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Old 11-02-2020, 08:11 PM   #1
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Hot Water Heater (HWH)

I will be doing some camping in December/January and I want to ask about HWH operation. I have Electric & Propane, but I normally use electric at all times when camping (propane only for emergencies or quick hot water demand.


Is safe to leave HWH ON all night to prevent low temperatures from doing any damages or turn it OFF. (Not so concern with basement or other pipes that is taken care just the HWH and water inside tank)



Also, what about during day time when temperatures are above freezing keep it On or Off.



I know about conveniences or having warm or hot water on demand but that is not the issue. Is all about safety and prevent damages tank.



Thanks in advance for any input.
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Old 11-02-2020, 08:30 PM   #2
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If it is full of water and you are connected to shore power no need to turn it off unless you need to use several other high current devices. It is no different than your water heater at home.
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Old 11-02-2020, 09:25 PM   #3
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Our water heater is on from the time we get set up until we leave when on shore power. That is often 2-3 days, 2-3 weeks and sometimes 3-4 months. No need to turn it off overnight. It turns on and off as needed on its own.

Same for when boondocking and on propane.
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Old 11-02-2020, 10:30 PM   #4
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On shore power, my water heater is on from arrival to departure. About the only time it is turned off is when I am not on any kind of water source, either freshwater tank with water pump powered or on city water connection.
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Old 11-04-2020, 12:41 AM   #5
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Leaving your HWH on connected to shore power is the norm! We use propane and after we turn on our propane tank, we fire up the hot water heater. We are stationary in a campground but don't shut the gas off until we leave.
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Old 11-04-2020, 06:30 AM   #6
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Why are we "Heating Hot Water" ? At home, I have a "Water Heater" and I have a "Water Heater" in our TT....until we sold it this year.
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Old 11-04-2020, 06:44 AM   #7
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Originally Posted by TheWolfPaq82 View Post
Why are we "Heating Hot Water" ? At home, I have a "Water Heater" and I have a "Water Heater" in our TT....until we sold it this year.
I agree with your thoughts on this, and plumbers generally refer to them as just “water heaters”. In pluming, though, hot water is defined as water at 120 degrees. That is the temperature at which we set residential water heaters for the potable water system. We set them much higher when they are used as a source for heating a furnace, but temper down the potable supply to 120 degrees. With RV water heaters, though, the thermostats are generally set to shut off at temperatures higher than 120 degrees, so in many cases, RV water heaters are, indeed, heating hot water and could be considered hot water heaters. But I still won’t call them hot water heaters because it just sounds silly to a plumber.

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Old 11-04-2020, 08:04 AM   #8
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Originally Posted by TheWolfPaq82 View Post
Why are we "Heating Hot Water" ? At home, I have a "Water Heater" and I have a "Water Heater" in our TT....until we sold it this year.
Almost always, a water heater is heating hot water, making it even hotter. Neither of my water heaters wait for the water to become cold before heating it.

I don’t call it a hot water heater, but I have no problem with others who do.
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Old 11-04-2020, 09:24 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by nomad297 View Post
I agree with your thoughts on this, and plumbers generally refer to them as just “water heaters”. In pluming, though, hot water is defined as water at 120 degrees. That is the temperature at which we set residential water heaters for the potable water system. We set them much higher when they are used as a source for heating a furnace, but temper down the potable supply to 120 degrees. With RV water heaters, though, the thermostats are generally set to shut off at temperatures higher than 120 degrees, so in many cases, RV water heaters are, indeed, heating hot water and could be considered hot water heaters. But I still won’t call them hot water heaters because it just sounds silly to a plumber.

Bruce
Quote:
Originally Posted by eye95 View Post
Almost always, a water heater is heating hot water, making it even hotter. Neither of my water heaters wait for the water to become cold before heating it.

I don’t call it a hot water heater, but I have no problem with others who do.
Yes, thank you!

Now can we please stop beating the "Why are we heating hot water" joke into the ground?

A thread where 50% of the posts are making the same dumb comment helps nobody.
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Old 11-04-2020, 09:56 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by ramosans View Post
I will be doing some camping in December/January and I want to ask about HWH operation.
Since we're splitting nits here, people might want to be careful using "HWH" as an acronym for a water heater.

HWH is a well-known manufacturer of hydraulic RV leveling systems and that's the only place I've seen "HWH" used before. When I saw the title I actually thought "I did not know HWH made water heaters."

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Old 11-04-2020, 09:59 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NXR View Post
Since we're splitting nits here, people might want to be careful using "HWH" as an acronym for a water heater.

HWH is a well-known manufacturer of hydraulic RV leveling systems and that's the only place I've seen "HWH" used before. When I saw the title I actually thought "I did not know HWH made water heaters."

Ray
It may not be as well known as you think. I immediately thought of water heater.
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Old 11-04-2020, 01:32 PM   #12
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Electric water heater, microwave, and coffee maker use at the same time will trip the breaker for us.
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Old 11-04-2020, 02:02 PM   #13
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Electric water heater, microwave, and coffee maker use at the same time will trip the breaker for us.
The OP is not questioning why his heater doesn’t work. The main question is this: “Is safe to leave HWH ON all night to prevent low temperatures from doing any damages or turn it OFF. (Not so concern with basement or other pipes that is taken care just the HWH and water inside tank)”
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