Water heater on gas won't stay lit

[smokey45]

I have a 2005 trailmanor 2619, that water heater has been acting up. it starts to turn on and I can the flames for about 3 sec then it shut off. it wont stay on. What Should I check for or replace to get this unit working again. thank you for your time.. I'm using Gas/ I tried doing 120v it never get hot when the switch is on.

[LoveToCamp]

Don't know if you have a manual-light model (my first 2417 I had to light with a "torch"), or if it is self-igniting. If it is a manual-light, I had to hold my pilot button for about a minute before the thermocoupler got hot enough to keep the flame lit.

If it is self-igniting, others on here have posted items to check (cobwebs, etc), so you may do a search for "lighting water heater". Or, they may chime-in shortly.

Good luck!

[Bill]

First, if it won't heat on electric, then either you have not turned on the electric switch (inconvenient location outside the TM, see
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...&pictureid=447
or the electric heating element has been dry-fired and burned out. If the latter, not a big deal. A few bux and an hour or so of time.

If it lights automatically on gas, and you can see the flame but it goes off, then I think there are two possibilities. This assumes you have the Suburban SW6DE unit.
1. Thermocouple moved out of the flame - unlikely but possible. Easy to fix.
2. Grubby burner. In other words, soot accumulation on the burner. Scrub it gently with a small baby-bottle type brush.

Do you have the owner's manual that came with the original TM? If not, download it from the mfr's web site. Lots of good info in it.

Bill

[Kidkraz]

Debris in the burner section can cause issues. With the cover off you can see the burner section and if there's stuff blocking the end of the brass tube as it turns into the combustion chamber you won't get much if any flames. Some folks blow out the combustion chamber or supply tube with a can of compressed air. As you would when blowing off dust on a computer.
I do have a cover installed, but took it off when I took the picture.

Originally Posted by Bill

First, if it won't heat on electric, then either you have not turned on the electric switch (inconvenient location outside the TM, see
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...&pictureid=447
or the electric heating element has been dry-fired and burned out. If the latter, not a big deal. A few bux and an hour or so of time.

If it lights automatically on gas, and you can see the flame but it goes off, then I think there are two possibilities. This assumes you have the Suburban SW6DE unit.
1. Thermocouple moved out of the flame - unlikely but possible. Easy to fix.
2. Grubby burner. In other words, soot accumulation on the burner. Scrub it gently with a small baby-bottle type brush.

Do you have the owner's manual that came with the original TM? If not, download it from the mfr's web site. Lots of good info in it.

Bill

Where can you buy a electric heating element? My switch is on but does not get hot.. Have been using propane.

[TREXHUNTERS]

Smokey45,
I have a similar problem. Some of the time mine will ignite and run for a couple of minutes, then cutoff. Other times it will not ignite at all. When it does light it only gets the water somewhat warm but not hot.

So far I have removed and cleaned the burner tube and cleaned the 4 contacts on the outside. No improvement yet. I'll let you know what I find in my situation.

trex

[Burquena]

I purchased a spare on Amazon - believe it's Suburban 52079 1440W element. There is also a video on YouTube that shows how to do the installation that was great for a newbie like me. You can pick up a 1 and 1/2 inch socket at Lowe's or Home Depot for less than $10.

you may wish to test the element before taking it out. I saw a youtube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q34HJtH30Vs

that seems helpful but I am sure you can find one on RV water heaters also. If the element checks out then you could have a wiring, switch or sensor problem.

[tentcamper]

I had an issue with one of these water heaters a few yeas ago. I was lucky the issue just went away. I think the problem I had was the water heater just got to wet traveling and took several day to dry because of the humidity.

But as I remember after the flame starts it has x seconds to sense the flame. If it does not sense the flame. it will turn off and re-try x number of times before erroring out. At which time the light will stay on at the switch.

Some of the simple fixes are position of sensor in he flame and cleaning the surface of the sensor with steel wool and making sure you have a good electrical contact at the screw the holds the sensor.

look at this service pdf http://hometips.me/Mar/Suburban_Wate...ice_Manual.pdf

Originally Posted by Burquena

I purchased a spare on Amazon - believe it's Suburban 52079 1440W element. There is also a video on YouTube that shows how to do the installation that was great for a newbie like me. You can pick up a 1 and 1/2 inch socket at Lowe's or Home Depot for less than $10.

Thanks for the info...