Hot water tank inadequate

[Lon]

I bought a new Minilite in the fall and the hot water tank is listed as 5 gallons but produces only about 1.5 gallons of hot water. It quickly recharges and the water is very hot but you can't even get a quick shower out of it before the temperature is ice station zebra. Has anyone exprerience a similar problem? Any suggestions for a fix? Unfortunately the dealer is 1500 miles away and the dealers around here won't work on a unit they didn't sell so the repairman will be me unless I decide to visit Niagra Falls again. I would appreciate any words of wisdom.

[jonrjen]

Actually the Water heater is warrantied by the water heater manufacture. Call the manufacture and ask for a recommendation as to where to take it for warranty repair. You don't have to take it to a Forest River dealer.

[caper]

Are you taking "navy" showers or letting the water run? With a 5 gal tank you get wet turn off water on shower head, lather up, rinse off. Another place to look is the water bypass on the back of the water heater. If you have left the bypass valve open it will allow cold water to mix with the hot.

[techntrek]

It could be the bypass valves, although the usual symptom for that is lukewarm water and not hot water that doesn't last long enough.

If the water heater has a temperature adjustment then turning it to max will help.

[Herk7769]

As stated the #1 culprit for "tepid" water is the bypass valve left in "Winter" or bypass. Make sure the valve is horizontal (or across the pipe).

The #2 culprit is the outside shower wand valves left open with the handset valve closed. This allows cold water to enter the hot water pipes when using any hot water in the coach.

5 gallons is actually plenty of hot water if used as the Navy trains and the water is not diluted with cold water.

[rana]

Has anyone mentioned the bypass valves yet?

If it is doing 'some' heating then I would tend to think that it's probably not a defect issue. It 'could' be, but my money is on an open or defective bypass valve.

[Timex]

If I were to take a shower, without turning the water off a few times during the shower, I'd be out of hot water before I get finished. I have the Oxygenics showerhead and a soft pause button. Here's a simple explanation of a Navy shower.

Get everything wet
Push the pause button
Shampoo the head
Push water back on
Rinse out shampoo
Push water off
Lather up with soap
Push water back on
Rinse everything off

I have plenty of hot water. The next person needs to wait about 10 mins and if they do the same as above, they'll have plenty of hot water too. I just use the water heater on gas. I could use the electric element but I'm too lazy to go out and flip the switch and then I'd forget it was on 1 day and not have water hooked up and burn the element up.

I know the bypass valve has been mentioned (at least once) so I'll ask if a water regulator is being used? If not, I'd imagine a good volume of water is going thru the water heater before it gets a chance to heat up. I also give it about 30 mins to heat up good before I get in.

Here's some pics of my shower.

[rockfordroo]

If you've got the chintzy brass valves like these for your water heater inlet/outlet/bypass valves, your bypass may look closed, but may really be open.

Replace them.

[DK-in-SC]

If a bunch of us will be showering, I will turn on the gas heater in addition to the electric. It seems to keep up better when both heaters are running, but we do still need to take start & stop showers.

[Lon]

Thanks folks. Sounds like I was expecting too much out of this tiny tank. I appreciate the time you took to educate me and also post pictures to make it crystal clear. I'll stop my Army ways and join thd Navy

[techntrek]

And boost your tank temperature if it has that adjustment (not all do).

[TURBS]

My last camper had a 6 gallon wh and was more than sufficient for several showers at a time.
Albeit we used gas and electric for quicker recovery.

[Dave Lyon]

Originally Posted by DK-in-SC

If a bunch of us will be showering, I will turn on the gas heater in addition to the electric. It seems to keep up better when both heaters are running, but we do still need to take start & stop showers.

X2

[Lon]

OK I just have exagerated expectations for a 5 gallon hot water tank. Do they make larger hot water tanks? I would gladly sacrifice closet space for a larger tank. Looks like it would be an easy instal. Any one have any experience with this proposed project?

[Timex]

I'm not going to say I'm familiar with a Mini Lite but I'd say that your space may be limited and you also may need to think about the weight of a bigger tank. Fill up a 5 gallon bucket with water and then fill up another. That's at least another 40 lbs.

Taking a trip to the shower house for a longer shower might need to be thought about.

[caper]

They do make a larger size tank but you would have to make the hole larger for it to fit. The also make a on demand water heater that is the same size as the 6 gal. Do not know how well the on demand will work. Have heard bad reviews.

[elind]

I have 10 gal hot water heater. I think it is just a deeper tank so if have the room behind it go for it.

[techntrek]

6 gallons has never been a problem for our family of 4. Navy showers, wait 5-10 minutes before the next one starts. Make sure the thermostat is set at its highest setting.

[Dave Lyon]

Originally Posted by techntrek

6 gallons has never been a problem for our family of 4. Navy showers, wait 5-10 minutes before the next one starts. Make sure the thermostat is set at its highest setting.

Yep....navy shower is a must and as others have mentioned run electric and propane at the same time during peak showering.

[caper]

SW6DE 6 12000/1440 10.2/6.0 12-11/16" 12-11/16" 19-3/16" 34.3 82.6 SW10DE 10 12000/1440 10.2/6.0 16-7/32" 16-7/32" 20-1/2" 45.5 126.5

This is from the suburban site. As you can see there is a difference in the opening size of the water heaters.