RE: Propane appliance questions

mikewilley · Sep 28, 2003, 07:05 PM

I have an 03 Coleman Santa Fe which we have now taken out twice, and done many more setups and takedowns in our driveway. I am having some problems with my propane operated appliances and wanted to see if the collective wisdom of the group might improve my fortunes.

My Waterheater: I have got lighting it down to a science, but this weekend it was kinda breezy and it blew out (no pilot, no nothin) a couple of times. Does anyone have any clues on this?

My Refrigerator: Works fine on 120 and 12V but I can t seem to get it to light properly when working off of propane. I light it by setting it to high, pressing the setting knob, then pushing the peizo lighter button many, many, many times. When it does light, it often " whooshes" like the whole chamber was filled with propane, then lit. As far as I can tell I am following the instructions. Do I need to get my dealer to take a look at it, or are these things just hard to light?

Thank in advance for all the great advice I am sure to be deluged with.

MtnCamper · May 05, 2003, 01:26 PM

mikewilleyWaterheater: Yup, sometimes it s a bit** to light. I ve found that my ear works better than my eyes. I actually listen for the pilot light. You can tell when you are in the right spot with the lighter. You have to hold the pilot button down a good long time.

Fridge: I always light the stove first and let it burn for a few seconds. I don t know if that helps or not, but seems to. Then go to the controls for the fridge. Hold down the button (5 seconds or so) and strike repeatedly until it lights. Sometimes I get the swoosh too, but that s when I ve held the button down too long, and the little compartment fills with gas. Eventually it will light. It really shouldn t matter where the temp control is set at. It should still light.

The whole thing is a learning experience. You will get it, just be patient and don t give up.[

]

campingboaters · May 05, 2003, 01:35 PM

mikewilleyWhen we had our 01 Santa Fe, we HAD to go inside and light the inside stove first to get the air out of the propane lines to the furthest point from the tank. Once we did this, lighting the appliances was pretty easy. We did have our waterheater blow out a few times. Some people put on a wind guard and others say it melted their ABS. We bought the wind guard, but never put it on. We figured cold water every once in a while from the pilot blowing out was safer (and cheaper) than melting the ABS.

It takes patience, but you ll master everything on your camper. Good luck!

CAPEd CODger · May 05, 2003, 04:12 PM

mikewilleyAt the risk of being redundant, I will also say that it helps to get the air out of the propane lines. My fridge acts just like everyone elses does. Lighting the stove helps get rid of the air much faster than just trying to light the fridge.

topcat7736 · May 05, 2003, 06:33 PM

mikewilleyMike,

While I don t have either, from reading the board for several years I ve learned that the pilot light on the water heater blows out occasionally and that the refrigerator won t light unless the trailer is almost perfectly level!

You can get a wind shield by clicking [link=http://www.dyersonline.com/cgi-bin/miva?Merchant2/merchant.mv+Screen=PROD&Store_Code=RV&Product_Code=80-6700&Category_Code=zKit+Trailers-Utility+Tilt+Bed+Trailers]HERE.[/link]

Campaholics · May 06, 2003, 07:01 PM

mikewilleyMy sequence is:

Light all three burner on the inside stove. Turn them off when they all burn steady.

Then light the water heater, by holding the pilot button down for one minute and light with an Aim and Flame lighter. If the pilot won t light, keep holding the pilot button, and wait for another 30 seconds and try again. Keep the aim and flame going and it should light this go around. Time these with your watch, the one minute of holding the pilot button seems like two or three hours[

].

Then, I do the frige, and usually don t have a problem. I m always level fore to aft, and within ñ3/4" side to side. But, I don t see where that should be a problem on lighting the water heater or frige.

Happy camping,
Bob

tlhdoc · May 06, 2003, 09:37 PM

campingboaters

QuoteORIGINAL: campingboaters

Some people put on a wind guard and others say it melted their ABS.

I had some melting of my ABS trunk. I solved the problem by putting a foil tent between the trunk lid and the water heater door. It hasn t melted anymore.

mike4947 · May 06, 2003, 10:12 PM

mikewilleyAnd as for being level when starting the fridge, both manufacturers say up to 4 degrees off level is OK. Over the width of an 84 inch PU that s almost 6 inches and over a 12 foot length it s 10 inches. Let s just say if you can stand up without leaning it s level enough for the fridge to work.
Water heaters do tend to blow out if there s any wind and manufacturers have a kit for a pilot that relights itself. pricey but if it a continuing problem it s a solution.

topcat7736 · May 06, 2003, 11:16 PM

mikewilleySorry Mike.

Dometic does not say you can have your trailer 4 degrees or 12" off level & have their refrigerators work. They have a type of cooling unit that utilizes an enclosed pump tube surrounded by a solution to protect the assembly. When off level, the refrigerant will accumulate in the piping and render the unit inoperative. Zero degree leveling is the norm for the type of refrigerators used in popups and small trailers.

Be that as it may, maybe mikewilley can put his trailer on a level site & see if the refrigerator lights. That, for sure, would settle the question. [

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mike4947 · May 07, 2003, 02:06 AM

mikewilleySorry but both Dometic and Norcold clearly state that 4 degrees is the condition to be met for level to avoid any crystalization. Take a trip to their websites and/or their literature. I ve installed and reinstalled factory badly installed versions of both and have seen that proviso many, many times over the years.

topcat7736 · May 07, 2003, 07:19 PM

mikewilley[link=http://www.rvmobile.com/library/Bulletins/Dometic/bulletin23.pdf]Dometic Piezo-electric Problems[/link]

[link=http://www.rvmobile.com/library/Bulletins/Dometic/bulletin18.pdf]Dometic Special Service Bulletin[/link]

[link=http://www.rvda.org/rvtechnician/cooling.htm]RV Technician notes[/link]

[link=http://www.rv-coach.com/FAQ.25/current_category.83/faqs_detail.html]RV Coach FAQ[/link]

[link=http://www.marksrv.com/refrigfaq.htm]Marks RV FAQ[/link]

mike4947 · May 08, 2003, 12:51 AM

mikewilleyWell Al I ll meet you half way. Me who always tells people to read the manuals dug out a few installation books today. The did say 4 degrees, BUT it was +/- 2 degrees from level; whch agrees with RV USA. Amazing what senility brings on.
So the level figures are 1/2 of what I stated before +/- 3 inches from level for an 84 inch width and +/- 5 inches from level for a 12 foot box.

Ab Diver · May 08, 2003, 01:27 AM

mike4947

Quote+/- 3 inches from level for an 84 inch width and +/- 5 inches from level for a 12 foot box.

Man, I can *eyeball* a trailer a LOT better than that. Guess wondering if less than half a bubble off plumb isn t such a problem after all. (No, not me-- my trailer, guys, my trailer! [

] )

One thing a lot of people forget: if you don t have any carpenter s levels handy, or don t have fancy stick-on bubble-levels on your trailer, there is a simple solution that is plenty acurate enough for even the most discriminating fridge-- a simple flat bottomed pan with 1/4" of water, resting on the floor of the trailer. This will tell you which side is low, and which end as well. If the water is evenly spread around the bottom of the pan, you ll have a happy fridge. Never fails, unless your floor is warped.[

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mike4947 · May 12, 2003, 12:15 AM

mikewilleyThis just in from Norcold:
/quote/
Dear Mike,

Thank you for your inquiry into the leveling requirements of Norcold
absorption refrigerators. All of our units are designed to operate with no
more than 6deg. front to back or 3 deg. side to side off level angle.
Generally speaking this is a significant tilt. Under normal practice if the
coach is comfortable to camp in you are probably within safe leveling
parameters. As you can see they are not as sensitive as they used to be.
I hope this information is helpful.

Sincerely,
David E. Clem
Thetford/Norcold Customer Service
/unquote/

So that s +/- 6 degrees or +/- 5.8 inches from side to side and +/- 3 degrees or +/- 7.5 inches off from from front to back as the fridge is install in the side of the PU so the their side to side is our front to back

topcat7736 · May 12, 2003, 08:17 PM

mikewilleyI m glad to see that NORCOLD s products can be off the zero mark. It should be noted that their products are not the width and length of the popup when installed. Typically 18" wide and 21" deep, the Norcold ones referred to in the email could have a maximum front to back difference of 2.2" and a maximum side to side difference of .9432" at the refrigerator. While the tangent will remain constant as the length increases, it is misleading to equate huge numbers to the area occupied by the tiny refrigerator. Why not have a 500 foot popup & say it can be off level at 6 degrees by 52.55 feet? Although true, it s a ridiculous analogy! While the Norcold may function at these angles, others may not. It is not good to imply or assume that the Norcold angles apply to all manufacturers units.

There were numerous postings about off level problems with the fridges on the ultraboard, coolboard & the last snitz board. I merely pointed out that keeping it level was important and could possibly help with mikewilley s problem.

Enough of this topic. I hope mikewilley gets his fridge and water heater functioning properly with or without our help.

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