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Old 06-06-2017, 09:25 PM   #1
LJY
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water heater DSI FLT ?

what does this light next to water heater switch mean?

thanks!
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Old 06-06-2017, 09:42 PM   #2
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apparently, the gas mode of water feature will not light up.. this is just my 2nd time using gas mode.
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Old 06-06-2017, 10:04 PM   #3
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DSI means direct spark ignition. FLT means fault.

That means it tried to ignite the burner on the water heater but failed. First thing is to check your propane supply. 2nd (for me) would be to check the burn chamber to see if it is clogged with carbon flakes. Ours was after only a few days of camping. Once I cleaned it out, the water heater has worked perfect ever since.

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Old 06-06-2017, 10:07 PM   #4
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Thanks for the quick reply rbryan. Is there instructions somewhere on how to locate and clean the burn chamber?
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Old 06-06-2017, 10:09 PM   #5
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Its behind a cover. There are a couple screws that hold it in place. The cover is rather largish and square metal. Can't miss it. Once the cover is off, take a long skinny brush or even an elongated and rolled up paper towel and just run it through the opening to clean it.

Edit: this thing.



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Old 06-06-2017, 10:13 PM   #6
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okay, thanks! i will try it tomorrow when cooled... as we are busy using the electric mode for now to take our showers.
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Old 06-07-2017, 06:11 PM   #7
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I tried and cleaned the burn chamber to no avail.. it looks pretty clean to me.
Any other suggestions?
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Old 06-07-2017, 06:50 PM   #8
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okay, thanks! i will try it tomorrow when cooled... as we are busy using the electric mode for now to take our showers.
LJY, If your electric switch is turned on at the water heater and you are hooked up to shore power, the water heater will default to electric. I do not believe you can use propane as your source without turning off the outside switch. Don't know if you originally had the outside switch on or off when trying to use propane.........
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Old 06-07-2017, 07:12 PM   #9
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LJY, If your electric switch is turned on at the water heater and you are hooked up to shore power, the water heater will default to electric. I do not believe you can use propane as your source without turning off the outside switch. Don't know if you originally had the outside switch on or off when trying to use propane.........
You can use both heat sources with your water heater. While there is not really a need to, using both lets you heat up the water faster.
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Old 06-07-2017, 07:24 PM   #10
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thanks all for the help. I saw on the inside panel some instructions for lighting up the water heater for PR models and another set for D models. I followed the D model instructions that is basically 1. turn off all electricity and gas supply. wait 5 minutes 2. turn on gas supply 3. turn on electric switch (I didn't know which switch it meant so I did both the electric mode and gas mode switch)
and the DSI FLT light is not coming on any more... but I don't know if the flame actually lit.
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Old 06-07-2017, 07:34 PM   #11
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You can use both heat sources with your water heater. While there is not really a need to, using both lets you heat up the water faster.
Ah! Thanks, Jon. We've never tried that, and didn't know it was possible?
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Old 06-07-2017, 08:20 PM   #12
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...
and the DSI FLT light is not coming on any more... but I don't know if the flame actually lit.
If the inside switch controlling propane operation is on, and the fault light is off, it seems to be working. In this case, "no news is good news".

The burner only comes on when heat is needed (there's no pilot light), so if you open the outside cover and look the burner may not be running at the time you look - that's okay.
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Old 06-07-2017, 08:38 PM   #13
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You can use both heat sources with your water heater. While there is not really a need to, using both lets you heat up the water faster.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Clark View Post
Ah! Thanks, Jon. We've never tried that, and didn't know it was possible?
No "default" to electric when plugged in, but obviously the element turns on if already switched on. It does not preclude (lock out) the use of propane. It was either explained wrong by ETI or interpreted wrong by someone at their factory walk through. Combo operation has been mentioned in other threads and may be useful if you have electric available and predict a larger demand than usual on your hot water:
For the Suburban SW6DE:
Gas (12,000 BTU/H burner): 10.2 GPH recovery
Electric (1440 W element): 6.0 GPH recovery
Combined: 16.2 GPH recovery

Combinations Gas & Electric Water Heater

These numbers obviously highlight the fact that gas operation has a greater ability to heat the water faster than electric in case someone thinks they will run electric to save propane and then is curious why their hot water capacity is lower than when they may have used it on propane.
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Old 06-07-2017, 09:46 PM   #14
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so, upon first usage tonight, the dsi fault light came on again.. arghh..
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Old 06-07-2017, 10:07 PM   #15
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We were also told that it defaults to electric.

We primarily use electric but mostly only turn it on for an hour in the morning and an hour at night. So usually off. Unless it is really cold weather, that is all we need to have hot water.
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Old 06-07-2017, 10:40 PM   #16
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so, upon first usage tonight, the dsi fault light came on again.. arghh..
Does it light up and then go out or stay on indefinitely? I'm not sure how the wiring is on the newer trailers, but on the older trailers the fault or "reset" light is lit while the unit is firing and then goes out once lit. The water heater will attempt 3 tries before locking out which is indicated by the fault light staying on continuously. If there is air in the line it may take several full cycles to get it lit. Once locked out flip the toggle switch to off for 5 seconds and then toggle back on which will restart a new ignition cycle. Each full ignition cycle will take a little bit of time because there is a 15 second purge prior to spark cycle. Try running the stove first for a bit to reduce air in lines. Also check you have good propane pressure and that the high temperature limit safety didn't trip. This is rare to trip unless there is a problem with the thermostat and requires a manual reset outside on the black module in the upper left. Just push both resets (there is a second one for electric operation) and you should feel if one resets. If it happens to be the high limit and it trips again obviously something is wrong and needs to be fixed.
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Old 06-07-2017, 10:49 PM   #17
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Thanks, rubicon. I've tried running stove top, furnace, and fridge without issues. tried that switch so many times since yesterday.. and yes, our 2017 model will try to light 3 times and stay lit if it doesn't light up.
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Old 06-07-2017, 11:40 PM   #18
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Thanks, rubicon. I've tried running stove top, furnace, and fridge without issues. tried that switch so many times since yesterday.. and yes, our 2017 model will try to light 3 times and stay lit if it doesn't light up.
Upon further review of the water heater wiring diagram the high limit safety needing a reset cannot be a potential cause of your issue. The high limit is inline with the internal on/off switch so if it was tripped the water heater would not even attempt to light. It is just like the internal switch being off and not allowing the 12V D.C. to the module board to initiate lighting.
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Old 07-06-2017, 02:32 AM   #19
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Update: ETI sent a new circuit board for me to replace next to the water heater. It worked after that. Apparently, mine wasn't the only one bad board. Reace had tried to bring a replacement to me but that one didn't work either.
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Old 07-06-2017, 08:23 PM   #20
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Hi Teddy. I just replaced my circuit board a few days ago too.

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