atwood furnace repair

[Irish1955]

last time out with the 2014 bullet the furnace stopped working. I've spent the last two days after work removing the furnace from under the fridge(there is no exterior access door, only the exhaust vent) and basically disassembling the entire furnace to get to the limit switch buried in the middle of the unit. So far I haven't broken anything. I've ordered parts and and awaiting the pleasure of reassembling and testing the furnace hopefully with success. I guess what I would like to know is am I saving myself a lot of money or should I have just taken it to the dealer? The parts were cheap.

[dwall]

That question can not be answered until it's working. I usually try to do it myself but every now and then I look back and say, I should have payed someone. Hopefully that's not the case here. Look at the experience you are gaining. Good luck and happy camping!


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[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by Irish1955

last time out with the 2014 bullet the furnace stopped working. I've spent the last two days after work removing the furnace from under the fridge(there is no exterior access door, only the exhaust vent) and basically disassembling the entire furnace to get to the limit switch buried in the middle of the unit. So far I haven't broken anything. I've ordered parts and and awaiting the pleasure of reassembling and testing the furnace hopefully with success. I guess what I would like to know is am I saving myself a lot of money or should I have just taken it to the dealer? The parts were cheap.

How did you diagnose the issue to be the Limit switch?
How did it quit working, fan no fire, no fan??

[chuckster57]

Originally Posted by rhagfo

How did you diagnose the issue to be the Limit switch?
How did it quit working, fan no fire, no fan??

I agree. There is a procedure to diagnose which component has failed. Have you saved money? Maybe if a new limit switch does the trick, but unless you have the ability to bench test it, you may just be pulling it out again.

As a rule, we can remove a furnace and diagnose the bad component in .5 hr or less. That's the time given for warranty diagnosis.

The parts were cheap

And what's your time worth?

[Irish1955]

fan would run for 15-20 seconds and shut off. no ignition. tested the limit switch circuit with continuity tester and the circuit was closed. It is my understanding that if the limit switch is good the circuit will always be open. Of course that may not be the only problem. Thanks Chuckster57 for the time estimate. Maybe next time I will call the dealer for an estimate first. As far as my time, yes it is worth something but as dwall stated look at the experience I'm gaining. I do like to take things apart and see how they work.

[chuckster57]

Here's the basic sequence of events.
Thermostat calls for heat
12VDC is sent to the control board.
Fan is commanded to spin
If enough air movement is present the sail switch will complete the circuit back to the control board
Then the control board will check for continuity through the limit switch
If there is voltage back to the board then the gas valve opens and ignition starts.

SO if you tested for continuity across the limit switch and there was none, then that is probably the failed component.

[Irish1955]

limit switch is installed, everything reassembled, and the furnace works. There is a feeling of satisfaction when you repair something yourself. I did have 3 or 4 hours into it as it was a learning process. I am a happy camper.

[chuckster57]

As long as you learned something, it was not time wasted

[sourdough]

Congrats! As long as you learned something....and IT WORKED!!