I have had my Ford Falcon for a few years, and have never used the water heater. I tried firing it up for the first time but there was no gas flow, or any spark. I have good propane flow to my stovetop burner, furnace, and fridge.
According to the manual there is a switch I need to turn on before lighting. I cannot find the switch. Any ideas where it might be located?
Atwood Water Heater Switch
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skater
- Site Admin
- Posts: 2639
- Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 1:00 am
- B190 Year: 1991
- WBCCI: 13270
- Location: Annapolis, MD
Re: Atwood Water Heater Switch
The answer to this is going to vary based on the water heater you have. The B190s came with a direct spark ignition model, so there's a switch inside the van that (in theory) when turned on, will let the water heater light.
The other type of water heater uses a pilot. For those, you have to go outside and light the pilot, and it'll fire up main burner when it needs it. This would not have a switch inside.
So, my guess is you have the first type, DSI. In theory, turning that on should make it work. There should be a red light that comes on briefly while it tries to light, then shuts off. If it lights successfully, the light will only turn on while it's restarting when the thermostat calls for heat. If it fails to light, the red light will stay on constantly, and the water heater will give up trying to light after about 3 tries.
If it isn't working, well, it's time to start diagnosing it. The board could be bad, the thermostat or ECO could be bad, the gas valve could be bad, etc. There's a lot that can go wrong (but overall they tend to be pretty reliable). My first recommendation would be to pull the venturi tube (aluminum tube that leads to the burner) and make sure it's clear - spiders in particular like propane so they tend to build nests in that tube.
After that, flip the switch and run outside quickly (or get help) and just kind of listen to it as it goes through the cycle. You should hear a click from the gas valve, followed by the igniter trying to light it (click click). That should help you narrow down where in the cycle it's failing.
The thermostat and ECO are pretty cheap, maybe $15, and very easy to replace (they just twist out), so it's probably worth slapping new ones on just in case one of those is the issue.
The other type of water heater uses a pilot. For those, you have to go outside and light the pilot, and it'll fire up main burner when it needs it. This would not have a switch inside.
So, my guess is you have the first type, DSI. In theory, turning that on should make it work. There should be a red light that comes on briefly while it tries to light, then shuts off. If it lights successfully, the light will only turn on while it's restarting when the thermostat calls for heat. If it fails to light, the red light will stay on constantly, and the water heater will give up trying to light after about 3 tries.
If it isn't working, well, it's time to start diagnosing it. The board could be bad, the thermostat or ECO could be bad, the gas valve could be bad, etc. There's a lot that can go wrong (but overall they tend to be pretty reliable). My first recommendation would be to pull the venturi tube (aluminum tube that leads to the burner) and make sure it's clear - spiders in particular like propane so they tend to build nests in that tube.
After that, flip the switch and run outside quickly (or get help) and just kind of listen to it as it goes through the cycle. You should hear a click from the gas valve, followed by the igniter trying to light it (click click). That should help you narrow down where in the cycle it's failing.
The thermostat and ECO are pretty cheap, maybe $15, and very easy to replace (they just twist out), so it's probably worth slapping new ones on just in case one of those is the issue.
1991 Airstream B190 - bought, 2005; sold, 2011; bought 2017
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer
WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
1995 Airstream Excella 30' trailer
WBCCI #13270, Washington, DC Unit
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Alaskan Falcon
- Newbie
- Posts: 4
- Joined: Thu Jul 11, 2024 8:50 pm
Re: Atwood Water Heater Switch
Thank you for the detailed response and ideas! I am away from my van for the next two weeks but when I get back I will follow up with your suggestions and report back.
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silvertrooper
- Weekend Camper
- Posts: 58
- Joined: Mon Jan 22, 2018 9:44 pm
- B190 Year: 1996
- Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Atwood Water Heater Switch
Also, I discovered that if you have a dead or very low house battery the furnace and water heater will not ignite. Clicking, fan (in the case of the furnace), but no ignition. New battery, and voila. BTW, I found a nice AGM that allows for a full draw down and has 100 AH that fits in the battery bay. Nice upgrade. Goes with the upgraded converter. And, back to the water heater, if yours has ever been replaced there was a known issue with motherboard quality (that is, it sucked) and I highly recommend getting a dinosaur board to replace it. Made in US, has indicator lights, warranty. Lots of Youtube videos, but the swap would have cost $5-700 at a local RV shop (who I no longer recommend because of this "shop rate" practice" and cost me about 100 for the new board and 15 minutes of time. Most of that was finding my tools. 