Hot water heater question
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Topic: Hot water heater question
Posted By: Medicine Wolf
Subject: Hot water heater question
Date Posted: 24 Apr 2020 at 9:05pm
| I have a 2010 our pod 151. I haven’t really use the hot water heater so I had it turned off at the vowels. I recently decided to use it and turn on both the hot and cold hose is going into the hot water heater. I am confused on a few things. When I turn on the water pump does it fill up the hot water heater with 6 gallons instantly? I know I have to hit the button to heat the water. Should I always leave 6 gallons in there all the time since I am living out of my camper for a few months? Should I Just use the cold water Spicket unless I am going to heat up the water first and then turn the hot Spicket on? Anything else I should be aware of? |
Replies:
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 24 Apr 2020 at 9:20pm
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Unless you are in the winterizing bypass mode, your water heater tank will fill when you either attach city water or use the water pump. It is best to bleed the air out of the tank, by turning on a hot water faucet until the flow is steady and free of air. Once full, then it is safe to turn on the electric heating element or fire up the propane heater. If you are unsure how to switch from the bypass mode, you should consult your manual or check with a local RV shop to help you out. You can also check out the archives here and YouTub is full of helpful videos about how to work the winterizing bypass and hot water modes. There is no reason not to leave your hot water tank full all the time when you're using the trailer. You can turn the heating system off and on whenever you want hot water. Just allow some heat up time before you jump into the shower. Most people only drain the hot water tank when they winterize. Good luck. ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: mjlrpod
Date Posted: 25 Apr 2020 at 11:29am
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hmmmmm, this looks oh so familiar. ------------- 2017.5 Rp-172 2020 R-pod 195 2015 Frontier sv 4.0L 6cyl I'll be rpodding |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 25 Apr 2020 at 12:20pm
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Lostagain is right on. I would add that another reason to leave the heater full for the camping season is that you want to get the air out of the water heater before turning it on. The heating element will burn out if its not immersed. BTW its not a hot water heater, its a cold water heater. If the water was already hot it wouldn't need heating. Sorry, just couldn't resist.  ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: crw8sr
Date Posted: 25 Apr 2020 at 6:02pm
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Offgrid +1!!! ------------- Chuck & Lyn Izzy, Morkie. RIP Zoe Joy & Gracie, Yorkie 2018 R Pod 190 2019 Traverse In moments of adversity;when life's a total wreck, I think of those worse off than me and really feel like heck. |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 25 Apr 2020 at 7:19pm
....but, but, the hot water heater heats the water in the hot water lines.  So it's a water heater for the hot water side of the faucet, ergo, the hot water heater. You wouldn't want the water heater heating the cold side or it'd be quite an unpleasant surprise.  Hot water heater is a regional idiomatic expression. It's like the word almond, which is pronounced with the L [aLmond] south of Merced, CA, and without the L [aamond] Modesto, CA, and north. [The in between space is no man's land where both are heard, resulting in bar fights.] ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 25 Apr 2020 at 8:50pm
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"but, but, the hot water heater heats the water in the hot water lines." Nope, once the water has entered the hot water lines the heater no longer has any effect on it. Just wait a few minutes between uses and you'll get a nice blast of cold water out of the hot line to remind you. If you install a water recirculation system you could call your water heater a hot water re-heater I guess. And therein lies the difference between an engineer and a lawyer. Engineers tend to be painfully literal while lawyers tend to see every topic as an opportunity to play word games.  ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 25 Apr 2020 at 9:33pm
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Perhaps I should have said "for" hot water lines. I don't know about other travel trailers, but in mine, when I turn on the valve that has the H on it, water goes through the tank where the fire is and comes out nice and warm. So the water in the hot water system is heated by the hot water system heater, or, for short, the hot water heater. Some engineers just like to confuse everyone. Whether one calls that thingy a hot water heater or just a water heater makes no difference to anyone who actually turns on the faucet with the H on it. They just want warm water. It's like arguing about angels on the head of a pin. Who cares? ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 26 Apr 2020 at 5:41am
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"for" vs "in"? "hot water heater" is the short form of "hot water system heater"? And you think its engineers who try to confuse everyone?   ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 26 Apr 2020 at 8:43am
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Not everything can be evaluated on a binary basis. Sometimes things must be evaluated on a continuum of values between zero and one, or degrees of truth rather than being either off or on.
If someone wants to call that tank thingy that heats up water in his/her travel trailer or home a water heater or a hot water heater, I think we can figure out what is meant. In Spanish if something is broken, we say está roto, but if you are in México, you will hear people say está rompido, which is not proper academic castellano, but everyone in the Spanish speaking world knows what it means. It's the meaning or effectiveness of the communication that ultimately counts. Water heater/hot water heater, who cares? We all understand you won't have a nice hot shower if it doesn't work.  ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 26 Apr 2020 at 10:01am
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Potato, potahto. We all know you are talking about spuds. ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 26 Apr 2020 at 11:44am
 ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: crankster78
Date Posted: 27 Apr 2020 at 10:44am
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Greetings: I leave the water heater bypassed,(don't fill it) and just use a kettle to heat the water I need on the stove. I travel by myself, usually stay in parks. I take a shower at park showers, Otherwise, I take a sponge bath using less than a gallon. The water in the kettle heats up faster than the water heater, and uses less water. Just my way. Crankster78 (soon to be 80) ------------- Crankster 78 R-179 2015 |
Posted By: Pod People
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 8:02am
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We do the same as Crankster-use an electric water kettle when on shore power and propane stove when boondocking to heat our water. It's easy once you get used to it. the water heater wastes a lot of water getting from the heater to the kitchen sink or shower and fills the grey tank unnecessarily. Everyone has their own systems-do whatever works best for you Vann ------------- Vann & Laura 2015 RPod 179 https://postimg.cc/0zwKrfB9"> 
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Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 8:59am
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Ideally, I would like to put in a recirculating system to pre-heat the water in the pipes without wasting it or flushing it down the drain. The water heater is best used when one is at a campground/RV park with full hookups so that the shot of cold water does not fill the gray water tank, but instead goes direct to the sewage system. I think that will be a project I will tackle soon given that we won't be going anywhere in the near future.
------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 9:03am
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I agree there is water waste using the water heater, first in waiting till you get warm water, then in fiddling with the temperature. I added an adjustable thermostat that keeps the hot water at just the right temp for our showers. We turn on the water heater once a day, wait half an hour or so, start washing dishes with the cool water in the lines, finish and rinse with hot water. Then take our “navy” showers and shut off the heater. Or you can run water into a pitcher and pour it back into the fresh tank later. Another way to solve the same boondocking problem, either will work. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 10:54am
We save the water out of the tap while waiting for the hot water heater ( ) water to arrive at the faucet and use it for washing or rinsing stuff. It's never been an issue that would justify a more complicated intervention for us. The shower head on/off valve is designed to drizzle a bit and that keeps enough water tricking out to avoid needing to adjust the h/c mix if you don't dilly dally while soaping up. For each of us, a shower with over a minute of water flowing would move into the Hollywood shower category. ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: mjlrpod
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 12:05pm
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I stopped doing dishes in the camper a few years ago, and my grey tank is very manageable. Pretty much the only water that goes into the grey tank is from the "navy" showers, which we use as little water as possible. I use a water jug on the end of the picnic table, and a 5 gallon bucket catch basin. I wipe everything with a wet nap type wipe to degrease , then wash it under the water jug, and done. On longer stays, it might require a couple empties into the campground sink. It works for me ------------- 2017.5 Rp-172 2020 R-pod 195 2015 Frontier sv 4.0L 6cyl I'll be rpodding |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 3:17pm
Feel free to drizzle all the hot water you want that your poor  ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 5:20pm
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It works. It's simple and it doesn't break. The amount of trickle of water is less than a cup while quickly soaping up. We're in and out really fast. ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 6:04pm
Kewl, if it works for you then far be it from me to question what you do in your trailer.  I suspect your your cup units are larger than mine tho... ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 28 Apr 2020 at 8:39pm
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A hand made mug by a very old friend who is a master potter. Holds about 10 oz., perfect for morning coffee. ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2020 at 7:45am
Turn on the shower and see how many of your 1.25 cup mugs get filled from when you first turn on the water until you have it warmed up and and adjusted properly. Then add the volume lost from dribbling during your navy shower. Bet the total is significantly more than 10 oz. And no fair cheating  ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: lostagain
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2020 at 8:43am
I guess, OG, you didn't read my post very carefully when I said: "We save the water out of the tap while waiting for the hot water heater ( ) water to arrive at the faucet...." So the water we lose is after the shower is adjusted and we're using it. Remember, we have a dry bath, with a miniature bath tub, so there's a little more maneuvering room. We couldn't have done in our Pod's wet bath, but we hardly ever used the shower in it anyway. Most of our camping is for 2 or 3 nights, in which case it's just as easy forego bathing and take a nice Hollywood shower when we get home. ------------- Never leave footprints behind. Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
Posted By: mjlrpod
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2020 at 9:15am
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If you only camp 2 or 3 days, I would think the grey tank is of no concern at all. Unless you turn the water on and go to the store while you wait for hot water. BTW, Can we all believe this thread has gone on this far. Gawd I'll be glad when we can get back to actual camping. ------------- 2017.5 Rp-172 2020 R-pod 195 2015 Frontier sv 4.0L 6cyl I'll be rpodding |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 29 Apr 2020 at 9:19am
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No I read that, but tap and faucet are not specific. It read like you were running the water through the kitchen faucet. That’s where we run our preadjusted water until it gets hot. Since the shower is on the way to the kitchen that works fine in the 179. We begin washing dishes with that cool water, finish and rinse with hot water, then take our showers. The water heater only gets turned on once a day. No need to save the cool water. No problems with access in the wet bath that I’ve ever noticed.
------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |