Furnace not igniting
 

Hi,

Never thought it would be that cold in Texas! The furnace on my 1993 21 ft HiLo Funlite does not ignite, it only blows cold air. I have gas at the stove and have tried the startup procedure several times. (Turn thermostat to off, wait, and then set the thermostat to on and a high temperature.) After a minute or so the furnace starts up and blows cold air.

Any ideas what I could try?

Thanks and Best,

Chris

If you have the manual for it go through the troubleshooting section before doing anything. There could be a number of things that can cause it not to light. Look to see if there is a switch or reset button on the furnace, the sail switch could not be closing, the ignition may not be working, or there may not be gas getting to the furnace, valve closed, etc. If you don't have a furnace manual go online and download one.

Does your Hi-Lo have an off/on toggle switch inside the furnace access door? That was the problem I had, I think it must operate the auto ignition for the furnace. Just giving you a place to check, I am not a tech for these things.:)

Most Obvious
 

I speak from experience on a 1993 Hi Lo. Be sure your propane bottles are sending to the unit. May be something as simple as failure to have propane or not have valve open. The unit will start and will blow cold air.

Czwieb mentioned that the gas range was operating so the tanks must be putting out.

I have the owners manual for this Hydro Flame Co. Excalibur 8500-II. There could be a gas valve "If so equipped" but I cannot locate any. I smell some gas at the furnace which makes me think that there is a bad electrical connection somewhere or the igniter is corroded.

Furnice not lighting
 

Check this back post out. 9-27-2013. Quite a discussion about what you check adjust in the furnace. Do all this first then consider replacing your regulator. It is also a good idea to replace the propane lines as the rubber goes bad and cracks.

I read more in this forum as suggested and also got good info at

Hydro Flame Furnace 8535 -II

and

Hydro Flame Furnace Problem - General - RVAmerica.com

Seems it's time to call for professional service.

Chris

Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet.

Furnice won't light
 

Does your furnace have a control board in it?

Service manual
 

Here is a service manual that I think covers your furnace: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...57799294,d.aWM

How interesting. Ants had built a nest in the propane valve and adjacent parts. Dirt jammed the fan and smoke came out when the service guy tried to light the furnace. Need to order a new fan.

Thank you Rich for the service manual! /Chris

It can be interesting as to what you find in trailers sometimes. I would take ants over mice. Then there are those mud daubers/wasps that like to plug holes that don't need plugged. Glad you found the problem.

Old suburban furnace
 

Just got an old HiLo with a suburban furnace in it. I need to know how to light it. There is NO thermostat anywhere in the camper. There is a switch that goes from 1 to 10 and a pilot switch inside the grill covering the furnace. It also has a small cover on the front of the furnace held on by two wing nuts. Is this the pilot hole or does anyone know how to light this "Old" thing? Thanks

It would be good to know what year the HiLo is and what the Model # the furnace is, then someone could help you better. Do a Google search with using Suburban Furnace Model -----, and maybe you will get some info and maybe access to a manual.

This sounds like the fur furnace my first mini motorhome (built in1972) had. If so, loosen the wing nuts and rotate the cover to the side. The pilot light is inside and it is lighted with a long match or lighter. Set the gas valve on the furnace to the pilot setting and push down on the knob or adjacent button while lighting. After it lights, close the cover and set the knob to on. You will have to play with the switch to find a setting that keeps the temperature that you want. Incidentally, my motorhome's furnace did not have a fan. It used natural convection to circulate heat.

Make sure that you have a functioning CO alarm.