Hallelujah, we have reliable hot water!

[copterjohn]

We have a 2015 Legacy 340 KP. Our experience with the on-demand water heater has been frustrating in the 18 months we have owned this coach. It came with a first-generation Girard which nobody could get to operate properly despite many calls to Girard technical support. It was swapped out for an Atwood 50k on-demand unit and it would operate semi-reliably only when the water pressure was 45 PSI or higher. Not many places we camp have that kind of water pressure which meant running off the 12-volt DC pump. We removed everything in the plumbing system that would restrict flow and what couldn't be removed we carefully drilled out one size at a time until the pump would run continuously. This resulted in somewhat stable hot water, but if the pump would slow down or cycle off even for a moment it was the cold blast followed by scalding water. This made it unsafe for the niece and nephew to ever use the shower by themselves. The thermal protection breaker on the Atwood would trip almost everyday, requiring us to go outside and reset it... usually with a head full of shampoo or shaving cream all over my face. We were honestly getting to the point of considering getting rid of the coach or trying to get someone to convert it back to a 10 gallon water heater. Forest River diesel division is probably tired of my calls and emails about this. A few weeks ago I was discussing this issue with a Winnebago dealer a mile from the Winnie factory in Forest City, IA. They suggested the Truma with the small onboard tank that stays heated when turned on and helps prevent the cold hot fluctuations common in other systems. They are ripping out Atwoods on a regular basis. After some calls to Forest River, we arranged to have a Truma installed. It has been nothing short of Wonderful! I turn the unit on a few minutes before I want to use the shower. It preheats the small tank to 120 degrees so there's instant hot water until the burner heats the constant flow of water. The kitchen sink in the Legacy will get hot within 5 Seconds and the shower gets hot and 20 seconds. The temp is stable! I measured how much water goes down the drain before it gets hot and it's 40 ounces at full volume. That's a heck of a lot better than the approximately 2-3 gallons the Atwood would use to get hot if it did at all. Plus you can turn the flow way down and the Truma doesn't kick out. FINALLY! Now I learn the 2018 Legacy has Truma factory installed...
I hope this helps others. Finally boondocking appears possible!

[TKN 516]

We have the Girard gen 1 water heater. I hate it! I think about twice it has worked well since we have had our rig. We have had it about 9 months now. It has had parts replaced three different times. What a headache!
I had seen the Triuma and was wondering how it worked in another like coach. It was a TT that I remember seeing.
I will actually see if I can find a dealer close by for the upgrade!!

[copterjohn]

I have used the truma everyday for the past two weeks without a hiccup. So far so good.

[foretm]

When I went to the factory 2+ years ago I recommended they consider the Truma then and was told that they have just come to an agreement with Atwood, see my post below. I'm glad they finally decided to consider the Truma and move to that as standard on the newer units. I know for a long time a lot of folks had issues with Girard and Atwood units.

Factory Tour in June

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ad.php?t=81522

[Kenny kustom]

I can shower, wife can flush the toilet, no temp change with the truma.
Awesome unit.

[captnrick3]

Originally Posted by copterjohn

Attachment 137701

We have a 2015 Legacy 340 KP. Our experience with the on-demand water heater has been frustrating in the 18 months we have owned this coach. It came with a first-generation Girard which nobody could get to operate properly despite many calls to Girard technical support. It was swapped out for an Atwood 50k on-demand unit and it would operate semi-reliably only when the water pressure was 45 PSI or higher. Not many places we camp have that kind of water pressure which meant running off the 12-volt DC pump. We removed everything in the plumbing system that would restrict flow and what couldn't be removed we carefully drilled out one size at a time until the pump would run continuously. This resulted in somewhat stable hot water, but if the pump would slow down or cycle off even for a moment it was the cold blast followed by scalding water. This made it unsafe for the niece and nephew to ever use the shower by themselves. The thermal protection breaker on the Atwood would trip almost everyday, requiring us to go outside and reset it... usually with a head full of shampoo or shaving cream all over my face. We were honestly getting to the point of considering getting rid of the coach or trying to get someone to convert it back to a 10 gallon water heater. Forest River diesel division is probably tired of my calls and emails about this. A few weeks ago I was discussing this issue with a Winnebago dealer a mile from the Winnie factory in Forest City, IA. They suggested the Truma with the small onboard tank that stays heated when turned on and helps prevent the cold hot fluctuations common in other systems. They are ripping out Atwoods on a regular basis. After some calls to Forest River, we arranged to have a Truma installed. It has been nothing short of Wonderful! I turn the unit on a few minutes before I want to use the shower. It preheats the small tank to 120 degrees so there's instant hot water until the burner heats the constant flow of water. The kitchen sink in the Legacy will get hot within 5 Seconds and the shower gets hot and 20 seconds. The temp is stable! I measured how much water goes down the drain before it gets hot and it's 40 ounces at full volume. That's a heck of a lot better than the approximately 2-3 gallons the Atwood would use to get hot if it did at all. Plus you can turn the flow way down and the Truma doesn't kick out. FINALLY! Now I learn the 2018 Legacy has Truma factory installed...
I hope this helps others. Finally boondocking appears possible!

Glad you found one that works for you. Our 2015 Legacy came with the same Gen I Girard as well and it too was junk to say the least. I upgraded ours myself (a significant job) with the lastest generation Gerard which has been great. We have about a year on it now, we also boondock quite a bit and it works just fine. I installed a hot water by pass when the coach was brand new to reduce waste getting hot water to the shower which has always worked well.