Water heater operation

[Nelsonfun]

I really need some guidance. I’m a newbie that’s for sure. I need to know how to fill the hot water heater and general operation info.I have a 2019 Heartland Pioneer RG28. Bought it last month.

[beemerphile1]

You should have a full set of manuals for every system in your RV. If not instruct your dealer that you expect them to be provided.

[wa8yxm]

If you never got the owner's manual then I have two books I will suggest BUY ONLY ONE

one is called The RV Owner's Handbook
The other is The RV Book (As best I recall)

THey should cover just about everything including a bunch of stuff you do not have.. The major differences between these two books are the name of the book and author and publisher (one is a Woodalls' (Good Sam) publication sold at Camping World.. NO, I forget which).


Now. on your water heater. IF it is "Winterized" then it is likely bypassed. There are three different bypass systems 1,2 and 3 valve
1 valve is a single "3 way" valve. may be labeled "USE/BYPASS" may be unlabled May be in the cold water line just behind the Water heater May be on a panel you access from outside. They can indeed play "Hide the valve" with 'em.

You turn the valve 90 degrees (Generall the water flows in the direction of the valve handle.

on this system the HOT side has a check valve (Which by the way is often a major PITA)

Next: 2 valves.. You have TWO 3-way valves. Now these will often be on what i call the "Back" (Plumbing) side of the water heater.. on in the HOT one in the COLD line.. Same instructions only BOTH valves need to point to the water heater.


Next 3 valve system (What I have) these are usually in back of the water heater as well

Two valves (hot and cold) need to be OPENED and the BYPASS (center) one closed. My Valves have oval shaped handles and when the MAJOR (long) Axis is parallel to the pipe that is open.

NOw. if you have water in your fresh tank turn on the pump. in about 4 minutes open the hot valve. Expect some strange behaviour for 5 miniutes or so. When you get smooth flow it's full.

If you have city water. may not take as long but expect strange behaviour when you open that hot valve.. Nothing wrong with it absolutely normal. just seems strange the first time or two.

Now. There are 3 or rather 2x2 Water heaters

Atwood/Surburan
Manual pilot gas only... DSI Gas/Electric

Instructrions vary depending
On an Atwood you will have two switches inside (Gas/Electric) and if turning on ELECTRIC causes a near instant FAULT light.. There is a RED wire that needs to be connected to the ECO outside.

That's all I'll say for now.

[1492]

Moved from Forum Posting Help and Support

[BB_TX]

Look near your water hookups for a water heater bypass switch. Make sure the switch is not in the bypass position. Connect city water hose and turn on water. Open a hot water faucet inside and wait until it blows all the air out and water starts flowing. Should take a few minutes to fill the water heater and water to reach the faucet.

Once you have water, then look for your water heater control switches, one for electric and one for propane.

If you have a Suburban water heater there will probably be a small black rocker switch on the lower left front panel of the water heater itself that also must be turned on for electric. You will have to remove the outside grill covering the water heater to access that switch. Then you can turn on the inside electric switch. And the water should start heating.

To operate on propane you need to have a propane tank valve opened and air purged from the propane lines. You can do that by turning on a stove burner valve until you can get the stove burner to light and then turn it off. Then you should be able to turn on the water heater propane switch and get the water heater to fire up on propane.

If there is no water heater bypass switch, then there may be valves behind the water heater that must be positioned properly. Then you would need someone knowledgeable to do that as there are several variations of that.

[enblethen]

I would suggest getting make and model numbers of your appliances, download the owner's manual for each.
this book gives a lot of basic information Maintenance and repair
Keep information including serial numbers for future reference. Things always breakdown in the dark, when it is cold and raining.

[Lwiddis]

You need more than water heater instructions. Hire a pro to teach you about all the systems.

[midnightsadie]

hire some one to get you started. all most every rv,er out there will help another. over the net would be real hard.theres valves to be closed and others to open .theres also rv techs that can be hired for repairs and set up, look for mobil rvtech in your area.

[Nelsonfun]

Never received a book. Yes a quick walk through bu I assured him that I didn’t know half of what he was talking about. My husband has recently had a stroke and I’m having to learn things the hard way.. I called camping world yesterday, they told me to turn it on. The maintenance man where my trailer is parked said there was no water in it. How do I put water in it? I am soooo very frustrated.

[midnightsadie]

wheres your book? and your best info is going to be from hands on, find a buddy who has a rv and start learning. welcome to the rv world. P.S. did your sales person do a walk thru with you? DO NOT turn on the water heater till your sure theres water in it, you,ll ruin the electric side of it.