To Furnace or not to Furnace...
Hi all,
So my furnace was working perfectly fine except one or two times here and there it didn't light. I turned it off and back on and it lit just fine. The other night I came in and the blower was just running and it was just cold air. Turned it off and back on and worked no problem.
I just replaced the thermostat yesterday (important note is the intermittent lighting happened with both thermostats now) and the heater worked just fine.
Last night I come in and my child has the heater up to 85 and it's sweltering in there. Annd now the furnace won't light at all.
Here's what I've done so far.
1.Cleaned the intake and exhaust tubes.
2.Checked the wiring on the outside and what I can see inside with the furnace faceplate removed.
3.Took apart the burner and cleaned (lightly sanded) the piezo electric contacts that ignite the propane.
4.Cleaned all the soot and rust out of the burner area.
At this point I'm pretty sure the issue is propane flow related. When I turn the heater on I can hear and (barely see through the little window) the arc coming from the igniter. But no ignition.
I know the issue could be low voltage but I'm plugged into shore power and since it's always worked in the past I'm not thinking that is the case.
I've read these furnaces have a controller board that could be malfunctioning (Or freaking melted thanks to my kid) which is what I am putting my money on being the issue.
This furnace was manufactured by Suburban in 1982 and I believe it says it's a model M8. It is a vented furnace.
I've already replaced the pigtails, regulator, propane tanks, water heater, black iron piping, some of the inside plumbing, and the toilet. But by far from pricing them the furnace would be the cost of almost everything I have done already combined. This furnace is almost identical to mine but obviously quite newer.
With EVERYTHING I have replaced so far the efficiency has greatly improved. Water heater works 100x's better than the old one, is smaller, uses less propane. The toilet works infinitely better. Even the shower head change made a tremendous difference in the length of the showers we can take.
From what I can tell installing a new furnace is relatively easy. Looks like one hot lead from the rig to the unit and a few screws. Should I just suck it up and spend the money on a new furnace or try to find parts for this one?
Can anyone think of anything I need to try before I shell out 600$?
Thanks in advance.
So my furnace was working perfectly fine except one or two times here and there it didn't light. I turned it off and back on and it lit just fine. The other night I came in and the blower was just running and it was just cold air. Turned it off and back on and worked no problem.
I just replaced the thermostat yesterday (important note is the intermittent lighting happened with both thermostats now) and the heater worked just fine.
Last night I come in and my child has the heater up to 85 and it's sweltering in there. Annd now the furnace won't light at all.
Here's what I've done so far.
1.Cleaned the intake and exhaust tubes.
2.Checked the wiring on the outside and what I can see inside with the furnace faceplate removed.
3.Took apart the burner and cleaned (lightly sanded) the piezo electric contacts that ignite the propane.
4.Cleaned all the soot and rust out of the burner area.
At this point I'm pretty sure the issue is propane flow related. When I turn the heater on I can hear and (barely see through the little window) the arc coming from the igniter. But no ignition.
I know the issue could be low voltage but I'm plugged into shore power and since it's always worked in the past I'm not thinking that is the case.
I've read these furnaces have a controller board that could be malfunctioning (Or freaking melted thanks to my kid) which is what I am putting my money on being the issue.
This furnace was manufactured by Suburban in 1982 and I believe it says it's a model M8. It is a vented furnace.
I've already replaced the pigtails, regulator, propane tanks, water heater, black iron piping, some of the inside plumbing, and the toilet. But by far from pricing them the furnace would be the cost of almost everything I have done already combined. This furnace is almost identical to mine but obviously quite newer.
With EVERYTHING I have replaced so far the efficiency has greatly improved. Water heater works 100x's better than the old one, is smaller, uses less propane. The toilet works infinitely better. Even the shower head change made a tremendous difference in the length of the showers we can take.
From what I can tell installing a new furnace is relatively easy. Looks like one hot lead from the rig to the unit and a few screws. Should I just suck it up and spend the money on a new furnace or try to find parts for this one?
Can anyone think of anything I need to try before I shell out 600$?
Thanks in advance.
