Heated water tanks

[ddelman]

I have just purchased a 2006 Newmar Dutch Star 40'. Can someone tell me if the fresh, grey & black water tanks are heated? and if they are when is the heat source turned on?

["007"]

Welcome ddelman to Newmar forum and irv2.
The DP's have a AQUA-HOT or HYDRO-HOT SYSTEM.
If you have LP gas and a furnace the furnace will supply heat to tanks via a foil tube with a 12v electric fan in it, when the furnace operates the fan will run drawing the heated air into tank compartments.

[GaryKD]

Hi ddelman,
Welcome to iRV2. In addition to what 007 posted, if you have the propane fired furnace, the fan mentioned in 007's post has a switch to turn it on or off. The switch is located in the utility bay. If the switch is turned on, the fan will operate when the furnace is running.

[Renden]

in f-up to Gary and 007s posts, I can tell you that this keeps your tanks and Water system well above freezing point as my LP furnace did its job in October before I left for Florida from Eastern Canada - the blower fan being 'on' position as this is an extra I love on the coach !

At the time we had a cold spell -5 to 6 C (metric system in Canada) and kept the house at 50 F on the thermostat - monitored the Water compartment and was kept above 46 F during the evenings by the furnace
also opened all the panels in the MH which have access to water conduits

[akadeadeye]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GaryKD Hi ddelman, Welcome to iRV2. In addition to what 007 posted, if you have the propane fired furnace, the fan mentioned in 007's post has a switch to turn it on or off. The switch is located in the utility bay. If the switch is turned on, the fan will operate when the furnace is running.

Which is the utility bay? We have a mid engine diesel setup so it could be somewhere else I suppose. We do have a switch in the bathroom area labeled "Heat Pads". Is this it?

Don

["007"]

Mine is on the water closet panel left hand side. Should be marked FAN Switch.
If you find the foil duct and look inside you will see a small 4" COMPUTER FAN.

[GaryKD]

Hi akadeadeye,
The switch labeled heat pads is the one you are looking for. The utility bay is the basement bay with the water and sewer connections. There should be a switch for the water pump in this bay. Sometimes the fan switch is next to the water pump switch.

Not knowing which heating system you have makes it a bit difficult to pinpoint the location of the switch.

[akadeadeye]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GaryKD Hi akadeadeye, The switch labeled heat pads is the one you are looking for. The utility bay is the basement bay with the water and sewer connections. There should be a switch for the water pump in this bay. Sometimes the fan switch is next to the water pump switch. Not knowing which heating system you have makes it a bit difficult to pinpoint the location of the switch.

We have a Precision Temp Hydronic system. There is a register and fan in the basement storage area, aft of the rear axle, maybe more than one, but I have only seen one. I know we ordered the heat pads but I really don't know where they are or what they heat.

Thanks for the help and info.

Don

[geodays1]

I have a 2001 DS with heat pads on under tanks, the switch is in the bath by sink wall, swicth with red lite. this only works when hooked up to 110Volts at campground or with gen set running. Also have heat from Furnace that switch is in water hook up compartment!

[GaryKD]

Hi akadeadeye,
I do not know how warming the liquid holding tanks works with the heating system you have. If the Precision system is a forced hot air system, you may still have the fan with a switch mentioned in my previous posts. Consider calling Newmar service at 800-731-8300.

[LABergo]

Another Tip... I purchases a wireless temperature monitor system with 3 remote sensors. There are plenty out there to choose from and they are fairly inexpensive. I placed one sensor in the water compartment to monitor the temperature there. If it approaches freezing, I turn on the heating system....if not, I do nothing. I placed the 2nd sensor behind the updated Norcold....just in case. BTW, I also installed a halon fire supresssion system there....just in case. The 3rd sensor is in the generator compartment and also serves as an outside sensor when the generator is off.

[akadeadeye]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LABergo Another Tip... I purchases a wireless temperature monitor system with 3 remote sensors. There are plenty out there to choose from and they are fairly inexpensive. I placed one sensor in the water compartment to monitor the temperature there. If it approaches freezing, I turn on the heating system....if not, I do nothing. I placed the 2nd sensor behind the updated Norcold....just in case. BTW, I also installed a halon fire supresssion system there....just in case. The 3rd sensor is in the generator compartment and also serves as an outside sensor when the generator is off.

What kind and brand did you buy?

Don

[LABergo]

I bought a unit built by Oregon Scientific. The monitor inside also include weather information. I purchased mine at Amazon. There are a number of ones there and some very simple, only temperature. Most handle up to 3 remote sensors, but you don't have to buy 3, you can buy 1, 2 or 3.

[ddelman]

As a final note. I have just been shown that in my 2006 Newmar Dutch Star, there is a temperature knob (thermostat,located in the water cabinet) that controls bay temperature and heat to the tanks. This controller only works when the furnace is on and the temperature existing in the bays is lower than the knob set point.