Chinook RV

Hi, anyone have any experience or knowledge about the Suburban NT-16-S furnace. I have read through all of the available trouble shooting guides and even called Suburban customer service (they were no help at all!) What my furnace is doing is this: when the furnace is calling for heat the fan come on after a short delay, after another short delay to purge the heat exchanger the ignition system sparks and the gas valve opens and the burner ignites. The burner stay on for a few seconds and then goes off. The trouble shooting guide say to check for the proper amperage from the spark system to the control module and if the module is receiving the proper amperage (as mine is) the the control module needs replaced. That's where I am right now, but I would like to get someone elses opinion before I order a new one, as they are expensive and no-returnable.

Thanks in advance for any help........ Alan in Ohio

I asked a friend to noodle this with me (as my furnace never went awry), and he said in his experience, the boards are known to be somewhat cheaply made, and it's not unusual for them to go bad. So replacing it is not doing something that is really unusual.

The good news is that there is a company who make "better designed" controller boards for many of our appliances (refrigerators, water heaters, furnaces, etc.). These are called Dinosaur boards. If it were me, this is what I would go for. Also, perhaps calling them could give you more confidence in your decision - they are known to be helpful (ahem, unlike others you have called).

For technical questions concerning our products, call : (541) 994-4344 M-F, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm PST

http://www.dinosaurelectronics.com/

Here is the page with the ignitor boards:

http://www.dinosaurelectronics.com/Ignitor_boards.htm

Handy reference chart for the UIB-S (which it may be, is the most common one):

http://www.dinosaurelectronics.com/UIB_Chart.htm

Thanks Blue, I can always count on you to come through for me. I had already decided that I was going to go with the Dinosaur model. I like the fact that it will automatically shut the fan off after an ignition failure.

And maybe they can help you feel at least "more confident" that you are not just throwing parts at it, by discussing the symptoms with them. From what I have heard, they are a relatively small company, and are helpful and responsive.

It's like you say, you don't mind buying a board IF it's the problem. And a better designed one feels like you are improving rather than just replacing.

When I called the number listed for Suburban's customer service department in Tennessee, I must have gotten the wrong representative, she was not at all helpful. She gave me the run around, not offering any useful help. She was insistent that I needed to take my furnace to an authorized shop. She wouldn't answer any of my questions (maybe she just didn't know enough to answer them!)
Anyhow, I went ahead and ordered a new Dinosaur control module. Hopefully it will fix my problem. Then it's on to the next challenge.

Just letting anyone who is interested know that I got my furnace fixed. The Dinosaur circuit module did the trick, Have the furnace back in, now am just putting things back together. I'm doing some little things to take all of the noise out of the operation as I can, like securing everything better. I'm also putting some 1" styrofoam insulation around the inside of the compartment, being careful as to not block any of the air vents. Hopefully that will help a little.

Excellent! Glad to hear of your success.
Now not only does it work, but you have a "better than new" board in the Dinosaur.

Thanks Blue, now I'm ready to start running some wire to my new battery location.

kyidletime wrote:I'm also putting some 1" styrofoam insulation around the inside of the compartment, being careful as to not block any of the air vents. Hopefully that will help a little.

Thanks for mentioning that.

A lot of us have curtains between the cockpit and the living space, and at least in my model, the air intake is behind the front passenger seat, and can be covered by the bottom of the curtain. (At least, I assume that's the fan intake.)

You've reminded me to shorten the curtain on that side edge plus probably put some kind of wire cage over the intake so it can't get too blocked.

Yep, mine is behind the passenger seat too Kev. The previous owners kept the windshield sun shield and waste basket stored there, totally blocking the return air return. Needless to say, I found another place for them.