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. 

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.  

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...

Feel free to drizzle all the hot water you want that your poor hot water heater worked so hard making for you by heating the cold water it received directly from your unheated fresh water tank. Always having that perfect shower temperature, with no fiddling, now that's camping luxury. And all for less than $5 IIRC. Cheapest mod ever.  

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

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)

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. 

And you think its engineers who try to confuse everyone? 

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?

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. 

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.]  

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. 

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.