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Hot water for shower.....


BBC3

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Hello!

Can someone please give me a step by step instruction to use my shower?

I have a 1991 Toyota Dolphin.

I tried to heat up the water today and left the heater on for 3 hours, but no hot water.....I can get water to run out of all fawcets and the shower, but not hot. I don't think anything is wrong, I think it is operator error...this is my first RV and I have not tried to have a warm shower yet.....

I cannot find any instructions. My understanding so far is that there is a tank which water goes into and then needs to be heated up, but I am not clear on how to make sure hot water is in the tank ready to heat up.....

Any guidance, direction etc. is gratefully received....even if pointing me to an already existing thread which I have not found.

 

Many thanks!

BBC3

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You probably have a bypass valve on the hot water system it most likely is in the "winter mode" meaning the heater plumbing is bypassed. It should be behind the hot water tank just a little lever type valve. Don't run the heater until you find out because there probably is no water in the tank.

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Do you hear/ see the water heater running? You will hear the humming of it and see the flame if you have the door open on the heater on the outside of the truck. Some rigs have a manual valve as well as a mixer valve for hot/ cold. I have seen one way valves also corrode and get stuck. You just need to start tracing the system and figuring it out.  

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This is a very common system for all RV's it saves a lot of antifreeze. When the system is in bypass no water flows through the heater but it does flow around it so you will have plenty of water in the taps but it will not be hot. It's not a real good ideal to run the heater dry so see if you have a by pass kit before you try again. The best way to tell would be to open the over temp valve at the top of the water heater with the pump on or hooked up to city water there should be water coming out of the open valve.  http://www.rverscorner.com/bypass.html

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Hi Maineah,

 

Thanks for your reply.

I have attached some images, and a video, not sure if the video will work....Anyway, I can't see any levers to turn, and not sure what is what here.....can you tell if I have a bypass kit? And what should I do with what I've got? Can you tell?

 

Thanks!!

IMG_1340.JPG

IMG_1341.JPG

IMG_1342.JPG

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An operating WH sounds like a jet engine when it's running. You should have a DSI WH (direct spark ignition) when you turn the switch you should hear it spark several times then the burner will start.

Failure points. There is an overtemp safety thermistor that fails , spider webs in the burner, dirty spark points and the thermocouple/flame detector. If you don't have a factory manual you can download one from the internet.

 

 

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1 hour ago, Maineah said:

This is a very common system for all RV's it saves a lot of antifreeze. When the system is in bypass no water flows through the heater but it does flow around it so you will have plenty of water in the taps but it will not be hot. It's not a real good ideal to run the heater dry so see if you have a by pass kit before you try again. The best way to tell would be to open the over temp valve at the top of the water heater with the pump on or hooked up to city water there should be water coming out of the open valve.  http://www.rverscorner.com/bypass.html

So, I've filled the main tank, and then switched on the pump. It sounded like water was getting pumped into the hot water tank, ready for heating - does that sound about right? It pumped for about 20 seconds and I think I could hear water flowing from the fresh water tank into the hot water tank......I'm assuming now that I can switch on the heater? Please advise. Thanks!!

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4 minutes ago, WME said:

An operating WH sounds like a jet engine when it's running. You should have a DSI WH (direct spark ignition) when you turn the switch you should hear it spark several times then the burner will start.

Failure points. There is an overtemp safety thermistor that fails , spider webs in the burner, dirty spark points and the thermocouple/flame detector. If you don't have a factory manual you can download one from the internet.

 

 

So, I've filled the main tank, and then switched on the pump. It sounded like water was getting pumped into the hot water tank, ready for heating - does that sound about right? It pumped for about 20 seconds and I think I could hear water flowing from the fresh water tank into the hot water tank......I'm assuming now that I can switch on the heater? Please advise. Thanks!!

The heater itself seems to light up fine and i can feel heat is being produced......so no issue with the lighting and heating by the looks of it.......

 

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OK the pump runs and then stops. NORMALLY with an empty WH tank, the pump will run 2-3 mins to fill it up, most pumps are in the 2-3 gallons per minute range and your tank is most likely 6 gallons. Do the math😁

There is a drain valve and a pressure relief valve on the water heater, turn the pump on and after it stops open one and see if water comes out of the tank. The pump should kick on after a few seconds. If you don't know about the amount of water in the tank,  shut the pump off and open both drain valves when it's empty, start over.

It takes 20-30 min to heat a full tank of cold water, so give your WH a chance. You should hear the jet engine sound for the entire time. When the heater stops then turn on the closest hot water faucet, let it run for a while.

If the tank doesn't have water, the heater shuts off after a minute or so then you have lots of problems and need the manual.

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HA!! I figured it out.......the hot water tap in the shower is actually.....wait for it.........the cold, and the cold, the hot!! Yes, as simple as that. Oh boy. But now, I'm all set, the fridge is working, the hot water is working, I've sealed the seams and I'm ready to roll!

Thanks to all who has helped in this process!!

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2 minutes ago, WME said:

OK the pump runs and then stops. NORMALLY with an empty WH tank, the pump will run 2-3 mins to fill it up, most pumps are in the 2-3 gallons per minute range and your tank is most likely 6 gallons. Do the math😁

There is a drain valve and a pressure relief valve on the water heater, turn the pump on and after it stops open one and see if water comes out of the tank. The pump should kick on after a few seconds. If you don't know about the amount of water in the tank,  shut the pump off and open both drain valves when it's empty, start over.

It takes 20-30 min to heat a full tank of cold water, so give your WH a chance. You should hear the jet engine sound for the entire time. When the heater stops then turn on the closest hot water faucet, let it run for a while.

If the tank doesn't have water, the heater shuts off after a minute or so then you have lots of problems and need the manual.

Thanks - appreciate your input. See my post below.....yeah, I know, hot is cold, cold is hot.....go figure!!

 

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😆😆😁

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2 hours ago, Maineah said:

Master plumbers badge award.

Ha! Yep, I earned it! I'm happy it was such an 'easy' fix, though it took a while to track it down....like 'is it plugged in!?'

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