Furnace Maintenance?

[Andy+Mo]

I have a 2017 Reflection 5th wheel (303RLS) and am wondering if the furnace needs any type of maintenance. I have never had any performed and am wondering if it is performing well. We traveled from Cleveland to Florida a week ago with some very cold temps. The furnace seemed to run almost non-stop our first night (15 degrees). Granted, it was 5 degrees at home when we left so the cabin was frozen solid when we left. I am guessing the box was like a freezer and just couldn't warm up. Second night was better a bit south but I think overall we went through 1.5 tanks of propane. Also, what about using a supplementary heat source inside. The first night we had full shore power, night two we only had a 120 volt support at a friends home.

[Jlawles2]

Depending on if you plan on using water in the unit or not will determine if you can use alternative heating sources. The furnace heats the underside of the camper to help keep the waterlines thawed out. In our 303 I have set the fireplace on HIGH and an additional 1500W portable fan heater in the bathroom to keep the unit comfortable (temps were only in the mid to upper 20F range).

[Cate&Rob]

Hi Andy,

Typically the furnace either runs or doesn’t. If the sound of the burner and blower seem to be “normal” the furnace is probably operatiing correctly. Where there can be problems is with the ductwork connections. There is a main duct coming out the bottom of the furnace and going to the island . . . not much can go wrong with this. There is a 4” flexible duct connecting to the bedroom ductwork and a 2” flexible duct going into the underbelly. By removing the aft wall of the pass through storage area, you can access the back of the furnace to see that these ducts are properly connected and not crushed. I replaced the original soft flex 4” duct with more rigid aluminum ductwork. In the process of doing this I discovered that the hole cut in the overhead bedroom duct was much smaller than the 4” duct feeding it. I corrected this.

Rob

[Andy+Mo]

Joseph - when we were traveling we did not need water as we were winterized. I was going to try and flush the system the first night in Kentucky but it was too cold. And, I noticed my clean-out valve was packed with ice so I could not dump the next morning anyway. I could have used the main cabin electric heater (fireplace) as we had shore power but I was nervous about leaving it on overnight. Perhaps a little portable heater in the bathroom would have sufficed. But, what if I only have 120 volt support?

Rob - I will have to take a look at the duct connections but the airflow feels pretty solid. I will have time here in Florida to peel back the aft wall. The bedroom duct cranks out the heat. I did notice the sound seemed different when it was running on that really cold night. Just sounded a little different...maybe higher pitched sound? But it seems to be fine now. We pulled in the main cabin slides before bed because we wanted to get off early. I thought that reducing the space might help with the heating but maybe not? The entire box was pretty darn cold. We left Cleveland in single digits and then drove all day -- wind chill probably kept the camper cold.

[Cate&Rob]

Hi Andy,

We have learned to “trust” our fireplace electric heater. We often leave it on overnight. Will keep interior temps reasonable down to the mid 40s.

Rob

[Andy+Mo]

That's a good word. I will give er a shot the next time we need the heat and have shore power. I am thinking it will be too much for 120 volt hook up.

[guest2]

Just FYI, the owners manual for our coach says it’s not designed for use in freezing or below freezing conditions without additional precautions.
BTW, the fireplace in our previous RV was used overnight with no issues.
Rich

[Jlawles2]

Set the fireplace temp to a lower number if you are a bit nervous so it does cycle. Also use the small portable heater in the main area with bathroom and bedroom door closed to bring the big area up in temp first, then aim for the sleeping area.

As for shore power, 120V on 30 amps is approx 3600 watts. The fireplace is 1500 watts, and the small heaters you can usually get one with 3 settings. 500 watts, 1000, watts, and 1500 watts. When you first setup and everything is still in the process of recovering from the days travel (battery charger running etc,) run the small portable heater on the lowest setting. As things normalize up the wattage to say 1000, then about bedtime when everything should be stabilized, then up it to max. (Ive done this on 30 amp service).

If you are on 15 amp service, that really limits you as to what you can do. Then run the fireplace OR the portable heater, but not both.

[Andy+Mo]

Thanks for the guidance on the heater. I have a little portable one back home. May look for another for the camper.

[Scott'n'Wendy]

If you were so inclined...and most people aren't....I could see blowing out the burner tube with air and vacuuming out the furnace housing of moths, dust, dead spiders etc. Other than that, it's as Rob says. Run it till it doesn't.

[Reacher]

Other than regular vacuuming the supply and return vents, this video may be of some help:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0e5JRo1bn7A

[Andy+Mo]

Thanks, I will check it out!