Atwood HWH Inquiry

[DancinCampers]

I have the 10 gal DSI unit, 110V&12V, with motoraid. I am in the process of removing it to get to my aux coach heater.

My unit is one of those with the manually, resetable ECO's which are hidden on the back & so hard to get to in order to reset.

I talked to Atwood tech support this morning to see if they had an auto reset ECO available for the 110V side like they have on the 12V side. They said they don't.

The interesting part of the conversation was that they have re-engineered their units. Both gas & 110V are now controlled by the 12V ECO located on the front of the unit. They use a relay for the 110V circuit. They do not have a re-trofit available.

I was wondering if anyone on the board might have one of these newer units on their coach. If so, would they provide info on the wireing components.

I don't think it would be hard to re-trofit the heater.

Thanks

[DancinCampers]

I have the 10 gal DSI unit, 110V&12V, with motoraid. I am in the process of removing it to get to my aux coach heater.

My unit is one of those with the manually, resetable ECO's which are hidden on the back & so hard to get to in order to reset.

I talked to Atwood tech support this morning to see if they had an auto reset ECO available for the 110V side like they have on the 12V side. They said they don't.

The interesting part of the conversation was that they have re-engineered their units. Both gas & 110V are now controlled by the 12V ECO located on the front of the unit. They use a relay for the 110V circuit. They do not have a re-trofit available.

I was wondering if anyone on the board might have one of these newer units on their coach. If so, would they provide info on the wireing components.

I don't think it would be hard to re-trofit the heater.

Thanks

[troth]

Dan, just a related tip: -If you do pull out your water heater, take the time to remove both brass check valves on the back side, then add a dual-valve water heater bypass kit (Camco offers one for about $24). The positive, two-valve bypass will be peace of mind when you do your winterizing. It's on my Spring to-do list...



(you can PM me if you need more info)

[rigrunner]

Dan, my motoraid heater doesn't seem to be working now either. The fan comes on and it opens the trap door in the regester behind the doghouse hump. No heat comes out. I understand that the same lines heat the water in the hot water tank and that works so I'm puzzled. I would be interested in what you fix on yours. I think I have the water heater you are requesting info on but the RV is parked at a Truman lake about 100 miles from me, so I can't help you.
Thanks for any info you can give me on fixing your motoraid.
Charlie

[DancinCampers]

Hi Charlie,

My problem was that the fan quit working & was blowing a fuse when I turned on the power.

I got it fixed today, and will post some pics & resolution in a separate thread.

On my coach, the HWH & coach heater are plumbed in series. I believe that the coolant goes into the aux coach heater then out and into the HWH then to the radiator. On my coach the heater hoses are visible in the right front wheel well.

Unless your systems are plumbed in parallel I don't know how the HWH can get hot without the aux coach heater radiator also getting hot.

After your engine comes up to temp you should be able to tell if the heater hoses are hot. If they are & the fan is running you should get heat. Other than the fan drawing in air somewhere other than thru the aux radiator, I'm stumped.

[DSouthw524]

Rigrunner,
Are you talking about the floor register in the front of the coach? If I understand you correctly, you will have heat come out of that register when the furnace is turned on.

Maybe you could be a bit more clear.

[rigrunner]

Hi Dan, Thank you for clarifying how the hoses are hooked up. Maybe I didn't wait long enough for all the coolant to warm up. I think I read someplace that it takes about 100 miles. I'll check it again the next time I get the RV out.
Thanks Charlie<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by DancinCampers:
Hi Charlie,

My problem was that the fan quit working & was blowing a fuse when I turned on the power.

I got it fixed today, and will post some pics & resolution in a separate thread.

On my coach, the HWH & coach heater are plumbed in series. I believe that the coolant goes into the aux coach heater then out and into the HWH then to the radiator. On my coach the heater hoses are visible in the right front wheel well.

Unless your systems are plumbed in parallel I don't know how the HWH can get hot without the aux coach heater radiator also getting hot.

After your engine comes up to temp you should be able to tell if the heater hoses are hot. If they are & the fan is running you should get heat. Other than the fan drawing in air somewhere other than thru the aux radiator, I'm stumped. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

[rigrunner]

DSouthw524,
Yes, I get heat when the furnace is turned on but when I'm only using the motoraid by turning the rocker switch on the dash to hi or low, I do not get any heat out of the front regester. I'm supposed to. Maybe yours doesn't have the motoraid but I think is does. It really comes in handy when traveling in cold weather.
Hope this is clearer.
Rigrunner
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by DSouthw524:
Rigrunner,
Are you talking about the floor register in the front of the coach? If I understand you correctly, you will have heat come out of that register when the furnace is turned on.

Maybe you could be a bit more clear. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

[DancinCampers]

I've been doing some research into the newer Atwood HWH's and found a pub online regarding the model GE16EXT. This model has what they call Exothermal technology. It is a 10 gal tank with capacity of 16 gal hot water.

It uses a mixing valve on the back of the heater. Here is a pic



I looked at the wiring diagram & it doesn't look like my unit could be retrofitted easily, as it appears the 120V ECO function is controlled by the control module. Here is a pic of the wiring diagram.



The date of the pub is Sep 2004.