Water heater won't light - Montana Owners Club

pchaas · 03-14-2007, 10:37 AM

Do Suburban HWHeaters have a thermocoupler? My HWHeater will not light regardless of wether the wind is blowing or not. It seems to have gotten worse very slowly. If they do not have a thermocoupler does anyone have any ideas as to what could be the problem?

OntMont · 03-14-2007, 12:32 PM

Most Montanas have Direct Ignition (DI) water heaters. I don't think these have a thermocouple.

Just to eliminate the obvious, you did remember to switch on the heater at the little wall switch with the pump switch, didn't you? There should be a tiny LED between the two switches, this comes on when the heater is trying to light, or in the event of a fault. Is that tiny LED coming on? does it stay on?
(I am not really familiar with the 2000 model year, it could be different).

pchaas · 03-14-2007, 02:40 PM

Thanks John but yes I have the same type switch to let me know when it's working. I also heve the electronic ignighter that fires when the gas starts it usually lights the burner. Sometimes it runs for a minute or two then shuts off. If it had a thermocoupler it should heat up and open the gas jet and run, but that is not happening.

ols1932 · 03-14-2007, 05:09 PM

Paul, I've seen water heaters where just a little dust or cobweb got into the tube by the orifice. Using either an air compressor or a can of pressurized air (like we use to blow out the crud around our computer keyboard) and blow in the tube toward the orifice. This will clear out any debris that may be preventing the propane from coming through. Other than that, it could be the circuit card which cost us $140 dollars to have replaced ($50 deductible on extended warranty). But I would check the possibility of debris in the orifice first.

I assume your rig has been in storage for the winter? If so, then the debris in the orifice is probably prevalent.

Orv

smc · 03-15-2007, 01:25 AM

Sounds like the gas valve. Check the electrical connections to it. We had to replace the valve, our pressure valve as well. The pressure valve was leaking and corroded the wiring on the gas valve as it drips right on to it. We bent the little deflector so it doesn't hit it now. Not a very good design.

kmh3212 · 03-15-2007, 02:13 PM

There are a couple of things to check. First see if you are getting a spark at the spark gap. If not check the ground wire screws from the square igniter box that the electrical wires come from and ground the water heater frame. This grounds the water heater frame to the box. They are known to get loose. Second check the screws that ground the metal where the spark jumps to. If still no spark then probably the box. Third if you are getting spark then it could be the gas orifice, the little brass end where the gas goes into the burner. Try and blow it out if plugged. It is a very tiny hole the gas comes out of. If you don't feel proficient about any of this take it to the dealer! The water heater has a separate 2 year warranty from the trailer.

richfaa · 03-16-2007, 01:13 PM

Mine stopped working today.It workerd yesterday, nothing today...It never ends.

campbud · 03-16-2007, 01:55 PM

Rich, when it rains it pours for you. Sure hope you it was a simple fix.

richfaa · 03-19-2007, 07:37 AM

Had a nice talk with the Tech folks at suburban re our hot water heater not working on gas.. The conclusion is that the gas valve is inoperative..It lasted less that 12 weeks of continual use. It is one our ever growing list of failures.

smc · 03-21-2007, 02:03 AM

The rv tech guy here said that if water from the relief valve drips on the gas valve electrical connections, it eventually corrodes them, and that is why the gas valve quits. When we removed our relief valve it was full of soft white stuff, which we presume was why it was leaking so much. When we replaced it, no more leaking. The water down here (Yuma Az) is full of salts etc. and i would imagine to blame. We are going to keep an eye on the relief valve and clean it more often. A lot of people in the park here have had to replace their gas valves and relief valves, so it is probably more of a problem with the desert water than Montanas. We also bent the little deflector under the relief valve so water no longer drips on the electrical connection or the relief valve.

Chuck and Carol · 03-21-2007, 02:15 AM

Rich has me concerned. We have a 2007 still at the dealers and haven't gotten it home yet. Crappy weather here in NY. I hope we don't have a bunch of problems. Chuck would not be a happy camper since we traded his motorhome for this new Montana.
Hopefully the weather will clear up and we can bring it home and check some of these things out.
I'm going back and do some research for phone numbers just in case

Carol

richfaa · 03-21-2007, 02:35 AM

Our problems are with this particular 3400 Montana and they ae occuring under the conditions that we use our camper. We have been on the road since Dec 12th 06 and have pulled @ 5K miles on the interstates of the USA.I also beleive that many if not all of the 12V oriented problems are a direct result of the melt down we had in Dec 0f 06 weakening 12 volt components and causing them to fail in time.We feel it is our responsibility to report our experiences under the conditions they occured and the actions taken to address them. These are real issues, not something that 'might happen"Our experience with this Montana under our conditions of use have nothing at all to do with how another Montana may or may not perform under the same conditions. I say again..We would have expected no better no worse from any other brand in this price range. I would suggest that folks get out on the internet and look into other forums like RV net and other brand forums.You will note that all brands have similar problems..That's life in the RV world.

rickety · 03-21-2007, 09:33 AM

Well said Rich!!! Life is a crap shoot, sometimes you win sometimes you lose. Same with RV's. In your case I think I concurr with your findings, that most of your problems have been induced by your "meltdown", and not really factored by your use. The closet bar thing is a legitimate concern, in that someone did not I am sure, follow procedures. The 1/2 time oven problems are because of manufacturing defects not user misuse, therefore the providing company becomes liable for damges and from what you have told us in the past they have all, (manufacturers), stepped up to the plate and taken care of the problem, or are going to when you are finshed with your trip.
These are acceptable risk factors in ownership of an RV. I have no qualms about accepting our new 3400 when it get here. We are going with friends to do the PDI on theirs on Saturday, hopefully ours will be in in about 2 weeks.

on edit..We all get frustrted with problems, and I think yhour reporting of your particular problems have been very hellpful, concise adn to the point, without ranting or raving...a little frustration is OK buddy

Fire5er · 03-21-2007, 04:03 PM

smc,

You indicated that your relief valve was full of soft white stuff, which was why it was leaking so much, and that the water in Yuma was full of salts etc. Do you have a filtration system? And if you don't, do you think filtering the incoming water would help? I have been pondering the need to filter or not.

bonanza · 04-18-2007, 09:51 AM

The white stuff is minerals that accumulate from hot water. If you will look at the bottom under the burner, you will see a large nut. This is the drain plug. Attached on the other side of that nut is a round cylinder of magnesium metal. That is called an "Anode". It is designed to rust instead of your hot water tank rusting. All Suburban heaters have them. Atwood heaters do not. They recommend changing the anode each year or when 75% of the mag- has worn away. Simply use a 1 1/16 inch socket and unscrew the drain plug. Any RV store sells the anode's for about $10.00. While the plug is out, flush your tank out and it will remove that accumulation of white minerals. Be sure everything is off and no pressure is on tank before removing the plug. When replacing the new plug with new anode, if you have a gauge wrench, tighten it 8 to 10 foot lbs. Also be sure and wrap threads with teflon tape. I just cleaned mine and got about 2 cups of white stuff out after a year of use. I bought a long handle bottle brush and I can pull most of the white stuff out before I flush it. Also my anode was about halfway ate up. Don't laugh at my spelling, girlfriend not here to correct me.

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by smc

The rv tech guy here said that if water from the relief valve drips on the gas valve electrical connections, it eventually corrodes them, and that is why the gas valve quits. When we removed our relief valve it was full of soft white stuff, which we presume was why it was leaking so much. When we replaced it, no more leaking. The water down here (Yuma Az) is full of salts etc. and i would imagine to blame. We are going to keep an eye on the relief valve and clean it more often. A lot of people in the park here have had to replace their gas valves and relief valves, so it is probably more of a problem with the desert water than Montanas. We also bent the little deflector under the relief valve so water no longer drips on the electrical connection or the relief valve.

smc · 04-18-2007, 11:58 PM

We use a filter on our fresh water hose. I think it does help, but the water here is bad. Everyone buys water to drink, etc. Tap water is only used for washing etc. This applies to residential houses here as well. The soft white stuff we found in the relief valve is from the water down here. In other places, when we drain and clean the tank, it is hard white "rocks". We don't realize how lucky we are to open a tap and be able to drink the water until you can't!

richfaa · 04-19-2007, 02:27 AM

Just had our hot water tank repaired at the service center..The ignitor would snap but the heater would not ignite..The problem was the Regulator..new regulator...good as new...

Okie Guy · 04-20-2007, 05:10 PM

I have had to push in the reset buttons on my water heater two times after I dewinterized the unit. The reset switch is two black rubber buttons on the outside of the unit under the cover. My resets are next to the pressure release valve.
Worth a try.
Phil

happy campers · 04-25-2007, 02:47 AM

While flipping the switch for the water heater this past weekend, I got a good look at the relief valve, and was thinking: why didn't they put a conductor of some kind to direct the overflow towards the bottom? So I'm thinking that it would be pretty easy to plumb in a short piece of small copper tubing similiar to the way they're installed on a home water heater. Maybe even pass it through the cover to get it out of the compartment. With no temperature adjustment on these heaters, it seems like they run too hot, and sometimes trip the overflow. Any cons to this idea?

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