniceyormany

Yes. It is gas. We check the Gas and it has Gas. We check Water tank and it has Water. I hope it is cover under the Warranty. For now I guess cold Water only.

But doe's it have enough air? You may want to check into how to adjust the venturi on it and also check that it's clean and clear of debri, insects are attracted to propane so it's very possible you have a blockage in the venturi.

[damammel]

Have you tried to light it manually? I have had 2 boards fail. The first one I was able to use the grill lighter to ignite the gas while it was trying to start. Once running it would stay on till the water was hot. The second board would only run for a few seconds no matter what. There are two little lights on the board that you should see light up when the heater is trying to start. It shows that the boards igniter is working. When the first board failed I did go through all the checks such as spark gap and air/gas flow. The spark gap is in the owners manual for the heater.

[Davetheslave]

Agree with damammel! My board failed too. 2018 BHS Dealer knew of board issue on Atwood WH. Changed board and ran fine
Davetheslave

[jhw1022]

It’s your control board. Atwood is aware of a bad batch of boards. We’re on our 4th board now. Keeping our fingers crossed this one isn’t bad too. So far so good.

[chrismoore701]

A trick i heard about last year and it worked. Turn it on. Go out side and put your hand over the exhaust pipe. Wait for it to fire. Then you will be good. Blew my mind. But it worked. Give it a try

[damammel]

That trick may work for some situations but with these failures there is no spark and gas only stays on for a few seconds if you use a lighter. The board controls both these functions.

[GL243]

I have the same problem with a 2018 267BHSW we got in February. WH worked great until the trip I just got back from yesterday. Igniter tries 3 times, can hear gas flowing but can't see any spark, and I can ignite with a hand lighter but it goes out after just a couple of seconds. Sounds like I need a new board . . .

[jhw1022]

That's exactly the problem we've had. The replacement board fixes the issue and is under warranty. The problem is Atwood had a bad batch of boards, so its a bit of a crapshoot to see if you get a good one. When we had it replaced most recently, the tech at CampingWorld said the part number had been changed. He hoped that meant they had figured out the problem. We've used the hot water heater on one trip since the new board and so far so good. I've also learned its pretty easy to replace the board yourself (two screws and a plug). I've bought an extra board to keep with us on trips in case this happens again.

[TCNashville]

Originally Posted by GL243

I have the same problem with a 2018 267BHSW we got in February. WH worked great until the trip I just got back from yesterday. Igniter tries 3 times, can hear gas flowing but can't see any spark, and I can ignite with a hand lighter but it goes out after just a couple of seconds. Sounds like I need a new board . . .

If you're handy try removing the flame sensor [igniter] and clean it with an emery board or steel wool. These things get brazed and fail. From your description it sounds as if your board is functioning properly but the igniter has failed. A new igniter [flame sensor] is available on Amazon for $21 or you can tow it back to the dealer [$] and let it sit for 3 weeks waiting for the part to do a 20 minute job. If it is the board contact Atwood directly bypassing the dealer and the wait time. While I was under warranty Atwood sent me a new igniter no charge. Just a thought.

[mnaquaman]

I agree with TCNASHVILLE, try to clean or replace the Flame Sensor. I have had the issue and my dealer was the one that suggested changing the Sensor for $22 before investing in a new board. Your dealer or service people can also test your board to see if it works! They are may not charge you to test it, mine did it for no cost! If you have a trustworthy dealer that is??