Gas Water Heater Problem

[elkrott]

Sometimes my gas water heater doesn't light.
I can hear it clicking but it doesn't light.
Sometimes it lights other times it doesn't.
I cleaned contacts but that didn't help.
Any suggestions?

[Mike_LeClair]

Could also be as simple as which direction is the RV lined up facing? Lots of wind? We had the same problem, turned out to be a spec of dirt in the orifice and then it depended on which way the wind was hitting the side of our RV. Yes, a real PITA. Keep an eye on your info panel and watch for the red LED that warn about a flame out at the DSI.

Cheers!

Mike

[shadoow]

do you have a bug screen of some sort on the cover panel? Some won't allow enough air in for the heater to remain lit.

[APRSRVer]

Not sure it's the same problem as yours, but mine would fail to light also. After a lot of diagnostic messing around, I thought it acted like a bad thermocouple but there is none. They sense the presence of a flame by the resistance change between the electrodes through the flame. Small change. I cleaned the contacts where the connector goes on the control module circuit board and problem was solved.

[Old-Biscuit]

Gas flow being interrupted.....could just be spider webs. It's amazing how much they can cause problems.

Remove burner tube and spark electrode assembly.
Clean out burner tube....bottle brush, pull a rag thru it.
Clean up spark electrode....wire brush, emery cloth
Remove main orifice and clean with alcohol
While you have the burner tube and spark assembly out.......run a piece of wire thru combustion/exhaust 'U' tube, attach a rag to end of wire and pull back thru 'U' tube to clean it out.

Reassemble.......orifice, spark electrode, burner tube. Make sure burner tube is aligned so gas flow has a straight shot into combustion chamber. Align spark electrode so that it is engulfed in main flame and set spark gap to ground rod 1/8".
Also clean & tighten ground wires/screws....main frame and gas valve

[laknox]

elkrott wrote:
Sometimes my gas water heater doesn't light.
I can hear it clicking but it doesn't light.
Sometimes it lights other times it doesn't.
I cleaned contacts but that didn't help.
Any suggestions?

Be sure there's no junk in/around the burner. Could be a dirty orifice.

Lyle