Air blows cold but RV furnace doesn't light

This episode is all about the Dometic Atwood RV Furnace repair. A few episodes back I had a problem with our furnace. I could hear the blower start up and cold air was blowing through the vents. A minute or two later the furnace would shut off with no heat coming through. I thought I had fixed it by hitting the reset button and jiggle wires, but all that accomplished was to temporarily jostle the sail switch by accident so it would make contact.
After extensive research I discovered that there is a common issue with the sail switch in the Dometic Atwood RV furnace. It doesn't take much to cause the switch to fail. Good news is that you can fix most problems with canned air. After blowing the dust and dog hair out of the switch, it has worked perfectly ever since. Replacing the switch is also an easy fix if you happen to have a faulty switch. Two screws, two wire connectors and a new switch for under $25. Hope this helps.
Safe Travels
Steve, Dawn, Atka and Sierra

[@razahassan811]

We replaced an old Dometic in our 36 foot camper (vented). kzbin.infoUgkxDDbPbIlwLRcX_ntp51ui5UMtAUGpHYxE The install was a simple swap, all holes lined up, the electric plug back in with no trouble. Getting it on the camper was the most "difficult" part of it, and my friend made it look easy. I've seen people "sled" them up ladders as well though. I watched a KZbin video for instructions, very easily done. Some say it doesn't come with instructions, but I found the instructions under the ac in the box. I didn't need them, but they were there.It works well to keep a 36 footer comfortable, all by itself. It doesn't seem to be any quieter than the original, but it isn't any louder either. We're very pleased with it. Esp with the ease of swapping them out.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

You are welcome

[@wisewoman7906]

I swear that first-time RV buyers should be able to attend a hands-on class to learn how to do this kind of maintenance. My furnace access is under the futon.

[@billiewright3577]

I agree. I’m having problems now. It’s snowing and no furnace.

[@mujeeb74]

*Works so well **Fastly.Cool** for rv that it only requires daytime operation until high temp and humidity are overnight. It is difficult to get to side filters, but back is easily accessible.*

[@roamwithcrystal]

This was exactly what I needed to troubleshoot my RV furnace issue. It was an easy fix and now I can get back to roaming and exploring!

[@brentallan6632]

My heater stopped working on a cold March morning and I started Googling and found this video and I’ll be darned if this wasn’t the exact problem. I’m not a handy guy. I was ready to hook it up and drive it to a dealer and wash my hands from the whole RV thing. This video was titled exactly what the problem was and was thorough and simple and now my heater works. Thank you!!!

[@HoryCow]

We nearly froze until my wife sent me the link to this video. We are warm now! God bless you!

[@oLMNOo]

Omg thank you.. 2 years later and u sir are still saving lives. I for the life of me couldn't figure it out.. ur one of the last true heros

[@bmwsag6498]

Thank you so much, I went two days of freezing before I saw your video and I am so grateful. It was unbelievable how much dog hair was trapped in there.

[@alecruzcruz9047]

*Works great **Fastly.Cool** compact and Easy to install*

[@tayloryuki6894]

You are a God send!! I was sitting in 10 degree weather running off of a generator and couldn't figure out what in the world was wrong. This worked perfectly!!! Thank you for putting this out there and for the wisdom you've shared!!

[@oLMNOo]

This man deserves some kind of medal, look at the comments on how many people he saved, many of them he saved there actual real life with this video. It's a simple switch yes but to figure out it was the issue is not simple. It's 2 years later, I today was saved from being in fridgid temps by this video. I have gone thru the whole system, never would have guessed that

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Thank you for the kind words!

[@emilyg.5042]

Sir, you just saved my sanity! I could not for the life of me figure out how to take off the cover of the furnace until your video. I was so nervous to break something. And the great camera work really made it easy to follow along cleaning the sail switch. Crazy how the smallest piece of lint could really mess up your whole furnace like that!

[@nickwilliams7173]

This fixed my camper cant thank you enough we live in MN and were living in the camper for the next 2 months till we buy another house and we have a 2 month old baby thanks for your very helpful video hats off to you sr

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Wow, wintering in MN! I am very happy have helped. 😃

[@roamwithcrystal]

This was PERFECT and exactly what I needed to solve the problem. THANK YOU!

[@Fjdjdjw]

Just bought a 2020 Courgar 366RDS and have already had to use your videos for my own repairs! So great to finally find another Cougar owner for info/DIY repairs.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad I was able to help!

[@MrMcCoy-vs6ss]

Ditto what everyone else already said. Froze my "things" off last night when the furnace failed to ignite. Fixed in 20 minutes. BAM!

[@DanDavenport-zq9se]

You nailed my problem and saved my newer camper. Everyone should know how to solve this issue. Geat job.

[@freefrankgable]

Thank you so much for taking the time to post this video. After five years the sail switch was pretty gunked up with cat hair and stuff. Easy two minute clean. Reattach switch and furnace cover and had her fixed in less than 15 minutes.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad it helped!

[@tatianameshoyrer1713]

You are a life saver. Thank you so much for this video. It's 36 degrees here and we had the same exact issue. You literally helped us out so much. ❤

[@williamdonovan3679]

Great information; you saved a spring break vacation. Like you, I thought I fixed it. I put a battery charger and generator to charge up the battery. That must have given the fan enough power. The problem is it happened again. The sail switch was the issue, not the fan. Thanks again

[@tigerlilly66]

Let me add a HUGE shout-out to you for your furnace troubleshooting video! I am still what I'd call an RV "newbie" after 19 months, but you made it easy. I had watch two similar vids, but in both of them, you couldn't see what was being done. In my case, my sail switch was just filthy and once I had cleaned it, it fired just fine. Your furnace was just like mine and very easy as I could clearly see what to do. Thank you so much! Blessings & Peace, Richard Montana

[@heathpeterson3962]

Wow!!! What a life saver! Now our heater works like a charm. Thankyou for this video. We had a fuzz bunny on that metallic plate keeping it from working properly. No more waking up to a 40 degree inside in the mornings! Can’t say Thankyou enough. May God bless you and keep you safe in your travels.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Thank you and glad I could help

[@Plekteret04]

The sailswitch(fan), limitswich has first priority. The termostat can stay on and work properly. My problem was the controlboard. The burner did cick on and off and It did not get warm inside. At last the burner did'nt work at all. Did replace the controlboard, and the burner did work again. But the temp from the ducts was still as hot as earlier. After watching videos on net, It could have be some issue with the the burner(jet) or electrode. Did disconnect the burner body and did find something inside burner jet. Did clean it and did replace the burnerhead. Now it works properly again. I think your furnace is not close to the wall as mine. I have got a short tube from the furnance that fits the short outside exhaust pipe. It was very tight . Had to clean both tubs inside and out to get a connection again. As an electrician I did measure on the harness for the controlboard before I did order a new one.

[@alikeat1347]

Thanks for this! It’s the middle of winter and your demonstration will probably help to keep me from being kicked out of the campground for using too much electricity.

[@rubenperez5589]

Thank you a thousand times!!! You just saved me in the middle of a cold snowstorm! 🙏

[@gregpexakc]

Top notch my friend... 5 minutes later my heater is back in action!

[@alsims8280]

You sir are a star! Thanks for the direct info without any fluff. Rare these days.

[@JollyRancherGeno]

Thank you so much! This is my 5th winter in an RV (second in this one), and I have never come across this issue. Fortunately, I just needed to hit the reset, but now I know the steps to take if ever that should fail. Thanks a million times again!

[@jimoakley3436]

Watched you video and fixed the problem on a new Big Foot camper.Thanks👍

[@davidmyers3623]

You Sir, are a life saver! staying in a travel trailer in Mississippi during this crazy winter freeze. your video show'd me how to clean the sail switch which was the problem now heating back up after two days thanks a bunch!!!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

So glad to help! 😀

[@jerbearp9572]

We are up in the Canadian Yukon finishing up the season at our bakery. The tip you gave just saved us, the heater has not been working for several days and we have tried everything. Your video was the answer. Thank you very much for sharing it.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad to help!

[@user-po2hs3zh9k]

This video was very helpful and easy to follow. I was quickly able to repair the furnace, which I’m certain saved me a lot of money. Thank you, Sonny

[@ricklambrecht1018]

Awesome! It was nice to KZbin something and have the 1st video come up be exactly what I was needing. Mine is in a 2001 5th wheel with access panel so I had to pull the furnace unit particularly out to see the valve. Not hard to do. We haven't used this camper in a while as we recently purchased a Seneca motorhome, so this one sat approximately 10 months or so. Blew out the switch & unit with an air-hose & it works perfect. Thank you for such great, simple, to the point advice. You just saved me a lot of frustration & potential cost of having someone else do it. Thanks, Rick

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad I was able to help! Safe Travels!

[@911jediknight911]

May you live to be 120 and have a wonderful blessed life with family and friends eating steak and lobster for posting this. Not trying to be weird just the comment section casts a big shadow.

[@albertomagana5782]

You Sr. just made me learn something new, new to the RV world, I bought me a used one with some plumbing issues that I've fixed myself, but on the furnace side, it did exactly what you described, it was the sail switch, just cleaned it and starting blowing warm air. GOD BLESS YOU.

[@acerview77ctre]

This unit doesn't take up a lot of room under my kitchen sink. I love that I have instant hot water when ever I want! Has enough capacity for my dishwasher also.

[@cdematt155]

Thanks so much! Took the new used RV out this past weekend only to find out that the furnace wasn’t working. Temps were in the mid 30s, colder than I like it. Took the furnace apart today and exactly as you mentioned - there was some hair and other debris around the sail switch. Saved me from a trip to the repair shop. Thank You Thank You Thank You.

[@janecerichard1496]

This video saved us and the rest of our summer. Thank you for taking the time to post this. This exactly solved the problem and saved us time and money.

[@ErikR-q8z]

I’m looking at same exact thing except with wasps nests! Thanks for the tutorial!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Wow! That’s crazy. Glad I could help.

[@bobt897]

Thank you for this, you showed where the switch is located, so now I know what to look for. I had hoped you hadn't cleaned it out yet, so we could see actually how much lint can get in there. We have two small dogs, a Dachshund, and a Rat Terrier. The Terrier sheds like crazy, so I'm expecting to find a lot of hair in there. Haven't used the heater much, we've had the rv for 19 months, so we'll see how much we accumulated, lol.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

It doesn’t take much, but then again we have two Siberian husky’s 😁.

[@stevenpelayo9418]

Exactly what I needed. Didn’t know which one was the sail switch. It really wasn’t that dirty, but everything’s working now.

[@scottfirman]

Good tip! I will pull mine come spring. I did find dog fur in the cabinet when I removed our cover. The micro switch for the sink was broken on our popup. Its designed to make contact when the part of the cabinet containing the sink is flipped up. If it is flipped over, it blocks the furnace and the switch is open. I have had several popups with out a switch and the replacement was $17 dollars. No one would ever run their furnace with the sink flipped over as thats usually when you are folding up the camper anyways. I just eliminated the silly switch with a jumper and shoved the wiring down inside the box.

[@genejacquesullivan1159]

Thanks for posting this Steve. You really saved my butt, so now I owe you one.

[@FadeToBlackLLC]

Uggh, mine is doing something like this. I'm going to check this as soon as I get to my destination. Crazy part is it was working just fine an hour ago. Thanks for the video.

[@stephenhayes5322]

You are so lucky that the sail switch is so easy to access. I have to pull my entire heater unit out and then pull off a couple pieces from the back of the unit. Smart design to have the sail switch easy to get to, since it's such a common failure.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

I feel for you. My son had a rig where the heater was not easy to get to as well. Had to access it from under the refrigerator. I’m glad keystone has a good design.

[@gwm6102]

I have a 2020 Keystone Cougar and getting to the sail switch is an absolute nightmare. Horrible design. I know what to look for now and will never buy a Keystone rig again. Lazy, awful construction. No thought given to actually servicing. Garbage company and product.

[@edgardoguzman2858]

Thank you Sir. You just saved us from a very cold sucky night up at Mt. Rushmore, Hill City SD. Thank you thank you thank you.

[@jaysheeks7992]

Wow, Thanks!! Just fixed my less than 1 Year old Dometic Furnace that wasn’t giving heat Thanks Again!!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad it helped!

[@SaabAholic]

I have that EXACT problem. I’ll clean the sail switch and see what happens!! 🤠👍🇺🇸

[@kalinavelez3376]

Thank you so much!!! My furnace quite blowing hot air and thanks to your instructions I was able to fix it!

[@overlandafterlife]

Thank you, sir! You said sail switch, found it on my diagram, and had it cleaned in 2 minutes. We were up and running in no time.

[@christopherb3802]

Good video! Turns out I had the same issue. Another good way to tell if the problem is coming from the sail or high limit switch is to look at the red LED light on the DSI board when the furnace fails to ignite. If it blinks once between intervals, the problem is with one of those two switches.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Thanks for the additional info.

[@rwoolman9743]

Great video, just used it at midnight in a campground here in Montana to get heat going so the wife and daughter won’t be cold in the morning when they get up!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad I can help!

[@mikemoore7241]

Thank you , you saved me from the mechanics

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad I could help!

[@anthonyrizzo7837]

You were right on the money!!!! Thank you for a simple, clear explanation to the problem! Still not sure why it failed, but had it repaired in minutes!

[@jamesmnoblesjr9062]

With your help and me paying attention, my fan blade was too far down shaft to draw sufficient air flow, blades needed adjustment, cleaned with compressed air and it’s perfect. Thanks

[@roberttipton6220]

Mostly cured thus issue by filtering cold air return. Change the (cleanable) filter every two weeks when using furnace. Noticed a big difference during maintenance. Happy Camping

[@dorasmith6796]

Thank you SO MUCH!!! I fixed it myself with your instructions! Confident and for sure dog fur caught up in it! Sail switch! I appreciate you!!

[@brianclaxton5974]

Thanks much. We thought our excursion was going to be cut short. Thanks to your research, description (It's exactly what we were dealing with) and video, the camp continues!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Awesome… glad to help

[@danr5375]

You look like a Navy man. Thanks for your service!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

I take that as a compliment but I didn’t serve in the armed forces. I was on the front lines in the classroom as a teacher. 😄

[@danr5375]

Ahh. You have the look of a Navy vet. Educated and honest. You must have been a teacher when they still taught rather than indoctrinate. Take care and happy RVing.

[@killauer]

I cant thank you enough for posting this important information!!! I have my mother in an RV distancing her away from us on our property till her house is built and her heater wouldn't turn on. It's going to be 12degrees here and all the space heaters are gone. I was freaking out and you have saved me! Took me 10 minutes to fix and she is toasty with her dog and so happy to have heat again with this freak cold front hitting. Thanks again for taking the time to explain and show us how to troubleshoot this issue. I found no help from any other online sources. Your the best! Kevin from Texas

[@ourroadtocamelot]

So glad to hear this was helpful and glad to hear your mom is doing great. All the best to your family!

[@simoatlantiquedelamerique2274]

That was very helpful... thanks so much

[@cortnis9166]

Texas just got cold and I just bought an older model. I turned on my furnace and what you explained is exactly what happened. I'm going to do this and hopefully it works! 🤞

[@msorkin]

Wow ... This was so helpful to this Newbie to RV life. Thanks for the clear direction and instructions fixing the same problem I experienced on the coldest night of the year. Bravo !!!

[@glendarussell9366]

Thank you for your video the problems with only air flow then furnace cuts off we did reset button a couple of times nothing then removed sail switch had very little lint but not much mashed metal strip to see if small tiny button underneath would mash down the heater is working again I am 75 youtube has been a blessing sometimes the Manuel’s doesnt tell u anything Thanks again

[@kimewy2749]

Thank you so much for this great video. We are on our first night of the summer camping season and the temps are quickly dropping here and with the help of this great video my husband and I were able to fix the heat. Thank you again!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

So glad to be of help. I have done a lot of research that hasn’t made it to a video yet... If you have any other questions please feel free to reach out.

[@sch55]

Thank you! Also has anyone ever told you, that you sound like John Goodman?... that's a compliment, its so crazy, how similar you sound

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Actually this is the first time. I do like his voice though.

[@eightVALERIEeight]

Well, there was the slightest bit of cat hair to remove under the sail switch, I didn't wiggle any wires or flip the reset switch, and lo and behold...out came the warm air. Hopefully it will do the same early tomorrow morning when the temperature drops. Thanks, you gave me the confidence to open up that panel and check the sail switch.

[@PenCapsandBandAids]

Thank you sir! I think this is what’s wrong with my rig, it’s my second night as a proud new owner and your video was extremely helpful! 🤩

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad I could help!

[@BenWilder]

This helped tremendously, thank you so much!

[@yncr18]

Saved my bacon! Thank you so much!

[@arcomotors]

Thank you informative and straight to the point.

[@manyowefew1]

Thank you very much! Tonight will be much warmer!

[@candikyca4499]

Thank you!! We got charged $80 for this same issue last year! Happened again tonight.. saw your video and within 5 minutes we have heat!

[@jacob1136788]

I had the exact problem you did and my sail switch was super clean and moved up and down with no hesitation. And I’m still having the same problem. If any one knows would help a lot

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Do you have a multimeter to test the sail switch? It might look clean and moves freely but it”s possible it’s not making a connection. This is easy to test with a cheap multimeter. If the switch is good then you need to check the gas line or the circuit board.

[@01mymichi]

same issue for us...a brand new 2022 Dutchman Astoria Platinum. Cleaned sail switch, worked for a day and stopped working again.

[@patconnors1514]

THANK YOU! Fix ours this morning. You probably saved us a couple of hundred dollars 👍

[@chubbydamron672]

Many Thanks! Knew it was something simple!

[@nicolesimonini6483]

Thank you for this video!

[@jimbutchko8855]

Thanks your video helped me to fix my heater with the same issue. My sail switch was not as easy to check because it was mounted on the inside cover of the fan unit. I had to take the entire cover off. The metal sail was bent and stuck so I straightened it out and it worked great! We now have a warm night ahead!

[@calenwells1462]

This was exactly my problem on a 1996 Suburban SF-30. There was an accumulation of link that must have been the culprit. Thank you!

[@jjsroofing860]

Well explained. Thank you.

[@aarongoodwin4845]

That's exactly what mine is doing! Thanks!

[@carinapowers8233]

Thank you so much! Our heater just did this the other night and your video helped so much! I cleaned it and it works perfect now. Appreciate it!!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad to help!

[@Raistlin1929]

Worked like a charm! Thank you so very much!

[@lepyisms3424]

Hit the nail on the head! Thank you Sir!

[@earljgardinier]

My sail switch was clean... So still working the problem. Thanks for your info though.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Check your gas lines. That could give you the same symptoms

[@baricuthbertson6484]

I really liked your explanation it was easy to understand. Thanks

[@davegraves924]

SAVED MY LIFE BUD! THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH!

[@HomeARoam]

Very nicely done. This really helped us troubleshoot our own RV furnace troubles. It wasn't our sail switch, but those things are really finicky. In our case, it ended up being the control board. Swapped in a new one, and we were nice and warm and cozy again!

[@1bigrowdy]

I have hot blowing in rear zone cold blowing if front zone

[@juanheraz7347]

Thank you my man for my family is warm in our RV once again

[@JamesMcAuliffe-er5yy]

We have a dog too. Just as you said sail switch had just a few dog hairs on it that wouldn’t let the limit switch close. I was ready to buy a circuit board. The red light was only flashing once in 3 seconds indicating an air flow fault. I ended up buying 2 sail switches with covers on Amazon for $16. Thx for the info!!

[@nagillig]

Great job, saved me having to pay a service tech to come out. Thanks

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad to help

[@jimwinn8064]

Awesome advice thank you! My 2019 Montana 3121RL these symptoms started and sure enough this advice saved me service call, furnace is working great. Thanks!

[@zena1976]

Thank you for your video. I just checked my sail switch and it had lint wrapped around it. I don't have pets but dust & lint happens in my Class C. Once cleaned, it turned on perfectly. I'll purchase a backup sail switch, just in case. Thanks

[@reciprocaljustice]

Thank you so much! It seems to have fixed the problem! Have a nice trip to Camelot! Good day :-)

[@KEG2071]

I will be trying this tomorrow !!! Thank you!!!

[@grantgreisigeriii7466]

Very helpful. Thank you for the knowledge and getting straight to the point

[@brucelee2590]

Thank you! My sail switch had a tiny bit of lint. After cleaning it, it works fine now.

[@leoseverson5504]

Awesome! So helpful, so detailed, yet concise. Great video!

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Thank you... glad to help

[@MReeb-nq9pd]

I’m not even done with the video yet but thank you. You are very thorough.

[@ourroadtocamelot]

Glad to help!

[@FlaxForFlux]

Thank you! This resolved my issue of the fan coming on but not the heater. There was some cloth fiber/hair on the sail switch. Cleaned it off and works perfectly now.