Hot Water Heater Suddenly Not Working!

[Aariel]

[FONT=&quot]Hi, all. I have a 1997 Sunline Solaris model T-2653. Been using it all summer. Today, the hot water heater is not heating the water. Normally, when I turn the button on for hot water, it lights up red, then goes off. It stays on red when something is wrong. Today, it stayed on red.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I believe there is no propane problem and maybe no electrical problem. Maybe the pilot lighter burned out? It does not appear to be a manual: no dial for “pilot” in the back. How do I get another one for an old Solaris? [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The stove burners work OK. When I turned the hot water button to "On" inside the camper and stuck a flame inside the pilot pipe outside in the back, the gas whooshed out. (OK, dumb!) Fortunately nothing got hurt! When I turned the hot water button inside the camper "off" and again applied the flame to the pilot pipe, nothing happened. So the button is working OK. Also when I turn the button on, I do hear clicking.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The label for the hot water heater says it's a Dometic or Atwood, not exactly sure if that's the same thing.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] Do you have any suggestions for things I could do to try to identify & fix the problem? There is no dial for a manual pilot lighter, so I think the pilot is electric ignition…. How / where can I get a new part?


Thank you so much for help.[/FONT]
@font-face {font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-font-charset:78; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-536870145 1791491579 18 0 131231 0;}@font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-536870145 1107305727 0 0 415 0;}@font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-536870145 1073743103 0 0 415 0;}p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}.MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"ＭＳ 明朝"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}div.WordSection1 {page:WordSection1;}

 

[JohnGB]

Hi Aareil,

Your water heater is an Atwood brand that was later bought out by Dometic. The model heater you have does have electronic ignition when it is running on LP gas. There is no pilot light to light.

Now to your problem. I think you figured out, do not try to light the gas burner by hand. That is not good to do.

Next up, we need you do do a few simple tests and report back.

The water heater has certain sounds it make, or is supposed to make, when it runs on gas mode. By listening to those sounds in the right sequence helps back into what area may be wrong. Before you start looking for parts, we/you have to sort out what the problem is.

You are going to need a helper on this to be inside while the other is outside looking and listening to the heater when the LP gas switch is turned to ON inside.

1. You can have the LP gas turned on or not for this test. Let the cover door open and down like you have in your pic. Make sure the 12 volt power is on, either by the battery or the camper is plugged in and the power converter is on.

2. Have a helper inside that you can talk to. You or the helper is outside looking at the heater with the door down, stand back a few feet. You do not have to be up close for this test.

3. Have the heater turned on inside. Within a second or so, you should here the start of Click, Click Click of the electric igniter. It will/should keep clicking at the same click rate for a few seconds. Also listen for a slight or loud "clunk" The clunk if the gas valve opening. You should hear both the clicks and the clunk start very close to the same time. You will only hear the gas valve clunk once per opening and closing.

4. If the gas is on and the burner lights off, great. If the burner does not light, after a preset time, the clicking of the igniter will stop clicking and the gas valve will close, a second faint clunk. Then a wait timer starts, to allow any unburned gas to escape. After a minute or two or three, the trail for ignition sequence will start all over. Clicking starts and the faint to load clunk starts all over.

5. Then if it does not light off on the 2nd try, it stops again and will wait, then start and try a 3rd time. If the 3rd time fails, the system shuts down on safety and the red light inside will be on. Your heater is a rev 9 system and the fault light could work just like you said. The light just stays on. The rev 10 systems, (next generation) had a separate red light for the fault.

Tell us how the click and clunks are working and if the clicking is at a constant rate once it starts. Also smell for gas, if you smell rotten eggs, that is the gas that did not light off.

Once we know the gas valve, the ignition and the control board all work right, then there are obstructions that can be in gas burner tube that can affect the starting of the burner. But we need to confirm the controls are working first.

Hope this helps

John

PS, is your water heater in the back of the camper, maybe under the bed? Just making sure you are not up against a start up issue that all the air is not bleed out of the LP lines to the water heater. The stove up front gets the gas quick as it is closer to the LP tank. If the water heater is at the back of the camper, the first time you try and get the heater going, it may take 2 or so heater faults to clear put the air in the long lines to the back.

 

[Aariel]

Thank you very much for your reply, John B. My son and I did these things and actually saw the igniter sparking. Then my son pushed the igniter a bit deeper into the pipe (by pushing on the metal holder). Another try and it started up fine! This was really surprising but I sure hope it stays fixed! Thanks again.

 

[JohnGB]

Glad it all worked out. Thanks for reporting back.