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Topic: Problem1-Water Heater (Read 3 times) previous topic - next topic
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Problem1-Water Heater
Yahoo Message Number: 49094
The water heater on our 2004 30'TB occasionally does not light and it seems to be tied to when it rains.  It's happened about 6 times now -- it rains and then when we turn on the switch the red "check" light comes on and nothing happens -- no sound of the electronic igniter even trying to light.  Hours later, after things dry up, the water heater will work ok again.  Since we're still under warranty, we're going to call it in, but thought I'd see if anyone else has experienced this problem.

Thanks,

Chris W.
Re: Problem1-Water Heater
Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 49096
Quote
The water heater on our 2004 30'TB occasionally does not light and it seems to be tied to when it rains.  It's happened about 6 times now -- it rains and then when we turn on the switch the red "check" light comes on and nothing happens -- no sound of the electronic igniter even trying to light.  Hours later, after things dry up, the water heater will work ok again.
Sounds interesting.
 Next times it rains, you might go out and open the water heater door and see if anything is obviously wet.  What comes to mind is a freak water path that is somehow dousing the igniter when it rains (a leak or the wind?).  If this is the case the tech servicing it will probably not find anything and you, and he, will be disappointed by the results of the service call.  If it is something simple, you can fix it and avoid the service hassle.  If it is something larger and you can spot it, you will be able to describe what is going on to the tech and get it fixed on the first try.

If that doesn't turn up anything, on a dry day, a spritz or two of water from a windex type of sprayer might also be an interesting experment.  What do you have to get damp to make it quit?

Linley
Re: Problem1-Water Heater
Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 49134
Quote
The water heater on our 2004 30'TB occasionally does not light and it seems to be tied to when it rains.
 Next times it rains, you might go out and open the water heater door and see if anything is obviously wet.  What comes to mind is a freak water path that is somehow dousing the igniter when it rains (a leak or the wind?)
Linley, Thanks again for your helpful suggestions.  We've looked inside when the rain was coming down and yes, it gets very wet in there and appears to be seeping in around the upper edges of the door rather than blowing in through the vents.  The door is very hard to close and does not make a very good seal around the top edge, so we thought that might be letting more water come in than is normal.
Our old 2000MB never had a problem with this and the door on its water heater closed easily and sealed tightly.  We'll check next time it rains for signs of a water path and maybe try putting some kind of "gutter" above the door to divert the water and see if that helps.

You're right about getting a technician out -- most likely we couldn't recreate the problem and it sounds like it might be a Lazy Daze problem more than an Atwood problem if it's being caused from excessive water getting into the box.
 I've written to Steve at LD about it and he said it might be a loose connection or a bad igniter, but said that the water heater was built to withstand moisture in the area since the box must be vented.

Chris W.
 
Re: Problem1-Water Heater
Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 49287
Chris,
 We had this problem our first year in our 2002 LD.  I pulled all the wires that had slip-on contacts, cleaned them well, and put them back.  It's been working fine for two years now, no matter how wet and windy the weather is.  Good luck.

Ted H.
'02 FL NE12
 From: "Chris W." williech2@...> wrote:

Quote
The water heater on our 2004 30'TB occasionally does not light and
it seems to be tied to when it rains.

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