Use furnace without being plugged into power

In a situation where there is no electric power available could I ignite the furnace from the battery alone? I hear clicking sounds and the fan blows but only cold air. (Propane is connected and flowing.) I don't know if the furnace needs to be serviced or if there is never enough power for getting things started even with a well-charged battery.

I am hoping that one can heat the trailer for 20 to 30 minutes to take off some of the chill.

Thank you for any input.

Chris

It sometimes takes awhile for the heat to kick in---but not more than a minute or two. make sure your thermostat is set high enough, though I doubt the fan would kick on if it wasn't.

If the fan is blowing you have the power you need. The furnace fan runs off the battery though it draws a fair amount of current so leaving it on all night might draw your battery down a fair amount. If the fan goes on but not the heat-then I would say you have a furnace/propane delivery issue. You sure your propane tank is full?? I usually carry a "propane buddy" for assisting with keeping things warmer and it works well as long you have PROPER VENTILATION> It doesn't solve the furnace problem but in short term it can solve the heat problem. If it were me, I would make sure I had fuel and then look at servicing the furnace.

Rick

Thank you Rick for assuring me that the furnace should be working with a good battery. I already have a "Big Buddy" heater which indeed helps but it is a bit costly.

Thanks again,

Chris

You need to give us some more info. Does the furnace heat when plugged in to AC power? Do the stove top burners light up? The clicking you hear is the electronic igniter sparking so you know the thermostat is demanding heat but no gas is flowing. If the propane tanks have been disconnected and filled then there is air in the gas line and needes to be purged out. To do this light a stove top burner. This purges the air to that point. Then put the thermostat on heat and the temp high enough to demand heat. You will hear the blower then the clicking. If it does not light the furnace will shut down. After about 5 min cycle the system again 2 or 3 times. Each time you cycle the system more air is purged out and the furnace should light if air in the line is the problem. Spiders and bugs can get into the orifice area, plug it and prevent it from lighting. The furnace manual will tell you how to clean it. If you don't have the manual, get the manufactures name and model # off of the furnace and go online to the mfg web site, down load and copy the manual. There is also safety switches in the system and the motherboard that could be preventing it from lighting. Hope some of this helps. Let us know how it goes.

Propane Regulator?

Chris, you may have the same problem I just had, a faulty propane regulator. See my recent thread entitled "Faulty Furnace Fix."

I am away from my Funlite until X-mas thus it will be a while before I can check out your helpful suggestions. Will then report back. Thanks!

Chris

Identified a leaky hose which I need to replace first before continuing with trouble shooting..

Chris

There's also a "sail switch", I believe, in the ignition circuit that has been known to be faulty.

As others have said, you need only battery power to operate the furnace. The blower and ignition are both 12V devices. I've used mine at night with the thermostat turned low, and it didn't consume too much power.

- Jack

I am happy to report that after replacing the leaky hose the furnace fired right up. Yes, still useful during the 'chilly' Texas nights in the 40-ties.

Thank y'all for the feedback!

Chris

czwieb said:

I am happy to report that after replacing the leaky hose the furnace fired right up. Yes, still useful during the 'chilly' Texas nights in the 40-ties.

Thank y'all for the feedback!

Chris

Click to expand...

Ah, a gas flow problem. Glad to hear you got it fixed- much nicer on those chilly nights!