hello I have a 3 year old caribe cgth=40 radiant heater that gets to about 9 degrees c then shuts down even when the thermostat is at 25 I have changed the thermostat and even bypassed the thermostat and it still does the same thing and once it shuts down if you unplug it or turn the thermostat down then up again the fan will restart but wont ignite then shuts down again after about one minute. the only way to get it heating again is to wait about 5 minutes then unplug it and plug it back in or turn the thermostat down then up again but even then it will only run for about 5 minutes then you have to do the process over again. can anybody help me with a solution to my problem. I need my heater as I do autobody work in my shop and its freezing in there. please help. anybody
radiant shutting down
- Thread starter crazyeyes
- Start date
crewchief888
Well-known member
this unit fired with nat gas or propane?
crewchief888
Well-known member
bad thermocouple?
that'd be my guess.
that'd be my guess.
crewchief888
Well-known member
the thermocouple is the small probe that runs from the gas valve to the pilot light.
basically a temp sensor
ive changed a few of them over the years on hot water heaters and my boiler.
$25 or so at a big box store.
basically a temp sensor
ive changed a few of them over the years on hot water heaters and my boiler.
$25 or so at a big box store.
A quick glance online leads me to believe that your unit uses a spark ignition. If it uses a spark igniter you need to clean the pilot, related, wiring and check the gap. Most now use the same wire that sends the spark out from the ignition module to also sense the pilot flame. If the probe or ceramic base or wire gets all sooted up it can give a dielectric value that is incorrect and the ignition module will consider this a flame loss or out of range value. if the gas control module senses flame loss it will run another ignition sequence and repeat for a set number of retries. After a certain number of ignition trials or if it senses a flame failure a certain number of times the ignition module locks out. Cutting power to the ignition module unlocks it and the whole cycle starts over.
Ignition modules come with all kinds of start and lockout parameters. Check your service book or inside the cover panel for the correct information.
Look for the ignition module and follow the often orange high temp type wire to the pilot. They most often look like a gray 3"X5" plastic box with 4 or 5 wires and sometimes a green LED. Clean everything and check that the tip of the ignition spark probe is the correct distance. Rough is 1/8 or so.
Another issue that comes up is the pilot assembly often has a port that clogs up. Pilot flame gets smaller and smaller until it causes the flame sensor to think the pilot has blown out. This port is right around where the tube fits into the pilot assembly. remove the tube from the pilot and look inside you should see a thimble shaped metal insert with a small hole. I run some wire brush wire through it. Be careful not to distort or enlarge the hole.
Another thing to check for is overheat. If the air intake screed gets clogged up it might be overheating and cutting out on high temp. Most high temp safeties are manual reset but this is worht checking considering that the unit is in a body shop.
Ignition modules come with all kinds of start and lockout parameters. Check your service book or inside the cover panel for the correct information.
Look for the ignition module and follow the often orange high temp type wire to the pilot. They most often look like a gray 3"X5" plastic box with 4 or 5 wires and sometimes a green LED. Clean everything and check that the tip of the ignition spark probe is the correct distance. Rough is 1/8 or so.
Another issue that comes up is the pilot assembly often has a port that clogs up. Pilot flame gets smaller and smaller until it causes the flame sensor to think the pilot has blown out. This port is right around where the tube fits into the pilot assembly. remove the tube from the pilot and look inside you should see a thimble shaped metal insert with a small hole. I run some wire brush wire through it. Be careful not to distort or enlarge the hole.
Another thing to check for is overheat. If the air intake screed gets clogged up it might be overheating and cutting out on high temp. Most high temp safeties are manual reset but this is worht checking considering that the unit is in a body shop.
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well guys i went out and looked at my heater and everything seemed to be ok that you suggested except it was kind of dirty in side so I took the motor out and blew everything off and out with compressed air including the motor which was very dirty put it all back together now it seems to be working well but wed. and thurs. this week i will be in there painting so I will really get to test it out and get back to you but for now it seems to be fixed thanks a lot. Crazy.