Atwood Water Heater Reset Button: Which Reset Applies

The Short Answer: Atwood (Dometic) RV water heaters have no single reset button. Combination gas/electric models have a manual-reset high-temperature limit on the back for the electric side. Electronic-ignition gas models are reset by switching the remote switch off and back on. The thermal cutoff and the 2-amp board fuse are one-time parts that a technician replaces. They are not resets.

Three “resets,” three different faults

The electric high-limit button

Dometic’s operation manual for the 4-, 6- and 10-gallon Atwood models describes a “manual reset high temperature limit switch” on combination gas/electric units. It sits at the rear of the heater, and the manual asks installers to leave room around it so it can be operated. If it trips, the manual says to press it in with a pencil or other non-metallic object. If you still have problems after that, contact a Dometic service center.

Before you press it, check that the bypass valves are in the normal position and that a hot faucet runs steadily with no air. The same manual warns that switching on the electric side without water over the element may burn it out. Press it once. If it trips again, there is a reason it is overheating, such as a thermostat or element fault, and the next step is service. Don’t hold it in or tape it down. If you can’t reach the button without removing a cover, leave it for the technician. The Atwood electric not working page covers the rest of the electric side.

Clearing a gas ignition lockout

On electronic-ignition models, the indicator light on the remote switch shows a lockout. The manual gives two owner procedures:

• Failed ignition: if the light stays on longer than 15 seconds after you switch on, switch off, wait five minutes, then try once more.
• Overheated water: if the heater locks out because the water got too hot, let the water cool, leave the switch off for at least 30 seconds, then switch it on.

If the lockout comes back, the manual’s direction is to contact a Dometic service center. Repeated attempts send unburned propane into the burner area each time and don’t fix the cause. If the burner sparks but never lights, or lights and then goes out, see Atwood clicking but not lighting or Atwood won’t stay lit.

Parts that look like resets but aren’t

• Thermal cutoff. This is a heat-sensitive fuse in the 12-volt supply to the gas controls. If flame or heat reaches it, usually because something is blocking the flue tube, it melts open. The manual says the blockage must be cleared and the cutoff replaced. A technician should do this and find out why it opened. It must never be bypassed. See Dometic water heater thermal fuse.
• Board fuse. Electronic-ignition boards have a 2-amp mini blade fuse. Dometic says to look for the short that blew it before replacing it, and never to fit one larger than 3 amps.

If you smell propane at any point, stop trying to reset anything. Leave the RV and call 911 or your propane supplier once you’re a safe distance away.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is there a reset button on the Atwood control board? A: Not one meant for owners. On electronic-ignition models, gas lockout is cleared with the remote switch, following the timing in the manual. The only push-button reset described for owners is the electric high limit on combination models.

Q: Why won’t the high-limit button click? A: If it doesn’t move or click, it probably hasn’t tripped. The electric fault is somewhere else, such as no 120-volt supply, a switch, the thermostat or the element.

Q: Does a Suburban reset work the same way? A: No. Suburban heaters use different controls and reset locations. Check the badge on the heater’s outside door before you follow any instructions. See how to reset a Suburban water heater.