New 1995 Sunline Owner with Furnace and Electrical Issues

[RandyJ55]

I just bought my 1995 Sunline Solaris model T-2970 last week and have a few questions about the furnace and electrical system. I installed a new RV battery and it was working fine after I connected the battery and disconnected the generator. I went back up to the RV a few days later and discover that the battery was dead. The battery monitor/ charger does not read out for battery condition at all but only works for the water pump on and off. I'm not sure where to begin or what to look for. I also tried to start the furnace. I switched the thermostat to heat after filling an empty propane tank, and heard the thermostat click when I move the selector lever to a higher temperature. Does this model come standard with a shutoff valve for the furnace gas inlet? I'm not sure what the furnace lighting or ignition sequence involves. I am new at this and could use some advice so I can get the battery charger and furnace operational. All the fuses are good and I do have a generator plugged in for electric use.
Thank you ,
Randy

[MACK C-85]

OK, saw your other post first.

There will be a 120v breaker that feeds the convertor(onboard battery charger) make sure that is on/not tripped.

See my other post about "sneaky"12v loads that will kill the battery, if not on charge.

First thing on furnace is to determine if it has a pilot or is electronic ignition.

One other trick, turn your stove on until it lights/burns cleanly. Helps purge the air out the lines. If the furnace has electronic igition and there is air in the lines, it will not light right away and will trip out on "Fail to Light" safety.

[RandyJ55]

Hi Mack:
Thanks for the feedback. I did find that the furnace that I have is the Hydro-flame- Excalibur 8500-III series. I may have to re-open the access panel from the outside to see if there is a circuit breaker or secondary gas shutoff. I did see a circuit board on the left side of the furnace. I will also light the stove burners and oven to purge the air in the lines. I plan to drive to the rv to bring back the battery to charge it at home and I will then take a closer look at the furnace.
Thanks for your help.
Randy

[Gene]

In addition to what Mack said, there is no seperate gas shutoff for the furnace. The basic sequence when the furnace starts is first the 12 volt blower starts and you feel cold air from the heater outlets. When the blower is up to speed the "sail switch" closes and starts the ignition sequence which opens the gas valve and attempts to electronicly ignite the gas. If it fails to sense a flame the sequence stops and the furnace shuts off.

[JohnB]

If you do not have a disconnect switch on the battery, (a prior owner may have added one, Sunline did not as standard in 95 add them) you have to unhook the negative cable from the battery each time you are done camping. If not, as Mack said, there are things inside the camper that can and will drain a new battery. There is no way to shut off the LP gas detector inside short of pulling the fuse. There are other things that can be left on, the radio clock, the power roof antenna if you have one. There may be others, those 3 are the most general offenders.

As Gene said, there is no gas shutoff at the furnace as it came from Sunline. If you do not hear the fan running when you turn up the T stat, that is problem 1. First is to see if 12 volt power is even going to the furnace. A fuse blown in the power converter panel or the sometimes Atwood has a breaker behind the cover outside. The newer models do, I do not know about the 95 units. If you have power and still no fan, then this is going to get deeper into trouble shooting. Are you electrically friendly and have a volt/ohm meter and know how to use it?

Hope this helps

John