Furnace Causes Smoke Detector to sound

09-09-2008, 09:33 PM

Hey!
I've got a new ( 3 weeks old) 2008 2720SL. Decided to light the furnace. Followed the instructions. Furnace kicked right on. Then the Smoke detector in the trailer goes off, and it goes off every time the furnace starts up. Not the CO/LP gas detector but the Smoke detector.

Has this happened to anyone else?

Thanks

**ShrimpBurrito** · 09-09-2008, 09:52 PM

Given that it's a new furnace, do you smell any sort of paint, lubricant, etc. that may be burning off? It may just need to burn for a bit if that's the case, although I would think that stuff would be burned off during the furnace test at the furnace and TM factories.

Dave

09-09-2008, 10:24 PM

Had the exact same experience but not until about 1:00 a.m. on the first night --- when the falling temp prompted the furnace to kick on. Don't be alarmed (no pun intended) --- this, too, will pass.
We shut off the furnace for the night and cranked it up as high as it would go the next morning (with windows and door open). We ran it continuously for at least 30 minutes and burned off whatever was in and around the combustion chamber. Seems to me --- we had one more incident but never again. I don't believe that TM suggests a burn-in for new furnaces --- but I think it's a good idea. Fire it up for more than a few minutes and let the junk burn off. Then, enjoy your little trailer. Wish you and your family the best.

09-10-2008, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric Larson

Had the exact same experience but not until about 1:00 a.m. on the first night --- when the falling temp prompted the furnace to kick on. Don't be alarmed (no pun intended) --- this, too, will pass.
We shut off the furnace for the night and cranked it up as high as it would go the next morning (with windows and door open). We ran it continuously for at least 30 minutes and burned off whatever was in and around the combustion chamber. Seems to me --- we had one more incident but never again. I don't believe that TM suggests a burn-in for new furnaces --- but I think it's a good idea. Fire it up for more than a few minutes and let the junk burn off. Then, enjoy your little trailer. Wish you and your family the best.

I think I also burned in my furnace when we bought the TM new. I wasn't actually trying to burn off stuff. I just wanted to find out if it was working correctly.

09-10-2008, 02:35 PM

When I purchased my TM from McDonough RV in McDonough GA one of the things they did while the TM was getting checked out was to power up all the systems for quite a while. I can remember the furnace being run up, (door and windows open, shelf flaps up,) until the burning oil smell was long gone . . .

**grill-n-go** · 09-10-2008, 08:10 PM

Us too. Another memorable camping moment.

My first instinct was to remove the battery from the smoke detector. Somehow reason kicked in before I was completely overwhelmed by the fumes, and decided to go for the fresh air option.

09-11-2008, 08:27 PM

Small world.

We also have a new TM and just got back from Estes Park Co. It is cool in Estes and when the furnace kicked on the alarm went off, and it would not stop.

So I did the battery removal thing. I was not smart enough to open the windows and burn the furnace. Next morning I put the battery back in and it went off again!

Went to the hardware store and replaced it.. The new one has not caused me any more problems.

Maybe TM has a bad batch.

mkiley · 10-08-2008, 08:34 PM

Us too, bought the TM from a guy in Arizona that never ran the furnace. The first time we used it, a weird smell filled the cabin and the smoke detector went off (at 3am, of course). When we got home, I did my best to clean the furnace and ran that sucker for like 45 minutes. The smell diminished and the smoke detector stopped going off. Now, no problems at all, no smell and no alarm.