help a newbie out on water heater problem

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aprs

aprs

Active member
Joined
Jul 9, 2013
Posts
25
Location
north carolina
Here's the mystery, at least to me and my pea brain, propane heat works, electrical heater element doesn't when plugged into shore power, however if i drive the bad boy down the road with the generator running, the hot water is available after an hour or two of driving and it stays hot for a long time like overnight into the next day. Any insight would be appreciated.
-Boz-
2000 Ultimate Freedom


Edit by staff: Changed message icon to Topic Solved
 
There are dual system  hot water heaters that circulate the engine antifreeze through coils in the hot water heater to provide heat when the engine is running.  I do not know what type you have but that is a possibility.

Not real common but there are some out there.
 
You have a connection from  your hot water heater to the engine coolant.  When you're running down the road, the engine is heating your hot water.  Most Ultimates and larger Winnebagos had that feature.

It's called motor aid heating.
 
Are you aware that the electric heat mode will have a separate on/off switch from the propane mode? The water heater does not automatically switch to electric mode when you plug to shore power - you have to turn on the electric heating element yourself.

If the electric heater switch is on and it still doesn't heat, the first thing to check re the electric heater is the 120v circuit breaker that feeds it.
 
Yep, your Ultimate has the Motoraid feature. It is a coil welded to the rear of the water heater tank OUTSIDE the tank (no chance of engine coolant contaminating the fresh water). Whether the generator is running or not doesn't affect it as the heat source is the big Cummins engine.
 
That explains it. Yes there's a switch and for the electric and i've had it on overnight and no change in temp. time to look at the switch to see if i have voltage in and out and go from there. thanks all for the assist, now i know which path to go down. hopefully it wont be the heating element in the tank as i didn't see any way to access it from the rear which is where i presume that boy is located. again, thanks for increasing my knowledge base. y'all rock!
 
Seems I recall there may be a breaker or something like that for the electric element on the water heater itself, but memory is a bit fuzzy on that. I've  not had that problem with mine.
 
I mean well when I say that I hope it is that switch, but my personal history tells me that you'll be needing a new heating element.  I'm on my third.  It's not hard to get to.....if you're 4' 7" and 87 lbs and 5' arms.  I'm not.

So, I have 'a guy' that I use locally who's able to remove the hot water heater and replace the element.  Cost is around $100.  For me, that's worth it.

Good luck.
 
Three elements? It's rare to even need one replacement, unless you forget and turn it on with no water in the tank. However, I suppose that severely hard water would take its toll.
 
Actually, third element, second water heater.  If it wasn't for mediocre luck, I'd have none at all. 

The elements  either leaked or were exposed to moisture as they all corroded at the connector and died.  The first one was so bad that they replaced the hot water heater under warranty. 

On my second hot water heater, it only took 2 years to corrode and die. 
 
As a slight tangent - it's important to flush the water tank once a year and using a portable water softener helps to reduce precipitates from hard water.
 
Not sure if I missed the make and model of the problematic water heater but.... Many Suburban water heaters, if not all 2 way models, have a small switch on the water heater itself often on the lower left side. It has to be ON for 120V operation in addition to any inside switch that may be installed.
 
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