Urgent: Furnace not working. Cold!

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

My Mr Buddy heater goes through a 1lb cylinder of propane pretty fast especially when on high
I would suggest you get a couple extra 1lb cylinders to make sure you have enough

Good point Steve. The Buddy will last 6 hours on low setting and 3 hours on high with a 1# bottle. With no thermostat it will be running unless the user turns it off. Definitely need a bunch of 1# bottles. This might not be a "perfect" solution but worthwhile if they are warm and can salvage their trip without too much inconvenience.

[HarleyD]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Good find Jake! If they are past Laramie now they are also in stock in Cheyenne. Since Walmart is open until 10PM they could have it in their hands today.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Mr-Heater...eater/55234301

Since you just drove on the south or west edge of the Mullen fire there was plenty of heat there, just need a way to capture it. It destroyed one of our S_I_L's siblings cabins and damaged another one. Daughter and S_I_L have not seen their cabin yet but all reports are it is still standing, though likely damaged.

[steve dunham]

We decided to make one last camping trip in late fall
Our furnace failed one chilly afternoon, so I went to Walmart and bought a small electric space heater so we could finish our outing
Then our EMS started acting up so we couldn’t run our electric heater
Ended up cutting our trip short !
I fully understand what the OP is up against and wish him luck

[padlin]

Make sure you call Walmart about it before making the drive. I went up for car ramps today that showed "in stock", an empty shelf when I got there 20 minutes later.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by rubicon327

Both models have low oxygen shutoff and tip over safety shut-off but you still should crack a window in a confined space like a trailer.

Opening a window a "crack" really means opening two widely separated ventilation openings (for airflow, because nothing makes fresh air go in a small crack while exhaust goes out the same small crack), each substantially. One of the windows needs to be high and near the heater, to vent the exhaust (and yes, that means it's sending the warmest air outside), so the roof vent seems like a good choice. You can go with less ventilation, assuming that you tolerate carbon monoxide well.

The idea of the low oxygen shutoff is that the heater shuts off before it gets into a state of producing excessive carbon monoxide (which happens when there isn't enough oxygen for complete combustion, but the shutoff method is crude, and all propane burners produce some carbon monoxide even in ideal conditions.

But yes, with adequate ventilation one of these unvented heaters can work.

[Bobbie54]

I have a Mr. Buddy for power outages at home. The closest I've come to using it is getting it out- that apparently serves to make the power come back on! But I have an adapter hose for the 20lb bottle (or a 10 lb one which is what I plan to use.)

[camp4528]

I watched the very interesting ETI video posted above. Thank you for posting it!!

I now know what a sail switch is and hope to remember those two critical times when the fan stops (30 seconds means the sail switch didn’t kick in to confirm a safe airflow so it’s probably the sail switch - which coincidentally looks like a sail) and 80 seconds (the propane didn’t ignite which means a propane issue or the control board)

My other takeaway would be having a $30 sail switch in the junk drawer (assuming the outside furnace access is on my (future) trailer.

My other takeaway is if we get into trouble there is a large community on this forum who are eager to leap to the assistance in many innovative ways. It is really heartwarming to see such a dedicated group.

[mvassallo]

Is this an Attwood or Dometic furnace in the 2017 5TA?

[cpaharley2008]

When we picked up our trailer in 2019, I paid for an extra sail switch to have on board. hoping having it means it will never be needed...........

[daniel108]

I have a Mr. Buddy, we used it in our large canvas tent (140 sq ft) and it kept things good even in the 30's. I've never left it running while I was sleeping because I'm not willing to put the lives of my family and myself in the hands of a cheap sensor that I can't even test. Enough blankets and even 20 degrees is pretty tolerable.

The difference between running a Mr Buddy and just using your stove for heat is just the oxygen sensor. You already should have a functioning CO sensor in the trailer. If it were me...and realize that I"m cheap....I'd get a bunch of objects with a lot of thermal mass (e.g. rocks, bricks, etc) and heat them up on the stove while I was awake and then snuggle up under the blanket at night (with the stove off). Either way you definitely want to guarantee some fresh air whenever you are burning propane and decide whether you trust the sensors enough to allow you to sleep with it running...I don't.

[Kare]

Had the same problem this morning. Circuit boards are very sensitive and need good grounds. This is what I did. Turn off t-stat. Removed outside cover (4 screws) you will see a black wire that connected to lower right corner of furnace with spade clip. Disconnect and reconnect. Also there is a small round object that I believe is a capacitor push on it to make sure it is making good connection.
Then try to start furnace. Worked for us. Good luck.
Kare

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

Opening a window a "crack" really means opening two widely separated ventilation openings (for airflow, because nothing makes fresh air go in a small crack while exhaust goes out the same small crack), each substantially. One of the windows needs to be high and near the heater, to vent the exhaust (and yes, that means it's sending the warmest air outside), so the roof vent seems like a good choice. You can go with less ventilation, assuming that you tolerate carbon monoxide well.

The idea of the low oxygen shutoff is that the heater shuts off before it gets into a state of producing excessive carbon monoxide (which happens when there isn't enough oxygen for complete combustion, but the shutoff method is crude, and all propane burners produce some carbon monoxide even in ideal conditions.

But yes, with adequate ventilation one of these unvented heaters can work.

Safety first. Tests show these produce very little CO but you still need to be smart about it. To your point the manual states “This heater requires a minimum vent area of 9 square inches, (example 3” x 3” opening) at the ceiling and at floor level for adequate ventilation during operation.” So with a window cracked adequately and opening the MaxxFan vent cover there shouldn’t be any problem. Helps with condensation too. The low oxygen shutoff on the heater and the CO alarm in the trailer are additional safeties. This isn’t a permanent solution. Just to get them home without freezing their butts off. I don’t want to start a debate but guys (and gals) use unvented catalytic heaters in small trailers all the time.

[Iowa Dave]

In the enclosed stand we have on our farm ground, the 4,000 to 9,000 btu buddy hooked up to a 20 lb. cylinder runs for a long time. It gets warm in there and soon you take your jacket off, loosen the back on the swivel office chair and lean back and it’s nappy time. The deer play below and you go home and say “Didn’t see anything today“. You do not reveal that your eyes were closed. It’s the same thing in the Igloo Ice fishing hut. You wake up, your bobber rising from a deep journey, your bait gone and you didn’t get any bites today and no fish. I’ve had mine about 15 years. Works well. I have had a couple Coleman catalytic heaters. I used to fire one up, get my topper to about 80 degrees, take it out and snuff it out and leave it outside and slide into my down bag. Never trusted them except used this way. Or like described in my old clam ice tent with zipper cracked at top and bottom. CO, nothing to take lightly.
Iowa Dave

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by Kare

Had the same problem this morning. Circuit boards are very sensitive and need good grounds. This is what I did. Turn off t-stat. Removed outside cover (4 screws) you will see a black wire that connected to lower right corner of furnace with spade clip. Disconnect and reconnect. Also there is a small round object that I believe is a capacitor push on it to make sure it is making good connection.
Then try to start furnace. Worked for us. Good luck.
Kare

Trouble is their 2017 doesn’t have the outside access cover. Just the vent. Makes removal of the furnace necessary to work on it. This was an initial blunder by ETI that was thankfully corrected in later models. The older Atwood 8012 furnaces need too be removed to for sail switch access but they don’t seem to have too many problems.

[steve dunham]

If you pull the furnace , I would suggest that you check the caulk / sealant around the furnace’s exterior chrome exhaust escutcheon plate
We were getting water on the floor of the cabinet directly below the furnace and into the aisle when driving in the rain or in a heavy rain with strong winds .
I pulled the escutcheon plate as recommended by Reace at ETI and discovered that part of the top edge and part of the front leading edge were never caulked / sealed from the factory
I recaulked the area and so far so good
Just a polite word of advice !

[Kare]

Same thing happened to us this morning furnace not working. Turn off t-stat and remove furnace fuse. Remove the panel on the outside four screws hold it on. There will be a black wire from circuit board going to a chassis ground with a spade clip unplug and reconnect.Electronics are real sensitive to ground. Install furnace fuse, turn on furnace. Ours has been working fine since. Hope this takes care of problem.
Kare

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by mvassallo

Is this an Attwood or Dometic furnace in the 2017 5TA?

At some point Atwood was bought by Dometic. The furnace in question in a 2017 would either be an AFSAD12 or DFSAD12. First letter “A” for Atwood or “D” for Dometic. Same furnace.

[mvassallo]

If these folks confirm this is their furnace model, can someone provide the sail switch part number to save them time and energy. The 15 second time out is a key piece of information. We had the exact same issue with our 2014 Escape 19 and the sail switch replacement fixed the problem.

[CharlesPou]

hello Vermilye, thanks so much for posting vid about furnace. where are the others you mentioned, I would like to watch them too.

some comments about vid, and my personal experience with my Dometic furnace. I took delivery Jul 2018, and live in TX so not much use for the furnace that time of year. we did the Southern Utah Tour, I think mostly May 2019, and furnace started acting up almost immediately. I called Escape, and got the sail switch routine, so I messed with the sail switch a lot, and it never resolved the issue. I see the video was made Jan 2019, but Escape never mentioned it. also, I was told they were not sending out parts, I would have to contact Dometic for warranty issues. I contacted Dometic and they would not send any parts, insisted I take it to a dealer for warranty. Dometic was very clear they did not want me working on the heater.

just me, but I didn't want to take to dealer, figured I could fix it, and didn't want to leave it someplace for a month or so, not kidding. anyways, I been messing with my furnace for over 2 years, and may finally have it fixed, I replaced the board, and was working great last trip.

over the last 2 years I've spent approx $300 for sail switches, new propane regulator, manometer, and board. I'm not worried about the $'s, I think Escape Enterprises is great, and love my 2018 Escape 21. however, my experience with the furnace has been very frustrating. cheers

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by CharlesPou

just me, but I didn't want to take to dealer, figured I could fix it, and didn't want to leave it someplace for a month or so, not kidding. anyways, I been messing with my furnace for over 2 years, and may finally have it fixed, I replaced the board, and was working great last trip.

over the last 2 years I've spent approx $300 for sail switches, new propane regulator, manometer, and board. I'm not worried about the $'s, I think Escape Enterprises is great, and love my 2018 Escape 21. however, my experience with the furnace has been very frustrating. cheers

Charles: Glad to hear you have improvement with your furnace. Hope the same for your hot water heater since a new regulator and dialing in the proper pressure would have a positive effect on all appliances.