Water heater issues

[jawar11715]

So our Atwood water heater was working fine and then decided not to work anymore found what looks like the thermal cutoff wire nice and crispy so looking to just get a kit to replace t stat eco and thermal wire I have the Atwood MPD93808 G10-3E 10 gallon water heater can anyone help confirm if this would be the right one to order to get this all changed out and repaired thanks everyone!

 

[CharlesinGA]

Page 36 is the beginning of the parts list for your type of water heater.

2004 Atwood water heater service manual and parts list.

 

[jawar11715]

Thank You! Does this look like the flame flared somehow? The wire burned just above where the flame is and nice black soot pattern up side of camper now I'm just nervous about it catching on fire and something worse possibly happening

 

[Rene T]

If you are not familiar with it, I would call in a RV Tech to look at it to be safe. I think you got lucky this time. That could have spread right up the wire and who knows where else it could have spread to.

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

It's odd that just the brown wires burned but not the blue or green ones. That would lead me to suspect overcurrent vs flame from the burner tube. There shouldn't be much current going through any of these wires but judging by the corrosion on that thermal fuse connection I'm not sure you could draw any conclusion other than to refurbish the thing with new thermostats, clean up the connections and test it out. I would also address the corrosion on the "air shutter", the sleeve you adjust for mixture. I see a lot of soot on your exhaust which implies the mixture isn't right, could be just dirt/rust buildup.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[Fyrflie]

Here is another resource for you.

https://techsupport.pdxrvwholesale.com/

I have not used this particular link but I have purchased parts from them in the past. Their online catalog has really good breakdowns of diagrams, part numbers, etc.

 

[jawar11715]

It's odd that just the brown wires burned but not the blue or green ones. That would lead me to suspect overcurrent vs flame from the burner tube. There shouldn't be much current going through any of these wires but judging by the corrosion on that thermal fuse connection I'm not sure you could draw any conclusion other than to refurbish the thing with new thermostats, clean up the connections and test it out. I would also address the corrosion on the "air shutter", the sleeve you adjust for mixture. I see a lot of soot on your exhaust which implies the mixture isn't right, could be just dirt/rust buildup.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

yes it was really weird that only the brown wires burned for the thermostat and thermal fuse
the camper had not been used in forever and when we put power to the water heater the other day before all this happened we noticed the flame was def burning dirty way more orange than blue and was leaving soot out the exhaust bad i tried to adjust the sleeve some but soon as i got a little blue tinge it would go back orange again. there is a lot of rust and buildup in there for sure from years of not being used i think
i ordered the new eco and thermostat with new wire as well and a new ignitor too
What would be safe to use on that sleeve to clean it up some? I was nervous that the adjustment screw was going to break off on me when i messed with it but it did okay

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

I would take the burner assembly out and clean it up on a bench. Disassemble, corrosion cleanup, damaged hardware replacement and reassemble. Something like a shotgun brass brush would clean up the sleeve and tubing. Sounds like a lot of messing around but I find doing (figurative) scorched earth repair going through things completely soundly checks the box and you have greater confidence in the result.

I went through mine a couple years ago, it went into a mode where it would heat, cycle off correctly but then wouldn't restart on it's own without turning it off and on again. Discovered that at some point the OPV leaked and corroded the two thermostats and their associated faston terminals. New OPV, thermostats and crimp connectors later, it works like a new one. Burner on mine looks perfect but here in NM there's not much humidity to promote corrosion.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM