waynemb
Slidell, LA
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My hot water heater is a 10 gallon gas/electric DSI by Attwood. When I first pulled into our site today, I did as a I usually do and use both the electric and gas sides to heat the initial water faster. Tonight, my wife happened to be outside and she heard it click, try to ignite with a short flame and then go out, click again, short flame again, and then nothing. There was no fault on the control panel and so I tried to shut the gas side off and turn it back on but it did not light either time. I did a basic visual inspection of the outside components, and everything appears fine. I then turned the electric side off and the gas side on by itself, and then a fault light appeared on the panel.
I did recently have it serviced and had the heating rod and interior electrical connectors replaced. Also, shortly after I replaced both the Tstat and ECO on the outside of the tank due to corroded connectors. Both the gas and the electric side have been working fine for the last two weeks. The only thing I might also mention is that I had the RV washed this afternoon, but I don't know if this could have anything to do with it.
We appreciate all the help.
2009 Fleetwood Discovery 40G
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AB6FC
Southern California
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waynemb wrote: The only thing I might also mention is that I had the RV washed this afternoon, but I don't know if this could have anything to do with it.
I bet that is EXACTLY what the issue is. Give it a day to dry out and I bet you will find it is all ok. You may want to check all the electrical connector (with the power off) and dry them as needed.
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sharker6
Full time 7/4/08
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Try drying it out with a hair dryer, it's happened to me before. Also, they are called water heaters not "hot" water heaters. They heat cold water.
Good luck, it's an easy fix.
2009 30' Fleetwood Wilderness, 2008 F-250 Super Duty FX4 stump puller
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Hamops
Oshawa, ON, CA
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If you want the WH to work on gas, then replace the solenoid valve. It'll cost you about a little over a hundred bucks but you'll have no more problems with the gas part of your WH.
Cheers
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alsimon96
Branson, MO
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I recently had some problems with my Atwood Water Heater. In the process of fixing the problem, I discovered the following:
1. If you turn on gas only, it will attempt to light 3 times and if it does not stay lit on the third try, the warning light will come on.
2. If you have gas and electric on and the gas fails to light, the warning light will not come on. So if you are trying to use gas, don't turn electric on because you will never get the warning light.
3. If it fails to stay lit after three tries, don't give up. Turn the gas off and back on. It will then try three more times. It takes a while for the propane to make it through the pipes to the heater. I have sometimes had to repeat the process four times before it would stay lit.
Good Luck.
2004 Silverado 2500HD Crew Cab, D/A, 4WD, Timbrens. Bilstein Shocks
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waynemb
Slidell, LA
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Update: I waited 24 hours and tried to light the water heater again. Low and behold it worked. I can only assume that, as it was said above, that it was some water from the RV wash.
Thanks for all the input.
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goff1256
Montrose Co
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Hamops wrote:If you want the WH to work on gas, then replace the solenoid valve. It'll cost you about a little over a hundred bucks but you'll have no more problems with the gas part of your WH. I have found it's a lot cheper to find the problem before I start buying parts.
Erick & Jackie Goff; Plus Sophie the Fu Fu Dog
It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt.
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Hamops
Oshawa, ON, CA
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goff1256 wrote:Hamops wrote:If you want the WH to work on gas, then replace the solenoid valve. It'll cost you about a little over a hundred bucks but you'll have no more problems with the gas part of your WH. I have found it's a lot cheper to find the problem before I start buying parts.
Quite true, but when it happened to me, I tried all the tricks that were suggested here and elsewhere and I still ended up replacing the gas soleniod valve.
WAYNEMB: Glad to hear that your heater worked again, but I'm willing to speculate that it will act up again, resolve itself, act up, resolve, act up and then nothing. What you are experiencing is exactly what happened to me.
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sharker6
Full time 7/4/08
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Purge the gas line of trapped air by turning on the furnace and light a burner on the stove will help from having trouble reigniting.
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Like2Travel
Hoover, Alabama USA
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I have been having the same problem with my heater. First of all, in the last 4 years, I have lived in my 5er for about 1 year. So, my Atwood water heater has had a lot of use.
Usually, when mine has been used recently, it will light OK. After a long winter of being stored, mine is a pain to get lit and stay lit.
First, as already mentioned, turn the gas off and back on several times. If this doesn't lite it, find the spark electrode. It should have one wire that runs to the circuit board. Pull that plug off and on several times to be sure you have a good clean contact. Try it again.
If you are still cannot get it to stay lit, check the gas flame. By now, I would assume that if your solenoid is working Ok, gas should be getting to the burner after several tries no matter if you started out with air in the line or not . Get your wife to turn the switch on while you watch the water heater to see what is happening during those 3 attempts it makes to light. If the spark is getting to the electrode and the solenoid is working, you should be getting a flame on each of those attempt it makes. If there is a flame each time, what does it look like? Is it blue, yellow, strong? If the flame looks OK, stays on for a couple of seconds, and then goes out, I think you can assume that the solenoid is OK and maybe the flame is adjusted OK.
At this point, this is exactly what mine was doing. At times in the past, I have pulled the spark wire off and put it back on several times and have gotten mine to stay lit. In more recent times, it has gotten more stubborn. From what I understand, that wire going to the circuit board does 2 things. First, it carries the spark to the ignitor. Secondly, it carries a very low voltage created by the heat on the electrode tip back to the circuit board that lets it know that the gas is burning. If the circuit board doesn't get that low voltage pretty quick, it cuts off the gas. From things that I have read in the past, I understand that the ignitor can get tiny hairline cracks in the ceramic material that surrounds the ignitor tip. These tiny cracks can cause the circuit board to not receive the voltage letting it know that the gas is ignited OK.
I have bought a new ignitor for mine and plan to install it when I take my 5er out of storage. I'm not 100% sure it will fix the problem, but I think it will be worth the try. It cost me $36 plus shipping. If that doesn't fix it, I can always take it to the shop later.
ALso, click on this Water Heater Trouble Shooting. If you go down to the section on intermitten ignition you will see what I am suggesting.
Good luck.
* This post was
edited 01/31/10 08:59pm by Like2Travel *
John & Evelyn
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