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Old 11-08-2014, 10:05 AM   #1
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Hot water, doesn't stay hot

I've got a 2014 FR Vibe and am currently staying in it in TN. A problem for some time is that my hot water heater works, kind of. When I turn on the hot water (sink) handle, hot water comes out, then turns warm, and finally get's room temperature. This is a matter of seconds, not minutes. Shut it off, turn hot water handle back on and the whole process is repeats. Propane is good, switches all work, DSI light is not illuminated. So the "system" is working. A technician believes it to be a hot water valve not installed properly, but I am not sure which one. He also said this is common. I'm heading back up to dealer today and hope to get more info, but wondered if anyone has experienced the same issue.
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Old 11-08-2014, 10:15 AM   #2
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I wonder if you water heater by-pass valves are configured wrong?


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Old 11-08-2014, 10:18 AM   #3
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It sounds to me like cold water is mixing into your hot water somewhere. That would give the symptoms you describe. I'm not sure how that could happen though other than crude mis-routing of the water lines.
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Old 11-08-2014, 10:21 AM   #4
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I just saw Ham_bone's reply. If the bypass was open, would cold water mix with the hot from the hot tank? Seems like you would never get hot water at all.
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Old 11-08-2014, 10:58 AM   #5
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Is it just the kitchen?? Do you have a blending valve( one handle that swivels left for hot and right cold)I had one recently go bad at home and it did as you described....
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Old 11-08-2014, 11:01 AM   #6
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I had the same issue. The bypass valve was not open. If your valves look like this, they are crap. You'll need to replace it.
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Old 11-08-2014, 11:12 AM   #7
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Or, if you happen to have a single valve bypass, I would guess the check valve on the come water supply to the hw tank is bad. Had a good friend with the exact same symptoms. Hot water for a moment, then turns cold. Bad check valve.
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Old 11-08-2014, 11:18 AM   #8
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Sounds like you have a bypass valve partly open (or bad). This may have been done when dewinterizing the system. Look in the FAQ section here on the fourms under water heaters for diagrams on how the bypass valve should be manually set.

The bypass valve directly ties the cold water line into the hot water line. This is done when winterizing the water system, to allow you to put antifreeze into both lines (and bypass the water heater). If you forget to manually turn the valve back in the spring/summer (or it goes bad), then cold water is still being drawn into the hot water side. This is a very common occurance.

Another way that allows the cold water into the hot water line, is when you forget to turn either the inside or outdoor shower taps off at the handles, but instead just turn the water off at the handheld shower wand. You might want to check this and make sure that the taps are off.....and not just the wand head.
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Old 11-08-2014, 11:51 AM   #9
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Here it shows how most of them are hook-up: top picture summer normal operation, bottom picture in winterized position
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