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shirleyj62's avatar
shirleyj62
Explorer
May 22, 2015

Tankless water heater

We are new owners of a Jayco Precept MH. We are currently in our second week of using it. One thing we are having a difficult time with is the tankless water heater.

Not only are we suffering from the scorching hot/freezing cold syndrome of the water, but we are also concerned about the amount of water usage. Most of our camping is done at state parks, COE, or county parks. The majority of these are not full hookups. In the past we took "navy" showers so we could limit the amount of gray water in our tank. The tankless water does not seem to like the off/on of the water. In addition prior camping units ran on either propane or electric. We always used the electric conserving our propane.

We have tried talking to our dealer about switching out the tankless water heater for the conventional water heater. So far he has been reluctant to even discuss it.

Has anyone else switched out their water heater? If so, may I ask how expensive it is to do so?

Any other advice/suggestions you may have would be welcome.

Thank you,

Shirley
Class A

19 Replies

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  • Dale_Traveling's avatar
    Dale_Traveling
    Explorer II
    May 22, 2015
    I would first work with the heater manufacture. Tank less heaters work with water flow. Not enough flow and they won't come on. Might be the thermostat is set too high and your attempts to get of comfortable water temp may not be enough to trigger the system.

    Replacing the tank less is certainly an option considering both a tank or tank less have pretty much the same foot print but you'll looking at a bill of over a $1000 to make the change (cost of the new heater, new propane lines and associated labor at around $100 hour). Plus the original coach builder warranty probably won't cover the new heater which might complicate matters.
  • Ivylog's avatar
    Ivylog
    Explorer III
    May 22, 2015
    MM, comparing a $100K small Class A with 60 gallons of water and a tankless heater to your $1.8 million DP with 150 gallons of water and a AquaHot were I doubt you shut the water off during a shower???????
    OP, follow Doug's advice. It might be possible to move it closer to the shower for less $$$ than replacing it.
  • dougrainer's avatar
    dougrainer
    Nomad
    May 22, 2015
    shirleyj62 wrote:
    Dick_B wrote:
    Isn't this a duplicate of a few days ago?
    If not, search this Forum for `tankless' and read on.


    This is not a duplicate. Since our dealer will not discuss removing the tankless heater, I'm trying to figure out if this is even an option for us regarding costs and hassle. I'm hoping that those persons who had it removed, could give us a ballpark figure of what it costs them.

    Thanks

    Shirley


    What do you mean he will not discuss it?? If you mean you want HIM to replace at NO CHARGE, then I understand why he won't discuss it. You can replace with a conventional Water Heater, but that means spending about $1000. Tankless Water Heaters need continuous operation and doing "navy" type showers makes them run hot and cold. Make sure ALL the air is out of your water system. Check the outside shower and flush a few gallons of water thru it to make sure the air is out of its lines. ANY small air pocket anywhere in the fresh water system will cause Tankless to run fickle. Doug
  • holstein13's avatar
    holstein13
    Explorer
    May 22, 2015
    Mr.Mark wrote:
    Shirley, I guess my question is.... are you sure that the tankless is working properly?

    We have a hot water tank AND a tankless for the shower. I turn off the shower to lather up and the water is hot no matter how long I keep it off and then restart.

    MM.
    Unless I'm mistaken, I'd imagine your tankless is diesel powered, not propane. Am I right?
  • xctraveler's avatar
    xctraveler
    Explorer
    May 22, 2015
    If your tankless is Precision Temp call the service number 800-934-9690 and talk it through with Gary. He can explain how to resolve most of your problems. When working correctly it does not use a lot of propane as it only heats when you are drawing water. We have a one handle shower and just turn it off and back on when taking Navy showers. It works much better then the dribble closure which does not work at all with the Precision Temp. If you have the Girard my understanding is be prepared to eat the expense of changing out. I cannot imagine a dealer making the change for either of them at their expense, why should they, you bought a feature :)
  • 2bzy2c's avatar
    2bzy2c
    Explorer II
    May 22, 2015
    That would be my thought as well. It simply may need an adjustment.
  • Mr_Mark1's avatar
    Mr_Mark1
    Explorer
    May 22, 2015
    Shirley, I guess my question is.... are you sure that the tankless is working properly?

    We have a hot water tank AND a tankless for the shower. I turn off the shower to lather up and the water is hot no matter how long I keep it off and then restart.

    MM.
  • shirleyj62's avatar
    shirleyj62
    Explorer
    May 22, 2015
    Dick_B wrote:
    Isn't this a duplicate of a few days ago?
    If not, search this Forum for `tankless' and read on.


    This is not a duplicate. Since our dealer will not discuss removing the tankless heater, I'm trying to figure out if this is even an option for us regarding costs and hassle. I'm hoping that those persons who had it removed, could give us a ballpark figure of what it costs them.

    Thanks

    Shirley
  • Dick_B's avatar
    Dick_B
    Explorer
    May 22, 2015
    Isn't this a duplicate of a few days ago?
    If not, search this Forum for `tankless' and read on.

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