About Froze to Death Last Night...Thoughts?

[Mosnowman]

Well not real happy with my brand new 2018 3721RL furnace in 30 degree weather last night. The furnace would kick on and blow cold air only. I checked stove to see if propane was out...it worked fine. Here were the symptoms and what I did with my very limitied knowledge.

Turned on furnace first and set thermostat to 75...kicked on ...cold air only. I could hear a strange noise underneath/outside after a few minutes..I’m guessing igniter was trying to fire?

Turned up thermostat to maximum..cold air only..strange noise continued every few minutes.

We used the furnace a week prior and it worked.

I checked the inside 15 amp fuse and it was fine. Not sure what to do at this point? I purchased it at Camping World in Columbia, Mo. It currently sits on my lake property 2 hours away. I really don’t trust Camping World service anymore so I am wondering about warranty work. There is a local new dealer a few miles from my lake place. Small town...totally trustworthy guy. I have several questions..

What do it yourself steps should I take next?

Do all Keystone Dealers do warranty work even if you didn’t buy the RV from them? This guy doesn’t carry Montana line, but I assume the furnaces are all the same?

Thanks for any help.

[AZ Traveler]

Would call the close dealer and ask if they are willing to look at it - all furnaces are similar. Was your heat pump not available?

Do a search here for "furnace removal" - Carl posted a PDF to troubleshoot furnace problems.

[DadsHemi]

Did you have it in Heat Pump mode or Furnace mode.

[Mosnowman]

I tried furnace mode first due to the fiver sitting in 30 degree weather for a week with no heat on, just to burn the cold off when I arrived..no luck.

I did try heat pump as well...it really only got up to a lukewarm temperature.

I ended up pulling out my trustworthy pelonis, closed the bedroom door and was able to stay relatively warm that way. Heat Pump ran all night, and I think towards the morning it seemed to have warmed up a bit..but not to a overly comfortable level.

By the way I’m warm blooded so I am comfortable at lower temps than most..to put it into context.

[DQDick]

First I would make sure propane is getting to the furnace. Check the oriface and make sure you don't have a spiderweb or some other bug blocking the flow particularly since it's been outside by a lake. If not that then it could be the sail switch.

[rohrmann]

Prior to your problem, you said the furnace worked. Did you get a tank of propane filled before the furnace stopped working? When you opened the valve, did you do so very slowly? If not, you may have set the excess flow valve in the pigtail, and if you did, you will just get enough gas to make a burner on the range work, but not enough for the furnace. Turn your gas cylinder valves off, remove the pigtails from the cylinders, and then reinstall them. SLOWLY open each of the valves and see if your furnace now works.

[richfaa]

Do what rohrmann suggest.

[JABURKHOLDER]

Ok, no one is stepping up. Don't camp when it is cold outside.

Don't hate me.

[CarWin]

Originally Posted by JABURKHOLDER

Ok, no one is stepping up. Don't camp when it is cold outside.

Don't hate me.

Just spent the last 3 weekends camping in this beautiful Ohio weather. Rarely(but has happened) is it too cold to camp between 3/15 - 10/31 for us.

[Dam Worker]

The furnace system is fairly simple and with a few quick check you can usually diagnose the problem. It is easy to google your heater and check some of the common issues or your owners manual should help with troubleshooting. I could not see if you were boondocking or plugged in. I will have to assume your unit does not have the built in fireplace which is just a fifteen amp electric heater but mine works great for moderate temperatures. I usually try to have one more spare portable heater just for emergencies. I don't like troubleshooting things in the middle of the night.
Good luck as I don't like being cold, usually diagnosing a bad board is the hardest as it works intermitantly.

Tom Marty

[Dave W]

First of all, it's not Keystone/Montana's fault that you are having a problem. Appliances are manufactured by a 3rd party and come to an RV builder in a cardboard box to be installed by that RV builder. Sometimes these things happen, and often when new, then they work well until they age and start giving trouble.

OK, with that said, my history with furnaces that have a problem is slim, even after 45 years of owning some sort of towable RV. But those experiences are limited to gas flow, and a defective sail switch. The gas flow problem was one that happened last fall. It was the low end curb side 30psig primary fuel pressure regulator which has since been replaced along with the tank pigtail. Our last 5er had a failed sail switch. A replacement cured that problem, but IIRC, kind of complicated to dig it out.

Here's decent trouble shooting guide: http://www.rverscorner.com/furnace1.html#lowbattery

[TLightning]

Heat pump won't work much below 40, and not at all at 30.

[Skw774]

Our brand new 340bh had a pinched wire. Furnace worked then quit. Pull the outside cover and check before driving 2 hours.

[Loneoak]

We winter in Florida and it can get below freezing some nights. We do not run the furnace at night, it is annoying (on and off) and uses a lot of propane. Instead we stay warm in our bed, and when I get up, I turn on the furnace to heat the place up.

One morning, it would not come on. It tried, but it would not ignite. It turned out that the igniter had gotten wet when we had some sideways rain a day before. After it dried up, it worked fine. I used the fireplace and heat pump in the meantime.

[richfaa]

Low propane will let the stove work but not the curnace

[masterdrago]

Originally Posted by Loneoak

One morning, it would not come on. It tried, but it would not ignite. It turned out that the igniter had gotten wet when we had some sideways rain a day before. After it dried up, it worked fine. I used the fireplace and heat pump in the meantime.

That happens to our furnace whenever we pull the 5r in a driving rain. Gets small amount of water in the intake/combustion chamber. Until the igniter area dries out it will time out after a couple of attempts to light. Once I took the burner assembly loose and drained ~3 ounces of water out. The water can sit in the pan under the combustion blower and then get pulled up when furnace comes on. It only happens to us when running down the road in the rain. We added the bug screen when we first got the unit so that might be what causes the turbulence. Have not solved the issue yet.

[Mosnowman]

FOLLOW UP:

So I returned to my lake place today in the daylight and warmer weather to try some of the ideas posted here. Here is what was happening upon closer inspection.

I turned the furnace on and went outside to listen at the vent. When it tried to ignite it sounded like a “poof” and I then smelled propane. No ignition occurred.

I looked at the propane level indicators. Both red.

I unplugged both tanks. One was completely full and the other seemed empty. I took it and had it filled. The person filling it said it was a third full, not empty.

Got back to the fiver and did what rohrmann suggested above. Reattached pigtails to both tanks. Left driver side tank off and very very very slowly turned on passenger side tank. Both propane indicators showed green. Turned on furnace and hallelujah...SUCCESS!!!

Only question remaining do you guys leave both tanks on, or just one?

THANKS so much for all the suggestions! Newbies appreciate you folks!

[AZ Traveler]

Mo,

Thanks for the feedback. Too many folks new to the forum do not get back when they sort out their problem missing an opportunity for all to learn.

I only have 1 tank at a time turned on so I don't inadvertently run totally out of gas.

[Dave W]

One or both with auto changeover- your choice. I only have one on at a time as I too don't care to get left with both empty.

The downfall which I consider a minor nuisance is that with the one tank open, it always seems to run out at O Dark Thirty on a cold and rainy night.

[DadsHemi]

I keep both open and I have a 3rd take for reserve, I really don’t use much gas. It when I do I check it about every 3 or 4 days.