Every RV brand has a price point where the build quality starts compromising. I’ve bought rigs at every level, from entry-level travel trailers to high-end Class A coaches, and the failure patterns are consistent: manufacturers save money in the same places every time, and those are the systems that need attention first. On Forest River Cedar Creek units, the furnace is one of those systems — specifically the igniter and control board, which are spec’d just well enough to pass a factory inspection but not well enough to survive five seasons of real-world use. What makes this repair urgent isn’t just comfort; a furnace that fails to ignite properly can dump unburned propane into your living space, and a failing control board can send false signals that mask the problem until it’s genuinely dangerous. I’ve replaced this exact setup on multiple Cedar Creek builds, and this guide walks you through the diagnosis and swap the right way — no guesswork, no parts-store runaround.
The Full Replacement That Finally Stopped the Mid-Winter Shutdown Cycle
If you’re chasing intermittent furnace failures on a Cedar Creek, replacing individual components one at a time is a road to frustration. The real fix is going whole-unit — swap the entire Suburban/Atwood furnace assembly and stop playing diagnostic roulette in freezing weather.
What works
- Drop-in compatibility with Cedar Creek’s factory mounting — no custom brackets or rewiring surprises once you’re halfway through the job.
- New igniter, control board, and blower all arrive as a matched set, eliminating the guessing game of whether a used igniter will play nice with an old board.
- Suburban/Atwood furnaces hold up better than the OEM Cedar Creek units over the long haul — I’ve seen these run reliably for 8+ years on the road without repeat failures.
What doesn’t
- It’s a bigger job than just swapping the control board — you’re pulling the whole unit, which means venting disconnects and a full afternoon of work in tight quarters.
- Not the cheapest route if your current furnace is still technically firing; it’s the insurance policy, not the band-aid.
I almost talked myself into limping through one more winter with electrode swaps and board resets, until I realized I was spending $80–120 every other month on parts that were just masking a systemic design weakness. Invest in a Suburban/Atwood RV furnace replacement unit and actually sleep warm.
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