OK not car related but can't finish the car without heat. My torpedo heater started not firing everytime I turned it on. Now happening all the time. The fan comes on and it pumps fuel but will not ignite. Changed the spark plug thing. Fired the first couple times now won't fire again. Any ideas? Thanks for any suggestions It is an old 140,000 BTU Sears brand. But I think made by Desa.
the ignitor is shooting craps, not the plug but the mag or whatever fires it. now for the bad news, its usually cheaper to buy a new heater than to try and find/replace that part. now, not saying this is a safe thing to do but it works... fire it up and once its up to speed,, a quick shot of carb cleaner and a bic lighter through the back will get it making heat.
any water at all will keep it from firing, if you have a dual btu selector try to fire it on the high side, mine does it from time to time....
Make sure the flame sensor is clean, when they fire and shut off like that the lens gets covered with soot.
Will have to take a look tonight and try some of the suggestions. Went on line at work and it looks like there is very few parts still available for this. Can still get the plug( already replaced) and the capicator. I would imagine the capicator is more to do with the fan motor. Do not think that the ignitor was available. Has fresh fuel in it. Kinda skeptical about doing the manual lighting trick. Could just see the garage and projects going up in flames.Now that would suck.
it was either try and fire the heater and be cold,, or do without and freeze my ass off. its not as scary as it sounds but its probably not the best idea either.
Take the top cover off and inspect the photo cell (if it has one) make sure its clean. Next plug the unit up and turn it on for a sec. do you have spark? if no you prob. just need to get a new heater. If its sparking your problem is in the fuel pump/ del system. Check your fuel lines and pickup filter. If all this seams clear you prob have a weak pump, you can try adjusting it by the screw in the back cover, turning it in raises the pres. There is a plug in the back to insert a gauge to be sure your pres is correct. (most are around 5 psi) if you remove the back cover there is a gasket/filter assembly that can be changed and further in is the pump housing. You can remove the rest of the cover on the rear to check the vanes on the pump to see if they are worn, or stuck. New pumps aren't usually too expensive so don't be afraid to change it if you need to. If you have gone the far go ahead and put a new filter kit in it. Good luck.
I say only work on stuff when it is warm. I never have problems with heat in the garage using that method.
Mine quit last winter and I found a bunch of info on fixing it on Google. Try typing in the brand and model in a google search!
May not be what you want to hear, but the best advice I can offer is to shit can the torpedo heater and install a proper heating system and never look back. I did so and installed an infrared tube heater and it's one of the best things I ever did.
I had a torpedo heater and really didn't like the noise and the taste of burnt kerosene in my mouth all afternoon, but it did provide some good heat. It started acting up and it'd spark & ignite for a second or two and then it'd go back out. Turns out that the "flame sensor" was dirty and a little misaligned. I bent the bracket a tiny bit and cleaned the lens off and it worked like a champ until I gave it away to a buddy of mine. I replaced it with one of those heaters that have 2 elements and you mount it on a gas grill bottle (which fit into a plastic milk crate for stability JUST RIGHT!). It's quiet and you don't smell and taste kerosene all afternoon. One man's opinion. If you're looking for more "long term" installation, another friend of mine had a small ceiling mounted propane furnace installed in his garage last fall and it is GREAT.
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