Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 

Go Back   Keystone RV Forums > Keystone Tech Forums > Repairs & Maintenance
Click Here to Login

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 01-08-2019, 11:23 AM   #1
Eddie A.
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Olympia
Posts: 67
Furnace Issues

I have a brand new 2019 Cougar 29BHSWE and on the first two trips we have had the following issues with the Dometic furnace:

Trip 1 - furnace ran the night before we planned to leave and the next morning it wouldn’t operate at all, no fan, no ignition, no nothing. Fix was to pull the fuse and put it back in. Furnace fired right up and ran fine. This was over Thanksgiving to MOAB with lows in the 30’s at night.

Trip 2 - this was a longer trip over Christmas and New Years where we traveled to Death Valley, Anaheim, and finally Las Vegas. Furnace worked fine u till the last two days of the trip in Vegas where temps were averaging mid 30s again at night. I did goof and run out of propane so both tanks were disconnected for about a half hour while I got them refilled. After the refill is when the problems began. All other propane appliances (the stove) worked fine, but at this point the furnace blower would kick on but furnace wouldn’t lite. At first I left the unit off for a little over an hour and then the furnace worked for one cycle, but went back to blower but no ignition. At this point I used space heaters over the next two days to manage heat.

Took my unit back to CW when I got back and now they tell me the furnace is running fine and they can’t replicate the issues I had. They have been running it here in Utah with highs each day in the mid 30’s and lows into the teens. I was thinking it’s a bad igniter or board on the furnace based on my trouble shooting and the way the furnace acted, but without being able to replicate the issue, CW can’t do anything for meNeedless to say, I don’t have much trust in this furnace now.

Have any of you had any similar experiences and how did you handle it? Any ideas on what the issue might be?

Thanks
__________________
2017 Cougar Xlite 29BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 4x4 Platinum CM
5.7L V8 w/ 4.10 gears
Eddie A. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-08-2019, 11:44 AM   #2
Ken / Claudia
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Fruitland
Posts: 3,357
What are you using for a power source when it was having problems?
If you have a bad igniter or board I think they will quit. Not work for you but at CW. My board failed about the 3rd trip use. It not longer worked until they took it out, tested and replaced it. The fan worked but the propane never came on with mine.
When you refill or turn on propane tanks you must turn the valves on slowly.
I learned years ago, when I put refilled tanks back on I run the stove top for a long time, say 10 minutes. Before ever attempting the furnace. Other wise it may not work.
You said the stove top worked fine, how long of test did you do?
Your description sounds to me like not enough electric power or no propane.
That's my guess. If it was me, I would make sure the batteries are at full charge even if using shore power and the propane is really flowing as it should.
__________________
2013 24RKSWE (27ft TT) Cougar 1/2 ton series SOLD 10-2021
2013 Ford F350 4x4 CC 6.7 engine, 8 ft bed, 3.55 rear end, lariat package
Retired from Oregon State Police in 2011 than worked another 9.5 years as a small town traffic cop:
As of 05-2020, I am all done with 39 years total police work. No more uniforms for me.
Ken / Claudia is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-08-2019, 11:58 AM   #3
Eddie A.
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Olympia
Posts: 67
Furnace Issues

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken / Claudia View Post
What are you using for a power source when it was having problems?
If you have a bad igniter or board I think they will quit. Not work for you but at CW. My board failed about the 3rd trip use. It not longer worked until they took it out, tested and replaced it. The fan worked but the propane never came on with mine.
When you refill or turn on propane tanks you must turn the valves on slowly.
I learned years ago, when I put refilled tanks back on I run the stove top for a long time, say 10 minutes. Before ever attempting the furnace. Other wise it may not work.
You said the stove top worked fine, how long of test did you do?
Your description sounds to me like not enough electric power or no propane.
That's my guess. If it was me, I would make sure the batteries are at full charge even if using shore power and the propane is really flowing as it should.


Thanks for your reply! While I was having issues, I was on shore power showing 13.7v, so I ruled out a low voltage issue. The morning we woke up cold and realized the furnace wasn’t working, I was frying steak and eggs for breakfast, so I’d say the stove and oven were running for about 20-30 mins whilst I was trouble shooting the furnace.

I did not turn the propane valves on slowly when I reattached the tanks, so maybe that was the issue, but it persisted over two days of using propane for the stove and oven so I didn’t think that would be the issue because any air in the propane line must have surely been purged by this point
__________________
2017 Cougar Xlite 29BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 4x4 Platinum CM
5.7L V8 w/ 4.10 gears
Eddie A. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-08-2019, 02:05 PM   #4
TDLyver
Junior Member
 
TDLyver's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Portland
Posts: 7
If you have the In-Command board that controls your Dometic furnace, the furnace will not work if the ambient air temperature is 40 degrees F or less in the coach. If you warm up the sensor, the furnace will run. Its an issue 2019 Cougars, and maybe others.

If this is the issue, your dealer will need to replace the Dometic Gateway Board.

I just had mine done and all is working great again.
__________________
Troy and Lisa
2019 Cougar 29RLD
2005 Chevy Silverado 2500HD Duramax
Previous 1982 23' Wilderness (w/Bunks)
TDLyver is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-08-2019, 05:10 PM   #5
Eddie A.
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Olympia
Posts: 67
Quote:
Originally Posted by TDLyver View Post
If you have the In-Command board that controls your Dometic furnace, the furnace will not work if the ambient air temperature is 40 degrees F or less in the coach. If you warm up the sensor, the furnace will run. Its an issue 2019 Cougars, and maybe others.

If this is the issue, your dealer will need to replace the Dometic Gateway Board.

I just had mine done and all is working great again.


I do have the In-Command board controlling the furnace. I’ll present this info to CW and see how they respond. Thanks!
__________________
2017 Cougar Xlite 29BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 4x4 Platinum CM
5.7L V8 w/ 4.10 gears
Eddie A. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-08-2019, 08:20 PM   #6
bobbecky
Senior Member
 
bobbecky's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Box Elder
Posts: 2,898
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eddie A. View Post
Thanks for your reply! While I was having issues, I was on shore power showing 13.7v, so I ruled out a low voltage issue. The morning we woke up cold and realized the furnace wasn’t working, I was frying steak and eggs for breakfast, so I’d say the stove and oven were running for about 20-30 mins whilst I was trouble shooting the furnace.

I did not turn the propane valves on slowly when I reattached the tanks, so maybe that was the issue, but it persisted over two days of using propane for the stove and oven so I didn’t think that would be the issue because any air in the propane line must have surely been purged by this point
If you did not open the cylinder valve very slowly after getting it filled, it does not matter how long you used propane in the stove, the excess flow valve would still be set inside the pigtail and restricting gas flow, and the only way to reset that valve would be to turn off the cylinder or cylinders, remove the pigtails, re-attach the pigtails, and then VERY SLOWLY open the cylinder valves. That prevents the valve from operating which is what it would do if the pigtail or some other place in the line were to break causing a rapid flow of gas, beyond what would normally be seen in the system.
__________________
Bob & Becky
2012 3402 Montana
2012 Chevy 2500HD D/A CC
bobbecky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-15-2019, 07:20 PM   #7
Eddie A.
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Olympia
Posts: 67
UPDATE: CW said they couldn’t reproduce the issue and that the furnace was running properly and my unit was ready for pickup. So I go to pick up my unit and having learned from the wisdom here I checked the furnace operation...low and behold, it’s doing the same thing that it was when I brought it in! So, I go and get the warranty service manager to show him that the furnace is still not operating properly and now we’ve confirmed, I’m not crazy. Now they took the furnace out to bench test it and found the culprit...a faulty sail switch [emoji1748]*[emoji3603]. Now it’s on order and should get my trailer back in a couple of weeks.
__________________
2017 Cougar Xlite 29BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 4x4 Platinum CM
5.7L V8 w/ 4.10 gears
Eddie A. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-15-2019, 07:36 PM   #8
sourdough
Site Team
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: W. Texas
Posts: 17,600
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eddie A. View Post
UPDATE: CW said they couldn’t reproduce the issue and that the furnace was running properly and my unit was ready for pickup. So I go to pick up my unit and having learned from the wisdom here I checked the furnace operation...low and behold, it’s doing the same thing that it was when I brought it in! So, I go and get the warranty service manager to show him that the furnace is still not operating properly and now we’ve confirmed, I’m not crazy. Now they took the furnace out to bench test it and found the culprit...a faulty sail switch [emoji1748]*[emoji3603]. Now it’s on order and should get my trailer back in a couple of weeks.

Eddie, thanks for the followup. For anyone thinking they will just accept the dealer's comments that "everything is fine" before picking up....please don't. I, and most, if not the majority, have been told that only to find that the problem is still there. Trust....but verify....multiple times if necessary!!
__________________
Danny and Susan, wife of 56 years
2019 Ram 3500 Laramie CC SWB SB 6.4 4x4 4.10
2020 Montana High Country 331RL
sourdough is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-15-2019, 07:39 PM   #9
Eddie A.
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Olympia
Posts: 67
Quote:
Originally Posted by sourdough View Post
Eddie, thanks for the followup. For anyone thinking they will just accept the dealer's comments that "everything is fine" before picking up....please don't. I, and most, if not the majority, have been told that only to find that the problem is still there. Trust....but verify....multiple times if necessary!!


Absolutely! As I told the Warranty Service Manager, “I understand you can’t fix what you can’t reproduce, but that doesn’t help me. What I know is that I was without heat for two days on my last trip and I want to be able to trust my furnace!”
__________________
2017 Cougar Xlite 29BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 4x4 Platinum CM
5.7L V8 w/ 4.10 gears
Eddie A. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-16-2019, 12:35 PM   #10
flybouy
Site Team
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Joppa, MD
Posts: 11,714
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eddie A. View Post
Absolutely! As I told the Warranty Service Manager, “I understand you can’t fix what you can’t reproduce, but that doesn’t help me. What I know is that I was without heat for two days on my last trip and I want to be able to trust my furnace!”
Happy your getting it fixed. What I have found works for me both with vehicle and campers is to drag the service manager out when I bring the unit in for service and show/demonstrate the problem so they understand going in and can properly communicate to the tech what the issue is. YMMV
__________________
Marshall
2012 Laredo 303 TG
2010 F250 LT Super Cab, long bed, 4X4, 6.4 Turbo Diesel
flybouy is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 01-21-2019, 09:52 AM   #11
24vctd
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Posts: 19
Furnace info

Quote:
Originally Posted by Eddie A. View Post
I have a brand new 2019 Cougar 29BHSWE and on the first two trips we have had the following issues with the Dometic furnace:

Trip 1 - furnace ran the night before we planned to leave and the next morning it wouldn’t operate at all, no fan, no ignition, no nothing. Fix was to pull the fuse and put it back in. Furnace fired right up and ran fine. This was over Thanksgiving to MOAB with lows in the 30’s at night.

Trip 2 - this was a longer trip over Christmas and New Years where we traveled to Death Valley, Anaheim, and finally Las Vegas. Furnace worked fine u till the last two days of the trip in Vegas where temps were averaging mid 30s again at night. I did goof and run out of propane so both tanks were disconnected for about a half hour while I got them refilled. After the refill is when the problems began. All other propane appliances (the stove) worked fine, but at this point the furnace blower would kick on but furnace wouldn’t lite. At first I left the unit off for a little over an hour and then the furnace worked for one cycle, but went back to blower but no ignition. At this point I used space heaters over the next two days to manage heat.

Took my unit back to CW when I got back and now they tell me the furnace is running fine and they can’t replicate the issues I had. They have been running it here in Utah with highs each day in the mid 30’s and lows into the teens. I was thinking it’s a bad igniter or board on the furnace based on my trouble shooting and the way the furnace acted, but without being able to replicate the issue, CW can’t do anything for meNeedless to say, I don’t have much trust in this furnace now.

Have any of you had any similar experiences and how did you handle it? Any ideas on what the issue might be?

Thanks
This YouTube link has some good info on furnaces https://youtu.be/N-zqTLjG7qA
24vctd is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-22-2019, 08:22 AM   #12
jimthemosaicguy
Member
 
jimthemosaicguy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: Carrollton
Posts: 74
I have a ‘16 furzion 416 and had a Similar problem when the outside temp dropped however the blower wouldn’t even come in. I randomly placed a small tornado space heater on the floor in area of the thermostat to face towards the sofa And sure enough I haven’t had a problem since. I thought keep the space heater temp low enough for the furnace to kick in to make sure the cargo area etc stays warm.
jimthemosaicguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-26-2020, 11:40 AM   #13
TTPRITCHARD
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2020
Location: Nahsville
Posts: 5
2019 Cougar 1/2 with IN·Command - faulty furnace

I have a brand new 2019 Cougar 26rks with a faulty furnace or system running the furnace. I set iN·Command to 75 degrees, inside is about 56, fan turns on, fire kicks on, I can feel hot air blowing, it runs for about 1 minute just fine than then - fan starts skipping, fuse blinking and ...buzzing alarm for off. I have tired every troubleshooting in the book, gas lines, changing temperature in thermostat to higher, lower, set it on heat and auto.... same outcome everytime. Any one experiencing this issue?
TTPRITCHARD is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-03-2020, 06:22 PM   #14
Craigcounty
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: Eagle rock
Posts: 7
Quote:
Originally Posted by TTPRITCHARD View Post
I have a brand new 2019 Cougar 26rks with a faulty furnace or system running the furnace. I set iN·Command to 75 degrees, inside is about 56, fan turns on, fire kicks on, I can feel hot air blowing, it runs for about 1 minute just fine than then - fan starts skipping, fuse blinking and ...buzzing alarm for off. I have tired every troubleshooting in the book, gas lines, changing temperature in thermostat to higher, lower, set it on heat and auto.... same outcome everytime. Any one experiencing this issue?
I am having similar issues with a DFMD35121. Sometimes it will run fine but not often. I seem to have low exhaust pressure too. I did notice what I think are install issues with mine and am wondering if contributing to the trouble
1. Install manual says to have furnace tight against wall, it is spaced a half inch away.
2. Supposed to have 3 or 4 four inch ducts, keystone installed 1 four inch and 2 two inch

Could the furnace have restricted airflow and is shutting down?
Craigcounty is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-03-2020, 06:27 PM   #15
Eddie A.
Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Location: Olympia
Posts: 67
Mine turned out to be a bad sail switch. After my second trip back to CW I tried running it before hooking up and low and behold, it still didn’t work although they were telling me they ran it fine for two days [emoji34]. Anyhow, I had my suspicions, so I insisted that they remove the furnace and bench test it to find the culprit.
__________________
2017 Cougar Xlite 29BHS
2014 Toyota Tundra 4x4 Platinum CM
5.7L V8 w/ 4.10 gears
Eddie A. is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-03-2020, 07:27 PM   #16
LHaven
Senior Member
 
LHaven's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: Wickenburg
Posts: 3,271
Quote:
Originally Posted by TTPRITCHARD View Post
I have a brand new 2019 Cougar 26rks with a faulty furnace or system running the furnace. I set iN·Command to 75 degrees, inside is about 56, fan turns on, fire kicks on, I can feel hot air blowing, it runs for about 1 minute just fine than then - fan starts skipping, fuse blinking and ...buzzing alarm for off. I have tired every troubleshooting in the book, gas lines, changing temperature in thermostat to higher, lower, set it on heat and auto.... same outcome everytime. Any one experiencing this issue?
The fuse is blinking???

That kinda narrows it down right there. I'd look for a DC wiring fault, which unfortunately could include a fault on the control board.
__________________
2019 Cougar 26RBSWE
2019 Ford F-250
LHaven is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2020, 12:48 PM   #17
TTPRITCHARD
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2020
Location: Nahsville
Posts: 5
Quote:
Originally Posted by TTPRITCHARD View Post
I have a brand new 2019 Cougar 26rks with a faulty furnace or system running the furnace. I set iN·Command to 75 degrees, inside is about 56, fan turns on, fire kicks on, I can feel hot air blowing, it runs for about 1 minute just fine than then - fan starts skipping, fuse blinking and ...buzzing alarm for off. I have tired every troubleshooting in the book, gas lines, changing temperature in thermostat to higher, lower, set it on heat and auto.... same outcome everytime. Any one experiencing this issue?
Took it for a warranty repair, and it looks like it was the sail switch. Seems very difficult to reach and change easily for something that can go out so often. We are keeping a MR heater in the camper just in case, but so far It is working.
TTPRITCHARD is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2020, 01:52 PM   #18
LHaven
Senior Member
 
LHaven's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: Wickenburg
Posts: 3,271
I'm rapidly becoming disenchanted with mine.

This winter, when I had guests in my 2019 Cougar, the furnace stopped working -- again, after having been repaired last summer. It would turn on, the fan would come up to speed, no sparking heard, then eventually the fan would shut off. Plenty of propane.

Brought it in just before COVID hit, since it was still under Dometic (not Keystone) warranty. My dealer said there was nothing wrong with the furnace, it just needed an annual cleaning, which was my responsibility, so he charged me.

Went on a three-day trip upstate to Flagstaff last month, where we needed the furnace overnight, and it did the exact same thing. Luckily, I keep a ceramic heater in the rig, so our little one didn't chill overnight.

Since I had to pick the rig up right at the start of quarantine, when everybody was antsy about everything, I didn't insist he demonstrate to me then and there that the furnace was operational -- we were both intent on getting away from each other as quickly as possible. My mistake, I see. Never tested it myself before the trip north because by the time I picked it up it was already in the mid-80s here.

My dealer seems to exhibit a pattern of "service" whereby we bring something in for warranty work, they claim the problem couldn't be found, or was something different, and instead of not charging me for fixing it, they charge me for not fixing it. I think it's time they met my leetle frien', "Yelp."
__________________
2019 Cougar 26RBSWE
2019 Ford F-250
LHaven is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
furnace

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Keystone RV Company or any of its affiliates in any way. Keystone RV® is a registered trademark of the Keystone RV Company.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 03:45 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.