Water heat gas switch is blowing fuse immediately

[pamela klingler]

I need help. When I turn on the gas water heater switch it immediately blows the 15amp fuse

 

[Chaps2018]

Welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear of your issue. I have had erratic behavior when we had heavy wind-blown rain recently. That said, my reply will be generic since you didnt mention a brand or if it was tank or tankless water heater.

The most likely cause of a blown fuse though is a pinched wire from the wall switch to the water heater or a bad control board.

If you are not fluent with electrical then the best course of action is to get a mobile tech.

if it were me, I would look first behind the switch panel to ensure the lugs connected to the switch are not inadvertently touching an adjacent grounded lug. If yours is a master panel with a bunch of switches it is not a trivial task and you may introduce other issues (its a rats-nest of wires back there) so unless you are experienced leave it to a mobile tech or dealer service center.

The second likely place is the control board. If it were me, I would remove the 12v feeding the gas leg of the board (effectively removing the wall switch and wiring as a variable) and put a known-good 12v source to the board from an alternate place. Again, unless you are experienced in this electrical work, leave it to a tech or dealer service center. A replacement control board should run approx $150 or less..This place has had a good reputation for quality parts. Dinosaur's Online Sales Resources

good luck and post back if you need more help or get it sorted out (helps the next one of us who might experience the problem)

 

[Scott'n'Wendy]

What kind of water heater are we dealing with? Traditional or tankless?

 

[pamela klingler]

Welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear of your issue. I have had erratic behavior when we had heavy wind-blown rain recently. That said, my reply will be generic since you didnt mention a brand or if it was tank or tankless water heater.

The most likely cause of a blown fuse though is a pinched wire from the wall switch to the water heater or a bad control board.

If you are not fluent with electrical then the best course of action is to get a mobile tech.

if it were me, I would look first behind the switch panel to ensure the lugs connected to the switch are not inadvertently touching an adjacent grounded lug. If yours is a master panel with a bunch of switches it is not a trivial task and you may introduce other issues (its a rats-nest of wires back there) so unless you are experienced leave it to a mobile tech or dealer service center.

The second likely place is the control board. If it were me, I would remove the 12v feeding the gas leg of the board (effectively removing the wall switch and wiring as a variable) and put a known-good 12v source to the board from an alternate place. Again, unless you are experienced in this electrical work, leave it to a tech or dealer service center. A replacement control board should run approx $150 or less..This place has had a good reputation for quality parts. Dinosaur's Online Sales Resources

good luck and post back if you need more help or get it sorted out (helps the next one of us who might experience the problem)

Thank you for the advice.

 

[Riverbug]

Where is the fuse for the water heater? I hadn't considered that before. It's not in the fuse panel on my RV. Is it inside behind the water heater?

 

[Chaps2018]

Good question, it's not a specific Fuse on my 12v panel either. Perhaps the Bath Fuse?

 

[RV2600RB]

Haven’t looked at ours yet, but we had the same problem with a brand new Class A Bounder. Turned out to be the circuit board, which also contained the fuse.
Rich