Forum Discussion

RobG's avatar
RobG
Explorer
Nov 01, 2019

Pop goes the water heater!

I had a new water heater installed back in 2014. It popped two nights ago. I got up to the sound of water -- I actually thought it was raining. Upon closer inspection, it was water pouring out of my water heater. It made quite the flood outside.

I shut off the water to it, and got a flashlight. The "tunnel" where the burner goes is all rusted out and collapsed. Despite ensuring a good anode rod, it appears that corrosion did the thing in.

So now I have two choices: Replace it with another one, or go with an on-demand system. Cost is similar: About $500 for either. The on-demand system that people seem to be recommending is the Girard 2GWHAM. The water heater I'd use is a Suburban 10- or 12-gal unit. The trailer came with a 12-gal, but it got replaced with a 10 in 2014 (which I didn't know until yesterday; I thought it was another 12).

In the meantime, I'm showering in my camper. Thankfully I have that as an option.

Any suggestions? Any other (cheaper hopefully) on-demand units I can consider?

Thanks.

Rob
  • ScottG's avatar
    ScottG
    Nomad
    Nov 01, 2019
    Read through the reviews on Amazon. Co. has a record of very poor assistance when they don't work - which is often.
    I'd really like one but they aren't good enough yet.

    Scott
  • schlep1967's avatar
    schlep1967
    Nomad
    Nov 01, 2019
    You must have a very acidic water supply where you are for it to eat through the burner tube. Either that or the water heater manufacturer had a run of poor tubing they installed. I would think that tube would be twice the thickness of the tank material.
  • RobG's avatar
    RobG
    Explorer
    Nov 01, 2019
    They say we have a lot of minerals in the water... fwiw the anode rod never did degrade over time like with my last water heater. It always looked like-new when I'd remove it.
  • enblethen's avatar
    enblethen
    Nomad
    Nov 01, 2019
    If it is rusted out, it must be a glass-lined Suburban water heater.
    I would opt for an aluminum Atwood replacement.
  • Lynnmor's avatar
    Lynnmor
    Explorer
    Nov 01, 2019
    If the anode rod is aluminum instead of magnesium, that may be some of the problem. You should have seen some rust when doing your regular flushing and that would alert you to a pending failure before a flood.
  • ksg5000's avatar
    ksg5000
    Explorer
    Nov 01, 2019
    RobG wrote:
    They say we have a lot of minerals in the water... fwiw the anode rod never did degrade over time like with my last water heater. It always looked like-new when I'd remove it.


    That seems odd - thought the primary purpose of anode rod was to prevent the problem your had. Removing an old anode rod which looks like new may indicate your anode rod was defective or something else is amiss.
  • Chum_lee's avatar
    Chum_lee
    Explorer
    Nov 01, 2019
    So you say that you full time in your fiver. Does that mean that you keep the water heater hot 24/7/365?

    If you have high mineral content in your water AND the anode rod still looks like new, AND the new water heater rusted out in 5 years, I'd guess you have something else going on that you need to figure out before you destroy another water heater. Did you test the pressure relief valve? Is the water heater grounded properly?

    Chum lee
  • Chris_Bryant's avatar
    Chris_Bryant
    Explorer II
    Nov 01, 2019
    I bet it was fired empty at some point- the only way I can see that failure on a 5 year old heater.
  • ernie1's avatar
    ernie1
    Explorer
    Nov 01, 2019
    fwiw:
    I have a Truma tankless water heater and it works great. I've heard really bad things about the Girard units. PleasureWay rvs were at one time equipped with Girard units until they received so many complaints about problems that they switched to Trumas.
  • BruceMc's avatar
    BruceMc
    Explorer III
    Nov 01, 2019
    The OP states: 'The "tunnel" where the burner goes is all rusted out and collapsed.'

    Thinking out loud, exploring some alternate ideas:
    Could it be the corrosion happened on the burner side of the heat tube rather than the water side?
    In that case, the condition of the anode rod wouldn't matter. (Except, during normal use, the anode should have eroded some.)

    The air is pretty dry in Mesa Arizona, so one wouldn't think excess moisture would be a contributor as it would be in western Oregon/Washington, for example.
    Yet, propane does contain a fair amount of moisture so the air may not have been a contributor.
    (Has your propane vendor been padding their profits by doping their propane supply? B^)

    Chris, your comments may explain this one - a dry fire with propane would certainly overheat the combustion side of the heat tube.

    As enblethen suggested, if I was in your situation, I'd certainly opt for an aluminum Atwood. I've had Atwoods since our first motorhome and never had a speck of issues.

About Technical Issues

Having RV issues? Connect with others who have been in your shoes.24,191 PostsLatest Activity: Jan 19, 2025