Hot water heater woes

[cardiffman]

Any suggestions for the hot water heater only producing warm water? The propane or electric both are working, but I'm not getting hot water. We are in a cross-country trip, so I will appreciate any suggestions. Thanks

[firedoc]

If you have an outside shower make sure that the valves are turned off, not just the nozzle.

[Martind4]

Has the system ever worked properly or is this something that just happened? If you have a bypass system for winterizing the water heater, check to see if it somehow slipped into bypass mode.

I suppose it could be a check valve that isn't opening properly and doesn't allow enough hot water to flow. Could a hot water line be kinked someplace after the water heater. Are all fixtures acting the same? (Kitchen faucet, lavatory, shower)

Just some ideas that come to mind.

[doc]

It may be a malfunctioning mixing valve. I just had an issue with mine. Ended up removing the valve and twisting it a little further open. This valve allows the water to get hotter and then mixes in a small amount of cold water and thereby allows 10 gallons of hot water to become a larger volume. Do a google search for "Atwood RV water heater" and "anti-scald valve". My valve is a Watt brand and Google will give you a better explanation of what it does. Mine would not allow the mixing to take place even though I had adequate hot water in the tank. I ended up taking the valve out and opening the valve a little further. I have no idea why it started malfunctioning but this fixed it. Oh yeah, on the Atwood you have to remove the plastic handle on the valve to move the stem. When you tighten the screw holding the handle on, it locks the valve with a second set of teeth so it cannot be moved easily. Mine works great now.

[Batman_777]

I have an Atwood GE10 (Gas/Electric). The thermostat was faulty. Easy to change and cheap. The Gas ECO and Electric thermostat could be a problem since they work together. Check voltages coming out of the circuit board and going to the thermostat. I think it is the yellow wire should be 12vdc. Check the input voltage and brown wire voltage. Look on the unit for a wiring diagram. White 12vdc Brown 12vdc

[cardiffman]

Thanks for the responses. Since we are on the road and have a tight schedule for the next 4 days, I'll have to wait until I can take the access panel off and take a look at things.

Here is a weird thing: When traveling, the water is hot upon arrival, obviously from the engine, but does not heat from normal controls. Shore power light is on. Breaker not tripped. On Propane operation, it only comes on for a few minutes, then goes back off. I assumed it was a bad thermostat, which it may be, but why do I have heat from the engine? Is the temperature from the engine not controlled by the same thermostat? Any thoughts?

[edgray]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cardiffman Thanks for the responses. Since we are on the road and have a tight schedule for the next 4 days, I'll have to wait until I can take the access panel off and take a look at things. Here is a weird thing: When traveling, the water is hot upon arrival, obviously from the engine, but does not heat from normal controls. Shore power light is on. Breaker not tripped. On Propane operation, it only comes on for a few minutes, then goes back off. I assumed it was a bad thermostat, which it may be, but why do I have heat from the engine? Is the temperature from the engine not controlled by the same thermostat? Any thoughts?

AFAIK, there is no thermostat to control the flow of hot engine water (Motoraid) to the water heater. It is just an extension of the motor cooling system that passes thru the water heater, and therefore you get hot water there no matter if you want it or not. There "may" be a shut off valve somewhere to stop the flow, but I'm pretty sure there is no thermostat.

[Clay L]

When you get a chance to work on it I would check the temperature of the water in the tank before I did anything else. Carefully open the pressure relief valve and collect some water. Check the temp - it should be about 140 degrees. If it is you know you have a cold water cross feed somewhere. If it is much lower then you probably need to replace the thermostat.

As edgray said there is no thermostat on the Motoraid syatem.