Furnace not working

The Atwood furnace is not functioning - just makes a clicking noise so I opened the cover and see that it is throwing a code. As it is less than a year old I contacted Atwood to locate a nearby service center.  When I called the service center I was told to be prepared to have to pay in excess of $100 just to have the furnace hooked up to a diagnostic machine.  I did proceed to make the appointment but called Atwood back and questioned if I would be responsible for this and was told "no", that because it was an authorized service center and still under warranty I am not responsible.  Any suggestions on how to not be "taken to the cleaners" at my appointment next week?  Thanks in advance.

Sometimes the person you talk to on the phone has only a limited supply of responses to questions asked, warranty or otherwise.  I would ask for the service manager and relay what you have said here.  If they are an authorized Atwood service center, it should be a no brainer.   

Take a copy of your invoice or other proof of purchase with you.  When you get there clearly tell the tech or service writer that this is warranty work and you already spoke with Atwood.

The $100 charge is most likely standard verbiage in case it is NOT covered by warranty.  Which could be because it is no longer under warranty, shows evidence of being modified or damaged, or because of improper installation.

I always make a point of stating up front when I expect warranty work, that lets everyone know what I expect to happen and they can start the process to file their work claim with Atwood.

I agree with Jatrax - make sure you have your paperwork and make it clear you ARE NOT going to pay since it is under warranty. You should be able to get a written quote to that effect. I am aware of two common problems with the Atwood Furnace. First is the igniter - here's our tale of woe http://forum.phoenixusarv.com/index.php/topic,1717.0.html on that one. Second is the mother board. It's hard to tell if all the mother board replacements were needed as that is a larger repair cost so some shops may have replaced the mother board when it was actually the igniter. They get paid more. Someone on the forum went through the whole deal replacing mother board first, problem remained, replaced igniter and all was well. Our furnace has not acted up since we got the igniter replaced.

I can't recall if it is in our referenced post above but Atwood does not pay the service guys for warranty work until they send the damaged/replaced part back to Atwood and it is inspected. This by itself makes the service guy want to get the cash from you up front.

Is it just me or do others long for the good ole days when all these rv appliances were simple?  Furnaces didn't have a "motherboard".  They had mechanical controls that seemed to never fail.  Air conditioners were a compressor and a coil or two.  They never had problems.  It just seems to me these things have gotten TOO complex and vulnerable.  Our first RV water heater was lit with a match!

Remember that old Sears Roebuck washing machine or dishwasher that lasted twenty years and had mechanical dials?   I don't mean to live in the past but all these safety/convenience/expensive devices just tend to devolve into hassle IMO.  But I guess we have no choice......or go buy a twenty year old rig and restore it. 

Paul

Yes I'm glad I retired dinosaur in this age when you need a computer  to run diagnostics on something. And getting the rath from a irate costumer after charging them $250 for a circuit board the looks like it only cost $5 to make. 

Yep!  When we first started renting RV's in the late 60's, most of the systems were residential!
Bullet proof, never fail.  The chassis and drive trains on those rigs were another story though.

Thank you all for your helpful suggestions.  I contacted another service center today and they are willing to accept the Atwood warranty.  Appointment set for Friday.   

Update on my furnace issue - It was the motherboard.  Technician showed me the corrosion before calling Atwood and requesting a replacement.  Yesterday I had the new motherboard installed which included an adaptation to locate it upside down, hopefully keeping it dry.  I am very pleased with the service I received from S&S Mobile RV and Atwood's quick response.

Excellent result! So glad you were able to get it fixed with little pain. Good service is hard to find so hang onto their number.

Just a generalization here.

If a circuit board is corroded, you can clean off the corrosion and reuse the circuit board as long as the terminals are in good condition after the cleaning.  I have done it numerous times on circuit boards that get damaged from corrosion.  When you are done with your cleaning process, just rinse well with warm tap water, followed by a final rinse with distilled water, shake off the worst of it, and let the circuit board sit to dry for a day.  When you reassemble, squeeze some silicone grease into the connectors and connect them so the grease oozes out.  Then you are great shape and it cost you nothing but your time.  They sell special corrosion cleaning products to clean circuit boards, but I use household CLR.

My job for 38 years was designing circuit boards and specifying production processes for them, including the cleaning process.  Many years ago before the EPA cracked down ozone depletion, circuit boards were cleaned with freon to clean off the flux.  The environmental solution was to use a water soluble flux and the boards get cleaned with a purified water and then dried.

So, as long as the circuit board is well rinsed of your cleaning agent like CLR, and properly dried, it's generally a very safe process.  Remember, I am talking about circuit boards, not complete assemblies like an assembled cell phone or camera for example.  The circuit board must be removed, then cleaned & dried, then reassembled back into it's purpose.  In the rare case example of an RV water heater with the circuit board in plain view, you should be able to clean the terminals without removing the circuit board.  But then first disconnect your batteries so assure there is no power in the area.

I once bought a headed to a junk yard dead 1991 Mercury Capri which had open-to-the-environment non-sealed electrical connectors under the hood that were corroded.  After my cleaning process and silicone grease protection to every connector, that cute little turbo convertible was back in full reliable service.