Water heater won't stay on

[steve patterson]

I have a 2007 Georgetown 350 SE and I'm taking it out for the fisrt time this week and I can't get the water heater to stay on more than a few minutes. I have water in the tank but I'm wondering if I have a bad thermostat that thinks the water is already hot. Any help would be appreciated.

[sherdep]

Model of Hot water heater?
are you running on electric or gas?
was your unit winterized? Maybe the bypass is on

do you get any hot water inside when you turn on the hot water tap?

[steve patterson]

It's a Suburban that was winterized but I've swithed the bypass and water is going into the tank. I'm not getting any hot water because it's not staying on long enough.It's gas only.

[sherdep]

Originally Posted by steve patterson

It's a Suburban that was winterized but I've swithed the bypass and water is going into the tank. I'm not getting any hot water because it's not staying on long enough.

ok
are you running it on gas or electric?

have you tried to run it on one or the other to see if you have an issue with the electric side or gas side?

Maybe it was turned on with no water in it and burned the electric element out - just a guess here though

[sherdep]

did you see if the two black buttons need to be reset for the high limit and Tstat?

they may not look like they are popped but could be

I have attached a manaul for your assistance as well

[steve patterson]

How can I tell if I've burned out the element? Thanks for the manual. I have a copy but according to my wife I'm technically challenged.
I did push the reset buttons and now there is nothing to push because they are recessed and I can't get the cover off to check on them.

[sherdep]

Originally Posted by steve patterson

How can I tell if I've burned out the element? Thanks for the manual. I have a copy but according to my wife I'm technically challenged.
I did push the reset buttons and now there is nothing to push because they are recessed and I can't get the cover off to check on them.

if they popped when pushed then that meant that they were probaly needing to be reset.

Verify you are getting heated water now
and as an FYI do not run the gas and electric at the same time unless you are taking a shower or have taken a shower and are looking for a quick recovery time.

you can verify the element by getting a Multimeter and verifying you have 110 volts across the element - if you are technically challenged then my suggestion is to get a buddy that knows how to use a meter and check it for you.

Black wire is voltage
white wire is Neutral
and the threaded section is grounded to the body of the heater.

[steve patterson]

It's propane only and I've it running for a few minutes since I reset but it still won't stay running. Thanks for your help. Time for me to call it a night.
Bye for now

[sherdep]

propane only then you will not be able to check the element the same way.

my suggestion is to turn off the propane and after it cools down - check the venture to see if anything has made a home - maybe the flame is going out - thats where I would start

good luck and let us know what you find

bye

[pg_rider]

Originally Posted by sherdep

... an FYI do not run the gas and electric at the same time unless you are taking a shower or have taken a shower and are looking for a quick recovery time.

Uh oh -- why is that? This past weekend I ran both electric and propane water heaters the whole weekend. Is that a bad idea? If so, why?

[kandl]

Originally Posted by sherdep

...FYI do not run the gas and electric at the same time unless you are taking a shower or have taken a shower and are looking for a quick recovery time.

I'm with pg_rider - what's up with that? We routinely engage both gas and electric to run our Suburban HW heater/tank. In fact, the gas part of the system will not normally come into play unless the tank is drained in short order i.e., having a shower.

???

[sherdep]

Originally Posted by pg_rider

Uh oh -- why is that? This past weekend I ran both electric and propane water heaters the whole weekend. Is that a bad idea? If so, why?

i should have re-phrased that part - its personal preference - I only use the gas side when I am doing showers back to back for quick recovery

my reasoning is why burn up the gas propane when you have electric

Wen I had my walk thru I was told to use both for quick recovery but shouldnt leave the gas on while on electric - I have found out diffrently here so as my preference I only ue the gas to get a quick recovery time for hot water.

[sherdep]

Originally Posted by kandl

I'm with pg_rider - what's up with that? We routinely engage both gas and electric to run our Suburban HW heater/tank. In fact, the gas part of the system will not normally come into play unless the tank is drained in short order i.e., having a shower.

???

whats up with that - see explination above

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by steve patterson

It's a Suburban that was winterized but I've switched the bypass and water is going into the tank. I'm not getting any hot water because it's not staying on long enough.It's gas only.

Steve,

Check the bypass valve again. It is the one that connects the cold water and the hot water lines together. Opening the cold water and hot water valves, but not turning the bypass valve will cause cold water to mix with the hot water. (see photo)

Once you are sure that the hot and cold valves are open and the bypass is closed. we can move on to why the heater is not making hot water.

[Herk7769]

As to using gas and electric together; there is no problem doing so.
Gas should not light unless the internal temperature of the heater drops below it's low limit. You would need to use a fair amount of water to add that much cold water to the system to trigger the heater to turn on.

Once low limit is reached, gas and electric will turn on together to bring the water temp back up to the high limit (or at least work together to try and manage it - like during a LONG shower).

[kandl]

Originally Posted by herk7769

Once low limit is reached, gas and electric will turn on together to bring the water temp back up to the high limit (or at least work together to try and manage it - like during a LONG shower).

DW consistently attains the low limit threshold so having the electric and gas work together for recovery is somewhat of a necessity.

[annamarie]

Originally Posted by herk7769

Steve,

Check the bypass valve again. It is the one that connects the cold water and the hot water lines together. Opening the cold water and hot water valves, but not turning the bypass valve will cause cold water to mix with the hot water. (see photo)

Once you are sure that the hot and cold valves are open and the bypass is closed. we can move on to why the heater is not making hot water.

How do you set up the Hwh to use both gas & electric at the same time? I didn't know you could do this for when taking showers. Wished I knew this sooner. Thanks Annamarie

[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by annamarie

How do you set up the Hwh to use both gas & electric at the same time? I didn't know you could do this for when taking showers. Wished I knew this sooner. Thanks Annamarie

"Herkbrary" being accessed...

The normal switch in the camper works only the propane function of the water heater. The 120 VAC "shore power" part of the heater is outside under the cover. It may have a safety cotter key pinning it "OFF" since putting power to it without water in it will destroy the heater element.

In the photo, the switch is ON and the anode is OUT. There had better be NO Shore Power or Generator providing 120 VAC to the camper or this heater element is toast.

[steve patterson]

I wish my tank looked like that. I can't find an on and off valve for either hot or cold water. I found the bypass valve for the tank and it's letting water into the tank. I should have gotten a walk through from the previous owner.

[TURBS]

It would help if you took pictures in front of hw heater and from behind if possible.
have you tried calling the previous owner ?