Hot water problems

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C

cocoklein

Member
Joined
Aug 9, 2007
Posts
6
Hi,
This is my first MH (1987 Coachmen Leprechaun, C class, 26''1/2). When I bought it, it was supposed to be in running condition... Almost everything is fixed now. The remaining problem is the hot water. Right after I bought it the water pump jammed so I changed it. Put some water in the tank, started the pump, opened the faucet, had running water for only a few seconds and the pump kept on pumping. Found out the cold water line from the faucet in the toilet room was disconnected (I'm very happy about that water spill :mad:). Put that back together, put water in the tank, started the pump, openned the faucets and hoped. Now, I do have running water, no spills, the water pump only starts when needed but... I do not have hot water. In the many attempts I made the water heater only started 3 times ran for a few moments and stopped. I don't know how long it needs to run to heat the water but for the time it ran I had no hot water.
What should I look for?
Thanks
Daniel
 
Daniel,

Do you know if the MH had been winterized before you bought it? If it was winterized there may be a water heater bypass on the unit. If it does, then the bypass valves will have to be changed (opened or closed) before you could get hot water. That would be the first thing I would check. If that isn't the case, let us know and we can come up with some more suggestions.

Good luck
 
I think Daniel said the propane burner ran and stopped, which suggests the problem is the burner rather than water valves (but he could have that problem too). When a burner shuts down after just a few moments of operation, that usually indicates a failed flame sensor thermocouple (TC). The flame sensor signals the control board that the burner has lit OK. If the board does not receive that signal within 15-20 seconds, it shuts off the gas flow to prevent dangerous KP gas leakage. It may be a simple as the thermocouple being out of place (not direct in the flame) or it could be a bad connection back to the board. Or a failed thermocouple, though that is actually fairly rare.

Since you also appear to have trouble getting it to light in the first place, I'd look at the TC  placement (the TC is also the igniter in most burners). It is right at the mouth of the burner tube and looks like a small wire. What make and model water heater do you have - the specs on placement vary somewhat for different heaters?  I would guess the TC should be about 1/8" from the side of the tube.

At the initial light-up the burner needs to run 20-30 minutes to heat up the cold water in the tank. After that, it will run intermittently for a few minutes at a time.
 
I once helped a couple that had no hot water in their new to them coach.  The water hreater did light but shut off after a short period of time but longer than when the flame sensor is faulty. also took longer before the water heater would light.  Was an easy fix just opened the bypas valves like Don mentioned.  The big difference was the longer time it took to shut down or relight compared to the time it take to shut down/relight when the flame sensore is faulty.
 
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