Refridgerator won' t light

Padgett · 04-05-2016, 07:43 PM

Water heater working fine on gas. Gas valve in back of fridge is on. Hold button in for a long time, push popper several times . Hold button in some more. Needle stays in white. Worked well last year.

Any ideas ?

**Bill** · 04-05-2016, 11:03 PM

When you hold the red button in, does the meter climb at all, or stay pegged at zero? It sounds like it stays at zero. That means either no gas or no spark (bet you didn't know that!) If you can get someone to stand outside the TM and watch for spark when you pop the piezo button (after dark works great), you should be able to resolve that question. If you have spark, but it won't light at all, then most likely you have bugs (spider webs) in your burner. Blow it out with compressed air.

If the meter rises when you hold in the red button and pop the piezo, then you have both spark and gas. Then, if the meter falls back when you release the red button, the problem is likely electrical - specifically, a bad connection behind the refrig control panel. I went through this last year (you and I have the same model/year TM). I pulled the refrig several inches out into the room, so I could get access to the wires connecting to the AC/DC/GAS/OFF switch. One of the wires had actually popped off its terminal, and another was loose. I squeezed both connectors shut with pliers, pushed them back onto their tabs, and all was well.

I know that you know about the thermocouple, and the millivolt gas valve, so I won't go into that.

Let us know.

Bill

scrubjaysnest · 04-06-2016, 04:34 AM

Could this be the infamous bad wire(s) on the meter problem that existed with some models?

Padgett · 04-06-2016, 07:19 AM

Worked fine a year ago, dor you see the spark in the top panel or the bottom one ?
Needle does not budge.

and a miracle happened. Tried one more tine and needle started moving, now in the green.

only trouble now is am on 3/8 tank, One I just filled when open about half way a leak began around the stem. Only certain points I can hear/see but do not know on others if it is still leaking, just much less. Is there a way to open both at the same time and transfer from one to the other ?

tentcamper · 04-06-2016, 08:21 AM

It seems like after my camper sits for a long period with the propane off. It takes a long time to bleed the air out of the line.

**Mr_funnypuns** · 04-06-2016, 09:06 AM

Firing the water heater seems to bleed the air out very quickly. Fridge starts right away. Otherwise I hold the valve for 5 min before attempting to start the fridge

**Bill** · 04-06-2016, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Padgett

and a miracle happened. Tried one more tine and needle started moving, now in the green.

Almost certainly a loose wire. If so, it will continue to be an intermittent problem, very annoying, and potentially expensive when your food spoils. So you will want to fix it. Pull the refrig out as I described, and tighten the spade connectors. Incidentally, I'm pretty sure that this is all that the recall fix does.

Quote:

only trouble now is am on 3/8 tank, One I just filled when open about half way a leak began around the stem. Only certain points I can hear/see but do not know on others if it is still leaking, just much less. Is there a way to open both at the same time and transfer from one to the other ?

To answer your question directly - no. You can't transfer from one to the other. But you should use soapy-water spray on both, as you open and close the valves.

My experience several months ago - take it for what it is worth. If a leak begins around the stem, you can't fix it. And you don't want it to continue. I took my tank to a "real" propane place, and watched what the guy did. First, he transferred all the propane out of the tank and into a 100-pound tank he kept for that purpose. He had a special hose (dunno what exactly) for this. Then he clamped my tank into a holder fixture, and put a BIG wrench on the valve. Removed the valve, and screwed in a new one with some thread dope. Filled the tank, and leak tested it. Took my money.

I think I got some credit for the propane he took out of the tank. But probably not a lot. It might have been cheaper to buy a new tank if the tank was a standard upright model. But since it was a horizontal tank, this dance was necessary.

Bill

Padgett · 04-06-2016, 01:04 PM

Thank you Bill. Soapy water should tell the tale. Repair need to wait till back home. 3/8 of a bottle may last long enough. Not easy to get to when slide is out.

**mjlaupp** · 04-07-2016, 03:30 AM

The tank valves are designed to be fully closed or all the way open. The valve stem should stop leaking when the valve is opened all the way to the stop.
What I had to do with my tank valves: http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ad.php?t=12913

fourteener · 04-07-2016, 08:55 AM

Padgett,

You may want to take a look at this post also:
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...t=15313&page=2

Post #12

I believe I may be having the same problem, and may have found a fix. I'm still not sold that I have it figured out, as I was having problems again at the end of last season. So, I'm planning to brush off the igniter and orphice again this year.

I'll try to remember to circle back and let you know if it works again.

Hope this helps?