Propane heaters question 82 PT40

[mbulriss]

Kevin, Fred, and I'm sure many others......

With cold weather coming, it's very timely for this topic to arise again!

The Suburban propane heaters each have individual propane valves in
the lines going into the heaters, right on the side of the heaters.
You will have to open the heater vents or other heater front or side
access doors to see them. Make sure they are on, as well as the
master propane valve outside. Also, make sure the master gas alarm in
the coach is on or propane will not flow. You may then have to cycle
the heater thermostats several times to get the air out of the lines
after long periods of no use.

The Suburban heaters last a very long time, but they do need cleaning
every now and then. If they don't light after checking to make sure
all the valves are open and gas alarm is on, then it is very common to
have the igniters, burners and air inlets build up dirt over time,
even from lack of use. First place to check is the electronic igniter
which will build up with soot. You can remove the sight glass on the
front of the heaters and brush the igniter with an old toothbrush.
Replace the sight glass and try lighting again. You should probably
see a slightly stronger spark from the igniter when attempting to
light after that. If that doesn't get them working, then you will
have to do a little more cleaning. Seems like Ralph or Jeff did a
good write-up on this topic last year about this same time. Maybe he
can re-post it or we can find it in the archives.

Also check the air inlets/exhaust ports from the outside to make sure
that mud daubers or other critters have not gotten into them and cut
down the flow of intake or exhaust air, thereby preventing proper
ignition.

Mike Bulriss
1991 WB40 "Texas Minivan"
San Antonio, TX

P.S. Fred - I can verify the back two worked when your coach left
Texas, because I had used them in sub-freezing weather in January (or
February?) last year! Typically we only ever used the center one and
it kept the whole coach comfortable. Of course, that was in Texas! ;-)




--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, fred brown
wrote:
>
> I am having the same problem with my 86 pt 40 looking to a solution.
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----
> From: Kevin Ford
> To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Sunday, October 15, 2006 8:14:37 PM
> Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Propane heaters question 82 PT40
>
> I have an 82 PT 40 that none of the propane heaters will operate. When
> I turn up the thermostat up I can hear the electronic igniters and the
> fans blow only cold air. This is the case for all heaters so I assume
> there may be a master gas value or something somewhere that needs to be
> turned on. All my other gas appliances do operate normal.
>
> BTW, this is a great site, and I learn something new about my bird
> everyday,
>
> Thanks for your help,
> Kevin Ford
> 82 PT 40, Richmond TX
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>