What to do when the Water Heater goes out?????

[DutchmenSport]

Yes, ours went out this week end. Long story short, I turned on the electric (and) the gas with no water in the tank. I'm 100% positive the electric element is fried, and it won't fire on gas any more.

I tried several ideas to get it working again, including an RV mobile tech, that never returned my call, a trip to Camping World in Richmond, Indiana for a new electric element, only to find out I could not find a socket anywhere to fit the electric heating element.

What's worse, we are camped right beside the bath house at Brookville State Recreation Area, South of Liberty Indiana, and 2 bath houses are down for remodeling.

We do have a full hook-up site, and are doing OK with cold water, including a cold shower until we return home. But my mind won't rest.

We even went into Liberty, Indiana today to see if we could find a camping shower (a bag you hang in the sun) and could fill it with hot water from the stove top. Couldn't even find that.

Well, a little bit ago I brainstorm idea was born.

Perhaps the title of this post should be:

HOW TO TAKE A HOT SHOWER WHEN YOUR WATER HEATER IS COMPLETELY DEAD!

Here's what we did, and now we can take as many hot water showers as we want.

Step 1: Put 2 pots of water on the stove top and get them boiling.
Step 2: Get the extra bucket out of the pass through that you've been dragging around for the last 15 years and only use for a storage container.
Step 3: Flip the valve on your fresh water on-board pump that is used for winterizing.
Step 4: Fill the bucket with that boiling water and add cool water to make it a slightly warmer than comfortable level.
Step 5: Put that winterizing hose into the bucket of warm water and flip on the water pump.
Step 6: Go to the shower and run the cold faucet only. (Otherwise you'll have to put 6 gallons of boiled water in your water heater tank.)
Step 7: Jump in shower and take a Navy Shower! If you are good at taking Navy Showers, you can do it with less than 1/2 that bucket of water.

FYI, both my wife and I were able to take a nice (almost hot) shower, finally, which felt really, really good!

Step 8: When done, simply flip the valve at the water pump for the winterizing kit and your back on regular fresh water.

We do have an appointment already with our dealer-repair shop for them to fix the water heater next week when we'll be back home. Meanwhile, this extended week-end trip was not ruined at all.

If the bath houses were open, we wouldn't have attempted doing anything, we just take showers there. But with them both down, well, that put us into a very peculiar situation.

So in the future (and I certainly hope no one ever finds themselves in this situation), here's a very easy, on the spot, alternative way to get around a very COLD situation!

[DutchmenSport]

One more follow up...

Got the camper back from the dealer this morning. Total bill was $221.00. Don't mind paying for the service on the water heater, but they also charged $65 (1/2 hour) labor for the water pump. No parts are anything. But they did diagnose (MY) problem. Oh well, chalk it up to experience!

But, watered everything up when I got home, and water pump, water heater gas and electric are both working, and we're heading out again this coming week-end again! We're not sitting at home!

Happy camping everyone!

[DutchmenSport]

Here's a follow up post.

We returned home safe and ended up taking a few more showers using the winterizing hose to pump the water. This worked well.

I never could figure out why the water heater would not fire on gas.

Took the camper over to our repair shop and got the report back today. It was the thermostat that died. They replaced the electric heating element with the one I purchased earlier, and they said they had to do some rewiring. Not sure why, but they're the experts. Anyway, the bill was not as bad as I though it would be be. Camper will be ready soon, and I'll be able to pick it up. I won't be able to get back to pick it up until Tuesday morning. But that's OK.

So all is well. Regardless of tools, or lack of tools when camping, I would have never figured out what the problem was, even if I would have been able to get the heating element swapped out.

So word of warning from one old "codger" that has always been extra meticulous with their camper... mistakes can happen... even to the best of us who know better.

Had I not had my Alzheimer's brain fart, I would have remembered the water tank was on bypass to begin with from when I blew the lines out last March on our return trip home from South Carolina and would have spared myself a bunch of ... DUH!

Now, I'll make one more confession!

Getting the camper ready to take over to the repair shop...

I checked everything out one more time, including the water pump. Well ... the water pump would not come on. I was devastated. I checked everything I could think of, and it was like .... dead. I'm thinking to myself... what's going on here. Water heater is dead ... water pump is dead ... what heck!????

Couldn't get it to come on at all. So when I took it to my repair shop and asked them to look at it, thinking something seriously was wrong, maybe even need to replace it. Well, when they did their walk through before I left, sure enough, no water pump working.

On the call today, I asked them about the water pump .... um .... it's working just fine!

What?????

Yea ... the lines were pressurized, so when you flipped the switch there was no need for the pump to turn on. When we turned the faucet on at the sink, the line unpressurized and the pump came on immediately!

ARRR!!!!.... OK, another DUH! Brain Fart! But thrilled nothing was wrong!

Imagine that! Maybe I'm becoming a candidate for the retirement home soon?

[wa8yxm]

Is it an atwood or a Suburan?

Most Atwoods use a common control board and T-stats for both Gas and electric, It is possible this has failed protecting your element.

It should fire on gas even if the unit was fired empty.. But the unit may have bene otherwise damaged.

I'd slap a volt meter or test lamp across the elemnet (on atwood this is normally on the plumbing side of the tankk, look for the relay box) and see if power is being sent to the element, If not, the element may be good, if yes, use a clamp on current meter (Ammeter) over one of the element leads (just one) and look for power draw.. If zero element is bad.

[Dave_H_M]

:S Wow, I would have never thought of that.

As stated earlier, I think all the big box sores like Lowes carry an elcheapo socket to fit those heating elements.

i would ohm out the heating element first to see if it is truly fried. I looked up a youtube on the how to when mine was on the fritz.

[shadows4]

Awesome story Dutchmen. Congrats on the warm shower. Read this to the wife and both had a good laugh!! Well done!!!!

[mich800]

ORbiker wrote:

midnightsadie wrote:
I think theres a safety reset some where around the water heater, might check. and check lowes for a removal tool.

I agree on the safety thermo or reset button on the board.
The gas part of the water heater should still work once the WH is filled.

Or a bad check valve. Common for use of winterizing. If it fails all water bypasses the hot water heater. Happened to us when we had full hook ups. I ended up gutting the valve as a stop gap to get hot water.

[3oaks]

AJBert wrote:
Very smart thinking!

Me, I just do the sponge bath way as I've camped a number of times with no hook ups and the sponge bath is much better than jumping in the creek.

Yeh, but the cold water in a creek flowing down from the melting snow pack high up in the mountain sure does wake a person up. :E

Memories from our tent camping days. :B

[Old-Biscuit]

So you have a Suburban WH.......cause you tried the Push to Reset Buttons

Now remove that cover and check the set of t-stats.

Black wires....120V AC (Left side)
Red wires......12V DC (Right side)

If wire between top (Hi Temp---Resettable t-stat) and bottom (Normal t-stat) is burnt into...power stops at the top t-stat

Propane System'
12V DC from FUSE to ON.OFF Switch to T-stats to control board (on backside of tank) to gas valve/spark electrode.

[CavemanCharlie]

Congratulations on coming up with a good idea that allows you to still enjoy your trip

[FunnyCamper]

well done, you did what you wanted done and you got it handled! hot shower and ya'll smell alot better now!! very cool

[Clarryhill]

I'll go along with the MacGyver comment. Ingenuity at its finest. Well done, sir.

[DutchmenSport]

Follow up:

We're still "happy camping" at Brookville. Today is Sunday and I imagine the campground will be thinned out pretty good shortly. We're going home tomorrow sometime.

About the water heater. I did press both buttons on the water heater, and neither of them are tripped. I searched the wires and can't find any other switches or in-line fuses. Although the propane does act like there is simply no power (battery), no sparking, no trying to ignite, nothing. Just a dead silence.

About fill cold water in a hot empty tank. No, I did not do that. The electric element fried out first. I checked the water about an hour after I turned the electric on. Of course it was cold water as the water heater was on by pass.

So then I tried gas. It fired up just fine. An hour later I tried the faucet again. Cold, of course. And that's when it hit me about the by pass.

I did touch the pipe and feel around the tank and it was cold. So, when it turned off the by pass, and filled the tank, water was going into a cold tank.

For what it's worth, cat baths just don't work for us. Maybe once, or a quick cat bath if coming inside all hot and sweaty. But for a several day stay with no ability for a shower, well .... my days of "roughing it" ended when I got out of the Army. I'll take a cold shower.... when I get desperate enough, which we actually did on this trip.

Add one more experience to "memories" of camping. My wife laugh at me when I was jumping around in the cold water, and I laughed at her too. The cold shower would have probably been even nice, if the outside temperatures were up in the 80's or something. But the outside temperature is still under 70, more like 60, and I have no desire to join the polar bear club permanently!

Still having a great time. Three great campground in East - South East Indiana are Brookville-Mounds (not the Mounds in Anderson), Quakertown, and Whitewater. All 3 are within 10 miles of each other and all are on Brookville Lake. Connersville, Metamora, and Richmond are all within a little drive from all three of these parks. Between the lake, and the sites in this area, it's quite nice area to camp in and still have plenty to do if your the "active, on-the-go type camper.

And one more thing! No kids running through our campsite, no loud music at all, and almost every one had outside lights turned off after 10:00 pm, both Friday night and Saturday night I really appreciated the DARK at night!

[AJBert]

Very smart thinking!

Me, I just do the sponge bath way as I've camped a number of times with no hook ups and the sponge bath is much better than jumping in the creek.

[Old-Biscuit]

If you have a Suburban.......

Electric and Propane have separate sets of t-stats

In outside compartment above gas valve.....rubber cover with 'Push To Reset'
The HI TEMP T-stats trip (170*F) and have to be MANUALLY reset.

Electric element is most likely fried BUT propane probably tripped the HI Temp T-stat

Hopefully you waited until tank cooled before adding any water.....Steel tank GLASS LINED..........HOT and then shock it with Cold Water



Now if you have an Atwood..

ECO (HI Temp T-stat) probably tripped
2013 model uses same set for electric and propane
Electric element most likely fried
Propane should work AFTER temp cooled to 110*F----self resetting t-stats
Fault Light ON....turn On switch OFF then 30 seconds later back ON to clear fault


Cold water into Hot tank....not AS bad due to tank being aluminum but can stress it with a thermal shock.



Best to ALWAYS let tank(s) cool