Escape 17 furnace model number?

[John in Michigan]

Hi folks,

We are renovating our 1978 Boler 17 and have decided the 40 year old Coleman furnace will need to be replaced. We are considering moderately priced replacements. One example is the Suburban NT-16SEQ, but also want to consider the Atwood 12,000 btu unit used in the Escape 17. Does anyone know the model number for this unit? I haven't been able to pin it down.

John

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by John in Michigan

Hi folks,

We are renovating our 1978 Boler 17 and have decided the 40 year old Coleman furnace

will need to be replaced. We are considering moderately priced replacements. One example is the Suburban NT-16SEQ, but also want to consider the Atwood 12,000 btu unit used in the Escape 17. Does anyone know the model number for this unit? I haven't been able to pin it down.

John

We have the Suburban NT-16SEQ in our 2013 Casita and the Atwood 12,000 BTU furnace in our other trailer . We have never had a problem with our Casita Suburban furnace and it does a great job of heating our trailer
We can’t not say the same thing about our Atwood furnace
It failed within the first 6 weeks of ownership ( Bad circuit board and sail switch)
The other issue with the Atwood is that you have to pull the furnace to make the necessary repairs ( The closest Atwood service center is 200 miles from our home)
I would suggest you check the Escape Forum about others who have had issues with the Atwood Furnace before making any decision

[John in Michigan]

Steve thanks for the feedback!

[Jon Vermilye]

Escape used the Atwood 8012II in my 2011 17B. The advantage is it only drew 1.8 amps, the lowest of any RV furnace (with fan) that I know of. The disadvantage is it hasn't been manufactured in at least 2 years. You may be able to find on on eBay or used, and parts are still available.

The current furnace used in all Escapes is the Atwood (Dometic - they are now the same company) AFSAD12. Even quieter than the quiet 8012II, but requires a faceplate and, on the latest model, an exterior access door, which makes it possible to get at the electronics without pulling the furnace.

[John in Michigan]

Thanks Jon. Your last sentence answers a question I had regarding the exterior access door. When I looked at the photo of the exterior of the Escape 17 at the manufacturer's website, there didn't appear to be an access door. Clears that up...

Even though the door-less version of the furnace (Surburban/Atwood model 32716) is still listed on the Suburban website, I haven't found any online retailers selling it.

[steve dunham]

Escape’s newer models ( Mid 2018) now come with the exterior access panel which allows you access to the sail switch / circuit board without removing the furnace . On the other hand they are still having problems with the furnace components . Many have replaced the factory circuit board with an aftermarket model ( Dinosaur Board) in an attempt to solve this issue .
Escape is not at fault IMHO , Dometic / Atwood is the source of the problem.
Jon is correct the Suburban furnace does use more power but I would rather have a furnace that works . A non functioning furnace like my Atwood draws zero power but it also supplies ZERO HEAT !!

[John in Michigan]

Again thanks for the feedback folks. I won't be pulling the trigger on this immediately, but needed to establish a "short list" of alternatives so I can look at opening dimensions and clearances. This is part of larger project of de-constructing and re-constructing the large cabinet that holds the fridge, furnace, converter and cupboards. Why? The whole cabinet assembly is sagging/bowing toward the center aisle, I suspect due to the weight of the fridge not having adequate support below.

[Jon Vermilye]

While the AFSAD12 draws a bit more (2.3 amps) than the obsolete 8012II, it is still less than most other RV furnaces. I just spent my first night (this year) at Quartzsite - thermostat set at 60°F, outside temperature down to 43°F overnight, LED captain light on until 10:30 reading, and listening to the radio - started with full batteries; I was down 20 amp hours by morning. With 320 watts of solar, no problem making it up by the end of the day.

[Larrie]

I have a 78 Boler 17 that had Hydro Flame brc-10a furn. removed & replaced with nt16. When intake & exhaust tubes were extended to max. allowed I did not have the 11/4" stipulated (or whatever,can't remember exact) projecting past the cabinetry it just came flush,solved this by having local shop make up sheet metal pcs 21/2 " bent as needed and riveting them onto housing.Don't believe this is safety issue, fiddling with other end would be. Have found the suburban is fairly noisy, maybe atwood is quieter, but check clearances needed for installation

[John in Michigan]

Larry, thanks for the Boler 17 specific fitting info! This is what's wonderful about this forum. Your input as well as the information provided by the previous posters is extremely helpful.

[John in Michigan]

Larry, my Boler 17 arrangement is a rear gaucho with the furnace located below the fridge on the driver's side/road side. What is your Boler 17 furnace located? Thanks.

[Larrie]

Mine is same layout, rear gaucho, furnace on left(driver side) below fridge,closet then toilet rm. Distance from front of furn. cabinetry to outside where intake/ exhaust comes out is about 271/2 ". had to buy a longer intake tube #X050708 as standard that came with it only extends to 251/2",look up nt16sq installation manual on line,you can get all dim. needed from it,also if considering the atwood unit suspect you can find that on line to check out clearances before buying and running into unexpected problems, regards

[Dudley]

Larry, if your suburban is a NT16se or a NT12se you can change out the fans to make it much quieter. I wrote up a "how to" for the Casita forum.

[Larrie]

thks Dudley,I thought it was seq model but maybe it was old stock as I got,real good price on it will check.

[John in Michigan]

Found another furnace, the Suburban NT-16SQ ducted furnace that wouldn't have the NT-16SEQ problem of being too short to reach the exhaust tube. It has no vented front cover, but instead a left and a right duct port, and both must be used to achieve the required airflow. Thoughts??

[Jon Vermilye]

Originally Posted by John in Michigan

Found another furnace, the Suburban NT-16SQ ducted furnace that wouldn't have the NT-16SEQ problem of being too short to reach the exhaust tube. It has no vented front cover, but instead a left and a right duct port, and both must be used to achieve the required airflow. Thoughts??

You might listen to one. Much louder than the Dometic AFSAD12. I don't kn ow if the input end of the Dometic works in your situation, but the front can be extended and a directional grill added.

[John in Michigan]

Dometic AFSAD12 with the directional grill added (as shown in Escape 17 pic at Escape vendor website) would probably work. Jon, what do you mean about the input end?

[Jon Vermilye]

Originally Posted by John in Michigan

Dometic AFSAD12 with the directional grill added (as shown in Escape 17 pic at Escape vendor website) would probably work. Jon, what do you mean about the input end?

The connections from the back of the furnace to the outside (intake & exhaust) I don't believe it is a good idea to extend them.

[Larrie]

John,you have to remove your fridge & shelf to access furnace compartment because you will need to construct platform for furnace to sit on, I believe you will not have sufficient space to install ducting(converter & wheel well in way)you also need to install ball valve shut off switch & have access to it,nt16 also has on/off switch which needs to be accessed through same access panel. I would suggest you remove above and see what space is available before purchasing unit. I also agree as Jon stated to not alter intake/exhaust max. distances,adding A bit to the front is not hazardous (in my opinion).

[John in Michigan]

Interesting discussion folks. Thanks for the additional info. I'm replacing the converter with a much smaller unit (PD4135), so that should help. I've already removed the old converter.