sumrfun45

OK all you fine RVers........here's what I've done. Pulled the igniter and cleaned it, reinstalled. Checked all grounds....all are good. Cleaned ECO and Hi-Lo temp sensors & reinstalled. Checked continuity of thermal cut-off fuse.....OK. Cleaned burner tube......was spotless. To reiterate, water heater is in the second month of it's second season. It's essentially new and clean as a whistle. The scenario is......worked fine for first few days of trip. Then turned on one morning and it started and ran for about 10-15 minutes and just shut down. When I noticed, I switched it back on and the igniter worked and lit the gas, but immediately shut off. Tried it another few times and then the igniter stopped sparking. I then had my wife turn the switch on and I lit the burner tube with a long lighter. It would light and then go out within a second or two. So now I'm left with a water heater that won't even spark. (Probably been started 30 times or less since it was installed last year.) I've been RVing for 31 years, so I'm fairly familiar with the routine mechanical issues of keeping an older RV going. But this one has me stumped and I'm appreciating your feedback. Does anyone suspect the circuit board? Seems like it's the only component I've haven't been able to check. Shouldn't the signal for the spark to the igniter be sent from that board?

Thanks for your quick response Herman. I agree that sitting does no good for mechanical things. It worked fine though for the previous 3 or 4 trips this summer, so it probably wasn't from lack of use/storage. Visually checked the capacitors. Both look fine and still nice & shiny. No cracks or bulges. Although I am unsure how to "handle" high output capacitors, I am disappointed that it doesn't look like that was the problem. Might have been a simple fix.......bummer. Open to alternate suggestions.

Have 1997 Winnie Brave 31RQ. One year old Dometic model G6A-8E-SP no longer ignites. Worked fine until last couple days of our trip. First the water heater stopped mid-cycle of heating the water. Re-started and it lit and then went out within a couple seconds. Tried several more times unsuccessfully, although the igniter continued to work. Then after several more tries, the igniter no longer sparked and therefore no combustion at all. Pulled the various terminals off looking for any possible corrosion, etc. Still same results. Next I had my wife hit the water heater start switch while I used a long starter lighter to ignite it. It would ignite the propane, but within a second or two, the flame would go out. Flame looked perfect color, etc, but no dice. No heat. Have plenty of propane, etc. Looked for any loose wires, etc. Nothing. I'm stumped because the situation went from one problem (not staying lit), to second problem, (no igniter spark). Thanks for any help.

I have a 1997 Winnie Brave 31RQ with an a/c problem. Replaced the A/C 3 years ago with new Coleman 48204C866 (which while acceptable, has never cooled as well as the original unit). The a/c has worked fine for past 3 seasons until now. It's always been noticeable that as the coach gets cool, the compressor will kick off as it should until the temp warms up and then the compressor will kick on until cool again. All good. Our last trip out, the compressor no longer kicks in and while the a/c does cool down the coach somewhat after a very long run time, it never is comfortable enough in the heat of the day. Nothing else has changed. I've tried it on three different known good power sources at my home and also on the coach's generator. Same result. Unit only three years old and been used very little. Thinking it might be the start capacitor. Although I'm pretty mechanically handy, I'd feel more confident with a little advice on how to test it and likely replace it if that is the culprit. And if it is the cap, any suggestions on where to locate a replacement at reasonable cost. Thank you in advance.