Suburban 30k BTU not igniting April 22, 2018, 09:23:30 pm Anyone have a How-to for trouble-shooting a Suburban furnace? Two nights ago it was working fine then the following night the furnace was turned on, blower engaged, and it sounded as though the igniter "clicked" but no ignition or heat. LP gas tank is just below 1/2, other gas appliances (WH and stove) are working as they should. Suburban manual that came with the coach was pretty clear on having a trained technician service the furnace. Has anyone gained access to theirs and worked on it?
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #1 – April 22, 2018, 11:06:54 pm "... blower engaged, and it sounded as though the igniter "clicked"..."No expertise here but thinking back it seems that I recall something about a 'Sail' switch. It lies in the path of the blower and detects air flow. If the switch is faulty the furnace thinks there is no air flow and hence you'll have no ignition. In this case, YouTube can be your friend!
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #2 – April 22, 2018, 11:28:55 pm Quote from: Chiefdoc - April 22, 2018, 09:23:30 pmAnyone have a How-to for trouble-shooting a Suburban furnace? Two nights ago it was working fine then the following night the furnace was turned on, blower engaged, and it sounded as though the igniter "clicked" but no ignition or heat. LP gas tank is just below 1/2, other gas appliances (WH and stove) are working as they should. Suburban manual that came with the coach was pretty clear on having a trained technician service the furnace. Has anyone gained access to theirs and worked on it?Furnace Repair ReportCheck this thread out.Chris
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #3 – April 23, 2018, 09:14:15 am Quote from: Chiefdoc - April 22, 2018, 09:23:30 pmAnyone have a How-to for trouble-shooting a Suburban furnace? Two nights ago it was working fine then the following night the furnace was turned on, blower engaged, and it sounded as though the igniter "clicked" but no ignition or heat. LP gas tank is just below 1/2, other gas appliances (WH and stove) are working as they should. Suburban manual that came with the coach was pretty clear on having a trained technician service the furnace. Has anyone gained access to theirs and worked on it?I believe I'm correct here, but if you are hearing the ignitor "clicK", then the circuit board believes everything up to that point is OK. IE, the fan (blower) comes on, and the sail switch "makes". Ignition can occur only if those conditions are met. (That also implies you have sufficient 12 volts at the furnace; the sail switch generally won't make (meaning close) if the batteries can't supply enough voltage and current to run the blower fast enough.)My personal experience here was in our 2009 MB. What I was able to document was low voltage at the circuit board. NOTE: this is different from not having 12 volts going to the furnace. That was part of the confusion. Bottom line, the thermostat, which was mechanical needed to have the contacts slightly filed to clean them and provide better contact. That was the source of a sufficient voltage drop to prevent ignition. This is a simple, 10 minute DIY fix and can prevent hours of frustration (or a service call). If that doesn't fix it, the next thing I would look at would be gas flow; is the propane on? Or it could be the gas valve. Silly as it may sound, I would always start with the thermostat. Good luck.Ken 1 Likes
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #4 – April 23, 2018, 09:15:02 pm Update: Checked the thermostat, removed the exterior cover, cleaned around the motor and blower case, checked the sail switch (white switch, right of label near center of pic), flipped the on/off switch (lower left of motor) near the controller board and tried it again. Furnace fired off and heated up. Not sure what worked, but will keep an eye on it. 1 Likes
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #5 – April 23, 2018, 09:30:06 pm "Furnace fired off and heated up."Well, at least you gained some experience... that's a good thing!Were you able to check the squirrel cage for dirt buildup?
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #6 – April 24, 2018, 04:53:46 pm Glad to hear you are back in business. Here is a thermostat servicing tip. Rather than using a file, take a regular piece of paper and cut or tear a strip about an inch wide and 11 inches long. Open the thermostat cover and slide the switch all the way to the off position. You will see the thermostat contacts open. Put the strip of paper in the contact opening, then slide the switch all the way on. Slowly pull the strip of paper through the contacts. It will remove any dust, dirt, grease, oil, and minor corrosion. That's it - contacts clean, no tools needed, no worries about making a rough surface from sandpaper, a file or emery cloth, and you can almost always find some paper...Ken F in CA
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #7 – April 24, 2018, 06:35:15 pm "...no worries about making a rough surface from sandpaper, a file or emery cloth,..."Or better yet than plain paper would be a dollar bill (20s work too ). There's something about that paper that is just a tiny bit more abrasive than ordinary paper. I've burnished hundreds of relays that way! 2 Likes
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #8 – April 24, 2018, 08:00:21 pm "There's something about that paper that is just a tiny bit more abrasive than ordinary paper."----Probably due to the cocaine residue!
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #9 – April 24, 2018, 08:50:27 pm Quote from: JCT - April 24, 2018, 08:00:21 pm"There's something about that paper that is just a tiny bit more abrasive than ordinary paper."----Probably due to the cocaine residue! Urban legend, which Snopes.com classifies as 'true' Cocained Currency
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #10 – April 24, 2018, 09:24:59 pm "Probably due to the cocaine residue!"Thanks for the *happy* thoughts, Joan! But not in my wallet! 1 Likes
Re: Suburban 30k BTU not igniting Reply #11 – April 25, 2018, 10:41:48 am It was a common practice when I worked with comm equipment contacts with a dollar bill.
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