water heater

It's a gas
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RobertS
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B190 Year: 1992
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water heater

Post by RobertS »

Need some help to get hot water heater working for winter. I have Atwood G6A-6E propane water heater with electric start. There is no light on the circuit board.
I have:
tested the temp switches, and the are closed
12 volts coming from full time red switch in coach
good ground to all connections
electric arc, spark at igniter when first turned on
the propane red connectors show 80 ohms to ground
the propane switch clicks loudly when 12 volts connected with separate battery
when propane switch connected to separate battery no gas flow
all other propane gas fixtures operate
no voltage on red wire from control box
all contacts cleaned

need ideas and help

SS
1992 B19 E350 460ci
WW White Whale
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skater
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Re: water heater

Post by skater »

Is the venturi tub clear? Spiders like propane...
1991 Airstream B190 - bought, 2005; sold, 2011; bought 2017
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer

WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
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RobertS
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Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 01, 2010 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1992
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Location: Jacksonville, fl

Re: water heater

Post by RobertS »

Thank you for reply

Yes cleaned tube and gas jet. two items that puzzle me:

When I hook 12 vt dc to valve, relay clicks but no propane smell nor any flame when holding flame to nozzle

I have 12 volt dc on both brown wires, from coach switch and passing through thermostatic switch on tank, but no voltage on red wires

SS
1992 B19 E350 460ci
WW White Whale
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skater
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Re: water heater

Post by skater »

RobertS wrote:Thank you for reply

Yes cleaned tube and gas jet. two items that puzzle me:

When I hook 12 vt dc to valve, relay clicks but no propane smell nor any flame when holding flame to nozzle

I have 12 volt dc on both brown wires, from coach switch and passing through thermostatic switch on tank, but no voltage on red wires

SS
Not that I advocate doing dangerous things with propane, but have you disconnected the line and confirmed you have gas flow at the water heater?
1991 Airstream B190 - bought, 2005; sold, 2011; bought 2017
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer

WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
User avatar
RobertS
Weekend Camper
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 01, 2010 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1992
WBCCI: 0
Location: Jacksonville, fl

Re: water heater

Post by RobertS »

Thank you for reply

No , good idea to check for propane, I will get some soapy water and test in morning

SS
1992 B19 E350 460ci
WW White Whale
User avatar
RobertS
Weekend Camper
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Aug 01, 2010 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1992
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Location: Jacksonville, fl

Re: water heater

Post by RobertS »

tested supply line and propane flows to relay switch. applied 12vt to relay switch, no bubbles of propane coming out of cleaned brass jet. Should I disassemble the relay switch of just replace. As my father would say " can not make worse, it is already broken"
Need to get brass stop to plug the propane line to continue MH use while working on fix

SS
1992 B19 E350 460ci
WW White Whale
User avatar
skater
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Re: water heater

Post by skater »

Just so I understand the situation: You turn the switch on. The light on the switch turns on. The ignitor triggers, but the burner never lights, right? Do you hear the gas valve activating?
1991 Airstream B190 - bought, 2005; sold, 2011; bought 2017
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer

WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
User avatar
RobertS
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Joined: Sun Aug 01, 2010 12:00 am
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Location: Jacksonville, fl

Re: water heater

Post by RobertS »

You understand correctly. The light red switch in coach stays on and the igniter sparks for 3 seconds with no flame produced. If the coach switch is left on after about 3 minutes it will spark igniter again no flame.
I do not hear any propane nor does holding a hand held igniter at brass jet show any propane.
As an extra test of the propane solenoid switch, I have tested with ohm meter (.8 reading) and connected 12 volt battery. When connecting the 12 vt battery the solenoid switch clicks but no propane flows from brass jet

Again thank you for your interest and comments

SS
1992 B19 E350 460ci
WW White Whale
User avatar
skater
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Posts: 2569
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 1:00 am
B190 Year: 1991
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Re: water heater

Post by skater »

Well, it pretty much has to be the solenoid valve then, right?
1991 Airstream B190 - bought, 2005; sold, 2011; bought 2017
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer

WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
silvertrooper
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Re: water heater

Post by silvertrooper »

I know this is an old thread, but maybe this will help others. I had the same issue. My repair shop diagnosed the problem as a burned-out control board. Based on youtube videos this is a very common problem (appears right away in search). If you have the correct part (if you know your water heater model this should be straightforward to determine--I saw a US-made replacement company named Dinosaur in the vid I watched) the repair looks easy. Of course, the video is on a modern RV, with easy access to the water heater. With our old units, I didn't know if they are plug-in wires or need some other connection. I know that the water heater seems like it might be a bitch to access, if you have to go from the back-but lo and behold this repair is done from the side panel. In about five minutes.

I didn't have the work done at the shop (estimate $700) because, 700 dollars. Instead, I saved about $600 plus major hassle by doing it myself.

The board is the Dinosaur UIB64:http://www.dinosaurelectronics.com/UIB-64.html which I got through Amazon for about $125. It is a universal control board and should fit the water heater in all Bs.

Installed it and the water heater fired right up and has worked every time since.
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