Operation of Furnace
Printed From: r-pod Nation
Category: Forest River r-pod
Forum Name: Maintenance Issues, Tips and Tricks
Forum Description: Have you ever wondered how something works? Found a good way to do something? Discovered the hard way what NOT to do? Share them here.
URL: http://www.rpodNation.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=514
Printed Date: 23 Apr 2024 at 2:21am
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Topic: Operation of Furnace
Posted By: markn
Subject: Operation of Furnace
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 9:50am
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Can anyone give me operation instructions on the furnace? My 75 year old parents just left with our new 175 for 30 days heading toward Yellowstone and I failed to go over the furnace operation with them and they have the manuals with them. After turning on the propane, does it operate off of the AC wall controls or is there something else that needs to be done for it to ignite?
Thanks! ------------- Mark |
Replies:
Posted By: Bigbit
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 11:29am
The Owner's manual is next to useless, but attached is a JPEG of the pertinent page. I have virtually no experience operating the furnace, so others may want to chime in...
 ------------- Regards, Bigbit 2010 Trailmanor Elkmont Tow Vehicle: 2009 Buick Enclave CXL (Cliffy) |
Posted By: markn
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 11:55am
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Do you know if the blower operates off of 12V or if you have to be plugged into shore power?
Thanks for all the info! ------------- Mark |
Posted By: gepaine
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 12:02pm
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I have a 175 and have used the furnace a little. The thermostat slider on the top of the thermostat is off when in the far left position. It clicks into that position. Just move the slider to the right slowly until the furnace blower comes on. Since there are no numbers to set a temperature (just lines), you will have to use it a bit to know which line setting produces what temperature.
You just need the propane tank valve turned on and 12 Volt battery power.
Good Luck! ------------- Gene & Linda - 2007 Escalade - 24-Foot Keystone Cougar TT- Life is not just about gas mileage! |
Posted By: gepaine
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 12:14pm
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My wife reminded me to tell you a few other things:
1. The first time the furnace is used, it is likely to set off the smoke alarm due to oil and other manufacturing residue needing to burn off the furnace. I dealt with this before I had a real need for heat, by opening a couple of windows, turning on the bathroom fan, and running the furnace for 10-15 minutes. After that, no alarms anymore.
2. The convection oven may set off the smoke alarm at settings above 350 degrees. This may not happen if you use the fan to vent whatever the convection oven is putting off.
3. If you experience arcing when using the microwave oven with some foods, put a ceramic plate or any microwave safe plate on top of the plate that comes with the oven. The oven manual mentions use of this plate for popping corn, but according to Forest River, you should use a second plate to prevent arcing no matter what you are cooking. ------------- Gene & Linda - 2007 Escalade - 24-Foot Keystone Cougar TT- Life is not just about gas mileage! |
Posted By: kotasnana
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 12:24pm
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Am I the only one scared of running the furnace? |
Posted By: markn
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 12:53pm
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Thank you all for the information! ------------- Mark |
Posted By: gepaine
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 1:07pm
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The operating instructions provided above by Bigbit as well as those provided with my furnace are very confusing. Essentially, steps 1 thru 7 of the Operating Instructions call for the performance of a manual 5 minute purge of combustion gases; however, step 9 mentions a 30 second automatic purge that occurs everytime the thermostat calls for heat.
Can anyone explain why steps 1 thru 7 are necessary? Does Forest River / Suburban really expect me to crawl under my bed and remove the furnace cover (to perform the 5 minute purge) everytime I want to use the furnace? ------------- Gene & Linda - 2007 Escalade - 24-Foot Keystone Cougar TT- Life is not just about gas mileage! |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 03 Sep 2009 at 3:52pm
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Never did that with my popup's furnace. The gas valve was always "on", we just turned the thermostat on and fired away. Pun intended.
Note that the newer models have temperature markings on the thermostat. ------------- '10 Forest River R-pod 171 |
Posted By: tabkld93
Date Posted: 04 Sep 2009 at 5:39am
We intentionally used the furnace last weekend for the first time without problem. My daughter had turned it on weeks ago by mistake and took care of burning off all the manufacturing gunk and toasting the box on the floor next to the outlet
We were hooked to AC power and the propane was already on. Just slid the thermostat over and were warmed up quickly.
------------- Todd, Karen & Leah '13 Surveyor 240 '12 Ford F150 EcoBoost Former owner of 2010 R-Pod 172 |
Posted By: Outbound
Date Posted: 04 Sep 2009 at 5:48am
*grumbles* I replaced my older-style thermostat with a digital one because I didn't have a clue how warm I was setting the furnace. ------------- Craig :: 2008 Mazda Tribute :: 2009 r-pod 171, The Johnnie Ray |
techntrek wrote:Posted By: Oliver
Date Posted: 21 Nov 2018 at 1:03pm
| I have a newer model,2016 171, the furnace fired up nicely last year. It's been sitting for a while but the propane tank feels half full. Does it take a long time for the gas to reach the heater when you first turn it on? Also I put the thermostat on furnace and the AC and the furnace comes on at the same time. Just no warm air...??? |
Posted By: Oliver
Date Posted: 21 Nov 2018 at 1:38pm
| My furnace was working last year but don't know what's going on with it this year. It's a 2016 171. When I set the thermostat on furnace, the air conditioner comes on and the furnace too, but blows cold air. Does propane go bad after awhile? It feels like there is propane in the tank. Any ideas? |