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My RV Water Heater Pilot Light Keeps Going Out – Now What?

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Have you had trouble keeping the pilot light on your mobile home water heater on? Does it blow in every taste of the wind? Chances are you have a problem that can be easily fixed. Let’s first talk about why this happens.

The way the wind flows over the wing of an airplane is the same way the wind blows over its roof. As the wind reaches the surface of your roof, the wind at the top of the roof speeds up and flows quite quickly. This has an adverse effect on the chimneys and chimneys of gas burning appliances such as furnace and water heater. The wind then blows hard down the chimneys or B-Vents, blowing out the pilot light. However, let’s clear something up. If mother nature wants to turn off the pilot, she will and there is nothing you can do to stop it permanently. All you can do is persuade it not to happen all the time. When you have a gas-burning appliance, like a water heater or furnace that uses a pilot light, turning it back on from time to time is perfectly normal.

What you don’t want to do to curb this problem is install a screen around the top of the chimney or B-vent. This may seem like a common sense solution, but it is very dangerous. In winter, ice and snow will accumulate on the screen material, causing a very dangerous situation. Combustion gases can collect and clog. A spill of deadly carbon monoxide can occur, putting you and/or your family at great risk. Please don’t solve your problem with this method.

A preferred method of reducing pilot outage problems is to install an exterior chimney extension or B vent. The science behind this method is simple once you remember why this problem occurs in the first place. Do you remember that the wind increases its speed when it hits the roof? By raising the chimney or vent B, you are changing the exit point of the flue gases to a higher point, where the wind flows at the same rate as anywhere else. The wind will continue to flow faster near the roof surface as long as the top of the vent is not touching, which will not allow the wind to come down and blow the pilot off. You can purchase exterior extensions at large home improvement stores and wholesale plumbing and heating supply companies.

Remember, solving this problem means working on the top of your roof. If you’re not totally comfortable working at that height, call in a professional to keep your mobile home’s water heater pilot light on.

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