Furnace thermostat June 25, 2020, 09:37:58 pm Hello, greetings and salutations, y’allWe just bought a 2006 24’ TK - took us a trip from New Mexico to Santa Cruz to find her. This will be our first class c having owned 5 Airstreams and 3 Foretravels prior and we wanted to stick with the best.That all said, finding the thermostat for the furnace has me stumped. The coach has the two registers and the actual furnace behind the screened door return. There is a thermostat for the AC and heat pump (but no function/mode for furnace) on the wall in the rear. The owners manual said it “could” be in a cabinet... we’ve looked through them all and have found nothing. The previous owner said they never had need for the furnace, so he didn’t know. Any ideas, clues or advice? TIA, Bill.
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #1 – June 25, 2020, 11:59:48 pm Are you sure the thermostat doesn’t control the heat as well?If you have a heat pump A/C unit, it’s probably not stock. Originally the A/C and built in heat strips would have been controlled by the knobs on the ceiling, the furnace would have been controlled by the thermostat on the wall. Many have replaced the original mercury bubble with a slider style thermostat with a more modern looking electric version. In our case, A/C mode does nothing (original a/c unit controlled by ceiling knobs) and the heat mode calls the furnace depending on the set temperature. You might be able to trace the wires from the furnace to wherever they go by removing some drawers and searching. I know that’s not a complete answer, but it might give some clues. Rich‘03 MB in NC 1 Likes
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #2 – June 26, 2020, 12:24:39 am Congratulations! We love our nimble little 2003 TK. Looks like they got fancy in later years. Our unit has the plain old furnace thermostat located on the closet wall next to the couch and the AC is controlled on the unit itself at the ceiling.Steve 1 Likes
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #3 – June 26, 2020, 02:55:59 am Quote from: Jaxon - June 25, 2020, 09:37:58 pmThat all said, finding the thermostat for the furnace has me stumped. The coach has the two registers and the actual furnace behind the screened door return. There is a thermostat for the AC and heat pump (but no function/mode for furnace) on the wall in the rear. Not a heat pump, it controls air and furnace.Steve
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #4 – June 26, 2020, 02:54:51 pm Ah, I’m surprised Steve didn’t suss this out! My ‘06 TK (congrats on your purchase) for some time now has had a recalcitrant multifunction thermostat. In very cold and damp weather, it sometimes won’t show a display for any function: furnace, AC, heat strip, or fan. In drier or warmer weather, everything shows up and I can cycle through and use any of the functions. This seems to be an issue, as I found other reports of this on the internet. I even bought a replacement (identical) thermostat and it exhibits the same behavior. One poster opined that it was a bad connection to the circuit board, which he suggested was located under the rooftop AC shroud. I haven’t explored that yet. It’s never a problem in hot weather, so the AC is fine. My old bones are less inclined to camp in cold, damp weather, so I haven’t pursued it further. Hope this helps. — Jon 1 Likes
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #5 – June 26, 2020, 08:06:04 pm In our ''06 RB, the thermostat controls both heat and a/c. The "mode" button will cycle through the various functions until you get to the one you want. Hope this helps.Juli WMinden, NV
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #6 – June 27, 2020, 12:24:13 am Quote from: Steve - June 26, 2020, 02:55:59 amNot a heat pump, it controls air and furnace.Steve. Yep, it is a heat pump. When selected at the wall thermostat, the heat pump comes on at the ceiling AC unit and proceeds to warm things up, the furnace does not come on. Unfortunately, there is no “furnace” mode on the thermostat - just AC, fan and heat pump.I’m beginning to think perhaps Rich is right - if the unit was repaired or replaced, they changed out the thermostat and got a 3-function instead of a 4-function one...Thanks for y’all’s input. We sure do like this coach. Perfect size and nimble as can be! ~ Bill.
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #7 – June 27, 2020, 03:48:26 am Quote from: Jaxon - June 27, 2020, 12:24:13 amYep, it is a heat pump. When selected at the wall thermostat, the heat pump comes on at the ceiling AC unit and proceeds to warm things up, the furnace does not come on. Unfortunately, there is no “furnace” mode on the thermostat - just AC, fan and heat pump.There is no heat pump, the roof A/C has a 5000-BTU heating coil that is used to provide heat when 120-AC power is available.The furnace is also controlled by the same wall thermostat. Instructions should be included in the LD owners manual.Larry
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #8 – June 27, 2020, 10:02:38 am Quote from: Jaxon - June 27, 2020, 12:24:13 amYep, it is a heat pump. When selected at the wall thermostat, the heat pump comes on at the ceiling AC unit and proceeds to warm things up, the furnace does not come on. Unfortunately, there is no “furnace” mode on the thermostat - just AC, fan and heat pump.Easy to tell if it is a heat pump or not - if you select the heat function, and the compressor does NOT engage, it is a heating strip. It is possible the OP replaced the original unit with a heat pump, and had it reconfigured to not use the furnace. This is a mistake, if you ever plan to dry camp, so perhaps they always used hookups. If the furnace is still viable, it would be easy to hook up a thermostat to run it.Steve 1 Likes
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #9 – June 27, 2020, 02:20:29 pm Quote from: Steve - June 27, 2020, 10:02:38 amEasg It is possible the OP replaced the original unit with a heat pump, and had it reconfigured to not use the furnace. This is a mistake, if you ever plan to dry camp, so perhaps they always used hookups. If the furnace is still viable, it would be easy to hook up a thermostat to run it.SteveHmmm. Wanna hook one up in my rig, Steve? Would be easier than this fruitless search for the bad connection! 😉 —Jon
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #10 – June 27, 2020, 02:51:51 pm Should be pretty straightforward, Jon, but will require tracing the wires from the furnace. Most likely there will just be a one pair of small-gauge wires, leading up from the furnace to somewhere - possibly to the roof air, but more conveniently to your thermostat.If they go to the thermostat, it would be easy to put a small battery-powered digital thermostat next to your current one, and connect the wires there, instead. If they head toward the roof, then the option is either to cut the wires and splice in new ones to the new thermostat, or, pull the furnace to access where the wires connect to it, then run new wires to the new thermostat.If you can check that out ahead, it will speed up our installation. OR, if you can bring the rig by, we can do it curbside?This is the one I used in ours, and am happy with it:Hunter 42999 Just Right Digital Thermostat - Nonprogrammable Household...Steve 1 Likes As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #11 – June 27, 2020, 03:03:28 pm There is a set of DIP switches on some units. The dometic penguin I has these. The "furnace" dip switch must be on in order for the CCC thermostat to recognize the system has a furnace in it. The DIP switches are located on the control board inside the rooftop AC.
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #12 – June 27, 2020, 04:15:56 pm Quote from: Steve - June 27, 2020, 02:51:51 pmShould be pretty straightforward, Jon, but will require tracing the wires from the furnace. Most likely there will just be a one pair of small-gauge wires, leading up from the furnace to somewhere - possibly to the roof air, but more conveniently to your thermostat.OR, if you can bring the rig by, we can do it curbside?I believe there are just two wires, the same as the earlier models that had separate controls for the heater and air conditioner.I told Jon a long time ago that the wall control should be able to be bypassed, at least temporarily. If he brings his rig by, I'll swing by, I want to better understand how the controls work.Interesting posting by gmfi, I had not seen the dip switches before, something that needs researching or an owners manual that describes their functions. Wonder if the switches are set right?Larry
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #13 – June 27, 2020, 04:17:13 pm Quote from: gmfl - June 27, 2020, 03:03:28 pmThere is a set of DIP switches on some units. The dometic penguin I has these. The "furnace" dip switch must be on in order for the CCC thermostat to recognize the system has a furnace in it. The DIP switches are located on the control board inside the rooftop AC.Do you have a link to something that describes the dip switches, what they do and how they should be set?Larry
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #14 – June 27, 2020, 09:45:18 pm Should be able to find info on dip switches in the owners manual.Or you can google "Dometic air conditioner dip switch settings" 1 Likes
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #15 – June 27, 2020, 10:32:03 pm Quote from: gmfl - June 27, 2020, 09:45:18 pmShould be able to find info on dip switches in the owners manual.Or you can google "Dometic air conditioner dip switch settings"Thanks, so that is where the remote control board is located. I would have thought it would be accessed from inside, better protected from the elements.I don't think Steve or I knew about the dip switches, another thing to investigate.Jon has had issues with the A/C and furnace since the rig was new. I think his A/C was replaced not too long after delivery, if the dip switches were not set correctly in the replacement, this could cause problems.I'm not so sure that the integrated heating and A/C control was a big improvement. If replacing the A/C, I would be tempted to buy one with the conventional controls, located in the A/C's interior cover. An inexpensive thermostat would replace the electronic wall control. A very simple conversion.Larry 1 Likes
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #16 – June 28, 2020, 08:15:13 am I like Larry's thought a lot on this one. Jon ( different Jon )
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #17 – June 28, 2020, 05:12:26 pm Thanks, Larry, Steve, and “gmfl.” I’ve never seen a diagram or confirmed the location of the dip switches. I had read of them before, but in the context of the Duotherm thermostat not showing a single particular function (heat strip, or AC, or furnace). In those cases, it was a matter of the dip switch for that function having been jostled out of position. Resetting it would cure it. I don’t think that’s my problem, which is the display going entirely blank for all functions in wet, cold weather. Since it works fine for the AC in better weather, I think Steve and Larry’s solution of a separate thermostat for the furnace is the easiest. — Jon
Re: Furnace thermostat Reply #18 – June 29, 2020, 08:34:31 am Quote from: Steve - June 27, 2020, 10:02:38 amEasy to tell if it is a heat pump or not - if you select the heat function, and the compressor does NOT engage, it is a heating strip. It is possible the OP replaced the original unit with a heat pump, and had it reconfigured to not use the furnace. This is a mistake, if you ever plan to dry camp, so perhaps they always used hookups. If the furnace is still viable, it would be easy to hook up a thermostat to run it. SteveYep, I’m thinking that’s exactly what the OP did as the compressor does engage.Man, this is some good info/suggestions, y’all, thanks! Looks like I’ve got some more things to start working on once we get back home.~ Bill.
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