The Hott Rod for RV water heaters

[DonTom]

I installed a Hott Rod in this old Y2K RV just before this trip and this is the first time I tried it out. I am impressed on how well it works, just the same as if I were using propane but without it.

I wish my water heater in my 2022 motorhome would work as well as this one does in my Y2K RV.

I am using NO propane for my stay here, not for anything at all. Don't even need the furnace here overnight, but even if I did, I have a large electric tower heater that I brought with me.

-Don- Salton Sea SRA, CA

 

[John From Detroit]

I've installed one Hott Rod as well for a friend.
On my RV which had propane/electric water heater I swapped the original 1500 watt 120V heat element for a 1500 watt 240volt element (375watts at 125 volts) about the same as the Hott Rod.
WHY: Sometimes i'm parked on30 amps and that means the water heater. INstead of drawing over 12.. Drew just over 3 amps... NICE..and when I( needed hot it was hot. If I needed HOT FAST.. Well Propane.

 

[NY_Dutch]

I installed a Hott Rod in this old Y2K RV just before this trip and this is the first time I tried it out. I am impressed on how well it works, just the same as if I were using propane but without it.

I wish my water heater in my 2022 motorhome would work as well as this one does in my Y2K RV.

I am using NO propane for my stay here, not for anything at all. Don't even need the furnace here overnight, but even if I did, I have a large electric tower heater that I brought with me.

-Don- Salton Sea SRA, CA

The Hott Rod does work well, but if you need hot water in a hurry, remember you can run both the Hott Rod and propane at the same time. That also works for factory LP/electric water heaters of course.

 

[DonTom]

The Hott Rod does work well, but if you need hot water in a hurry, remember you can run both the Hott Rod and propane at the same time.

I did that the first time I turned in on and then took a shower with both running. Warms up the water faster than I can use it. Since then, (when I first got set up here), I have not had the propane on for the water heater at all and it's nice to have hot water in the morning with it only being on 120 VAC (for a couple of days now).

-Don- Salton Sea SRA, CA

 

[DonTom]

: Sometimes i'm parked on30 amps and that means the water heater.

There is only 30-amp service here and I had the electric water heater plugged in at the same time as I was charging my electric motorcycle from the outlet on the side of this RV.

They each draw close same current at 120 VAC, around 13.5 amps max. My lith battery is fully charged so the converter was drawing very little, so all that worked fine with no tripped breakers. But I can easily unplug the water heater as needed.

-Don- Salton Sea SRA, CA

 

[John From Detroit]

They each draw close same current at 120 VAC, around 13.5 amps max. My lith battery is fully charged so the converter was drawing very little, so all that worked fine with no tripped breakers. But I can easily unplug the water heater as needed.

The 1500 watt 240 volt element draws half the current at 120 volts or about 3.125 amps amps instead of 12 1/2 resulting in 1/4 the watts or about the same wattage as the Hott Rod.
The element is a resistor. that's all. if you wish I can tell you the value. since I=E/r AND Watts = IE or EE/R

Let' see 1500 watts at 240 volts = 6.25 amp = resistance of 38.4 ohms
38.4 Ohms at 120 volts = 3.125 amps
A 1500 watt 120 volt element by the same formulas draws 12.5 amps (to get the same watts you need to double the current) which means it has 1/4 the resistance .

Ohm's law.. It's on my key ring.

 

[Rene T]

Just a reminder that members with a Suburban water heater, you would need to remove the zinc anode rod and that would not be good. Your tank would not be protected from corrosion. Unless there is another way of installing a Hot Rod

 

[DonTom]

if you wish I can tell you the value. since I=E/r AND Watts = IE or EE/R

Well, I also know Ohm's Law. But it's not a big deal to unplug things-as long as I remember to plug them back in.

Just a reminder that members with a Suburban water heater, you would need to remove the zinc anode rod and that would not be good. Your tank would not be protected from corrosion. Unless there is another way of installing a Hot Rod

Mine is the Atwood so it doesn't need the anode rod. I have wondered why they don't build all RV water heaters the way mine is in this Y2K RV (and also with the electric).

This sure beats the tankless water heater in my 2022 Class A.

-Don- Salton Sea SRA, CA

 

[LarsMac]

Just a reminder that members with a Suburban water heater, you would need to remove the zinc anode rod and that would not be good. Your tank would not be protected from corrosion. Unless there is another way of installing a Hot Rod

The web site says that they have suburban reducer which includes anode.

 

[LarsMac]

I may have to give this a try.

 

[CharlesinGA]

I have wondered why they don't build all RV water heaters the way mine is in this Y2K RV (and also with the electric).

This sure beats the tankless water heater in my 2022 Class A.

-Don- Salton Sea SRA, CA

Since the mid 2000's virtually every tank water heater used in an RV is a dual gas/electric combination. I agree they should build them that way, but marketing and a lot of hype got in the way and now they are shoving tankless water heaters on everyone, even though most people find them less than stellar. Then Dometic came along and decided they could improve on the very successful Atwood water heater and made it a different size, so it doesn't fit in the old opening, they did away with the rather goot white styrofoam molded insulation of the Atwood and now wrap them in a loose fitting quarter inch thick foam and foil "blanket" that doesn't work, and to simplify manufacture, they did away with the adjustable air louvers on the burner so you cannot adjust the flame for the hottest, cleanest burning, most efficient fire, and because of that Dometic says they are not designed to operate above 4500 ft (which is the same thing they did with the former Atwood stoves).

End of rant

Charles

 

[Kirk]

Since the mid 2000's virtually every tank water heater used in an RV is a dual gas/electric combination.

Our 2012, KZ Sportsman has a propane only water heater. The dual heat models are an option in most of the lower priced RVs.

 

[Lou Schneider]

Mine is the Atwood so it doesn't need the anode rod. I have wondered why they don't build all RV water heaters the way mine is in this Y2K RV (and also with the electric).

This a mistake on Atwood's part. Yes, the aluminum tank itself is resistant to corrosion. But they use steel inserts at the ports and these can and do corrode and fail at the dissimilar metal welds between the insert and the aluminum tank.

Corrosive elements in water attack the weakest point, if there's a sacrificial anode it absorbs the attack. Without an anode corrosion attacks the next weakest point, in Atwood's case the welds between the steel inserts at the inlet, outlet and drain ports and the surrounding aluminum tank. I had an Atwood heater fail at the drain port weld shortly after I bought the trailer - it had spent most of it's life in the desert southwest.

 

[DonTom]

I had an Atwood heater fail at the drain port weld shortly after I bought the trailer - it had spent most of it's life in the desert southwest.

Well, mine is around 23 years old and it never gave me any problems at all.

-Don- SS SRA, CA

 

[Kirk]

I had an Atwood heater fail at the drain port weld shortly after I bought the trailer -

I had one fail that same way after 10 years fulltime.

 

[Rene T]

The web site says that they have suburban reducer which includes anode.

I looked for it and came up empty handed. They do have adapters. One for the Atwood/Dometic and one for the Suburbans. I watched a UTube vidion and it didn’t say anything about an anode for the Suburban. If there is one either the anode would have to be very short and wouldn’t last long or the element is very small and may not heat real good. I’d like to see what it looks like.

 

[CharlesinGA]

This a mistake on Atwood's part. Yes, the aluminum tank itself is resistant to corrosion. But they use steel inserts at the ports and these can and do corrode and fail at the dissimilar metal welds between the insert and the aluminum tank.

Corrosive elements in water attack the weakest point, if there's a sacrificial anode it absorbs the attack. Without an anode corrosion attacks the next weakest point, in Atwood's case the welds between the steel inserts at the inlet, outlet and drain ports and the surrounding aluminum tank.

I've never had any evidence of Atwood heaters having any steel of any kind in the tank. You cannot weld steel to aluminum (at least not with any cost effective production method). It would have to be some kind of pressed/swedged fit. I just this evening took a magnet to the boss where the drain plug is located on my 2007 Atwood heater and its aluminum, no evidence of rust or corrosion of any kind. I have a brand new (2018), in the box, GC6AA-10E that I will pull out tomorrow and pull the drain plug for a better look. I bought it to install in my previous trailer to replace a gas pilot lit only version but discovered water damage to the floor. I ended up selling the trailer to a co-worker who has fixed it and is using it., so the Atwood is a spare should I ever need one. Being almost impossible to obtain now (I saw one advertised the other day for $1200 $2000) I will hang on to it as long as possible.

Charles