At 08:07 PM 5/24/2011, mcneely4@cox.net wrote: >Hmmm. My camper is a '91, the latest model imported. I thought I >was, with the pump, operating both air and piezo ignition. I have >had the refrigerator out and cleaned it. (Nasty job getting it out >and back in ok), but that was two years ago, and I just don't >remember everything perfectly. If the ignition is not piezo, what is it? Ok, you had me fooled with reference to the igniter button. There *is* an RM182C (I've never seen one) with electronic ignition; I'm not familiar with its precise details.
>My led doesn't tell me whether the burner is burning until I stop >pumping and release the button. Then it lights up (it has always lit). There are four operations involved: purge the combustion chamber, spark, hold the gas valve open with the button, hold the gas valve open with the thermocouple (and incidentally light the LED). In theory you purge first (pump five times) then spark once or more until you see fire, then continue holding the button down for thirty seconds while the thermocouple takes over - just as you would when lighting your water heater or furnace at home. In practice I certainly always found it convenient to spark at the end of each pump stroke. Your specific way of operating has turned up the fact that at least on your fridge/LED panel combination the thermocouple can hold the gas valve open before it can light the LED.* *This is a slight misnomer. Not in a thousand years could the thermocouple light an LED. But it's hooked to the input of an amplifier in the LED panel and the output drives the LED. Trivium: The thermocouple signal is the only voltage in the van that drives negative to chassis ground, and the designers of the LED panel took advantage of a specification in the chip that allows its inputs to go 0.3 volts below the negative supply voltage. Best. d |
Please note - During the past 17 years of operation, several gigabytes of
Vanagon mail messages have been archived. Searching the entire collection
will take up to five minutes to complete. Please be patient!
Return to the archives @ gerry.vanagon.com
The vanagon mailing list archives are copyright (c) 1994-2011, and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the list administrators. Posting messages to this mailing list grants a license to the mailing list administrators to reproduce the message in a compilation, either printed or electronic. All compilations will be not-for-profit, with any excess proceeds going to the Vanagon mailing list.
Any profits from list compilations go exclusively towards the management and operation of the Vanagon mailing list and vanagon mailing list web site.