1998 Winnebago water heater light stays on

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Laughable1

Member
Joined
Aug 24, 2018
Posts
6
Hey all-
The water heater in my 98 adventurer has been performing well. I just drove it to get the propane refilled, and after parking, switched on the water heater. At first, no amber indicator light at all. After reading the manual about lockout, we waited a bit then switched on again. This time, light on , then off as expected, as it has always done.But then a few (minutes I think) the indicator came back on and stays on. Near as I can tell, the water heater is working, but I have people staying in the RV so I am concerned that something is up.

Can anyone help?

Thanks

Paul
 
Laughable1 said:
Near as I can tell, the water heater is working,
It sounds like you're not sure if it's working. Go outside and stand next to it. Do you hear the flame burning and feel the heat coming out of the exhaust?  You may need to run some hot water out of a faucet to get the heater to start.
Maybe I misunderstood what you meant.
 
OK update, it started working almost on its own. I actually moved the rv to dump the tanks, turned off the water heater for a while and when I turned it back on it lit and then the light went off like it was supposed to. I also heard the burner kick in. So for now, crisis avoided but I am really not sure why it didn?t work for a bit. If it happens again I will try the suggestion above to run hot water out. And I really appreciate the help!. Thanks
 
You may have a sticky gas valve.  Next time it fails to light, try tapping on the side of the valve while the igniter is sparking and see if that restores the gas flow.
 
If the tapping on the gas valve doesn't help you might want to check  all your electrical connections at the water heater. Remove one at a time  and make sure your getting a good connection.
 
Gizmo100 said:
If the tapping on the gas valve doesn't help you might want to check  all your electrical connections at the water heater. Remove one at a time  and make sure your getting a good connection.

As you remove them, use a pencil eraser to clean them. Then plug them in and out several times to clean the mating connections.
 
I may try those things and a little maintenance and clean out before I get stuck in a no light situation. Hopefully it won?t happen again and thank you for all the suggestions
 
If you had your tank refilled as you indicated,, it may have gotten a gulp of air and it had to purge that air before settling down to a constant flow..>>>Dan
 
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