Water heater

Hi,

My ten gallon Attwood unit has the element on the inside of the RV. It is the very devil to get to, requiring the trap on the kitchen sink to be removed and the fresh water lines to the heater to be taken out. If you can fold your body like a pretzel it helps.

I like the idea of going to the lower wattage element.

This may help if it's a Suburban:
replace element

How hard it is depends on the install. Now I have an atwood
The element is on what I call the "Back side" (where the pipes connect) just above the relay under some insulation. You Drain the tank, unhook the wires, unscrew it Take it to LOWES or not.

You have two options 1400 or 1500 watt 120 volt or I choose a 1500 at 240 volt (375 watts at 120) and screw it back in Hook up the wires. tape the insulation back in place done.

Why the 375 watt.... Well I went a long time before I tripped a 30 amp breaker. A few sites I still trip 30 amp breakers but they are few and far where as they used to be frequent. 375 is close to what the HOtt Rod runs (400) and your fridge (350) in case you wonder. Takes a bit longer to het 'er up but if I'm in a hurry there is always PROPANE. the stuff that keeps you warm.

The electric element removal socket can be found at Lowe's for under $10... designed for removing the element...

it could be a few other things then the heating element. it could be the reset button or the on/off switch. you didn't say if it's suburban or Atwood, also you can find how to change it out on You Tube

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Electric elements are 1 1/2" ....Atwood, Suburban, Residential etc
Thin wall on element flange so standard sockets tend to slip.
Element Wrench works pretty good when you have direct access...thin wall, flat sided

(1 1/16" is for the Suburban Anode Rod)
............

Oops. Brain f@rt. You are correct of course. :o

Electric elements are 1 1/2" ....Atwood, Suburban, Residential etc
Thin wall on element flange so standard sockets tend to slip.
Element Wrench works pretty good when you have direct access...thin wall, flat sided

(1 1/16" is for the Suburban Anode Rod)

What brand/model is your water heater---cause unless you turned element on w/o water in tank it probably is something else wrong

If it is a Suburban water heater the heating element socket size is 1 1/16”. Available at auto parts stores. If Atwood water heater I don’t know.

But the problem could also be a number of other things such as tripped breaker, bad switch, bad thermostat/high temp cutout, bad/loose/burned wire connection, bad 12v/120v interposing relay, ....,,.

You can get the element from Lowe's / Home Depot / Menards, pretty much any big box home improvement store.

Yes, they are pretty easy to remove and reinstall .... IF you can get the right size socket! That was my problem with my last camper when I needed to replace mine. I checked Camping World and multiple RV dealerships for the socket or a tool to fit and no one had anything. I finally found a socket to fit, had to buy the ratchet to fit it too, and then found out the actual socket was beveled on the inside and the nut that the socket gribbed was so shallow, the socket just slipped. I ended up having to take it to my local dealership to have a new one put in. I spent too much money and time buying sockets that didn't work.