Forest river 26dbud lukewarm water

RH

Rhenleyjr

Member
Joined
Apr 15, 2025
Posts
11
Hello all, sonas the title states, water is just lukewarm. We believe it started end of season last year, or at least that's when we noticed somthing wasn't right. We just attributed it too cold incoming water, and cold outside temps.

But Sometimes you get a burst of hot water then lukewarm. So far I've checked the tank itself. The top of the tank measuring 130-135. The thermostats are good. Does it both eletric and propane. I have no outside shower with hotwater just a small hose thats cold only

I've double and triple checked the winterizing valves. I have a 2 valve setup they are both pointing toward the tank. Even went as far as to crimp the crossover line with no change. Pulled anode rod and there is little to no sediment and I can clearly see the cold water dip tube.

I think it's mixing somewhere but I'm running out of places to check. Any ideas? Is there a weird valce somewhere I'm not seeing?
 
Last edited:
We have a whole thread dedicated to this topic:

NO (OR LUKEWARM) HOT WATER -Please read first

(There are 5 posts in this thread. Please read all five posts as it explains different valve configurations. Also make sure you have all switches turned off to the water heater, so you do not heat up a dry tank, which could be damaged by the sudden addition of cool water when you turn the bypass...
www.forestriverforums.com www.forestriverforums.com

Also, it's not completely unheard of for the valves to be bad. The handle will turn but the inside part doesn't. I know others on here have had that issue before.
 
tomkatb said:
If the shower has the on off valve on the shower handle that can do this if you forget to turn the main shower valve off.
Click to expand...
This....if the shower head spray is turned off, but the faucet is on, the hot and cold can mix just as they might if the winterizing valves are set incorrectly. Most shower heads aren't able to shut off the flow 100% and will drip, but this is worth checking.

The fact that your temp at the top of the tank is 130 degrees and both heating systems are on simultaneously rules out a problem with the water heater itself. And if the winterizing valves are set correctly, then the hot and cold are mixing somewhere else.

Any chance your rig has a showermiser faucet in the tub/shower? I think that could do it, too. If that is set incorrectly, it may be sending water to the fresh tank. If you are on city water, this might fill your fresh tank but also deprive you of hot water at least in the shower.
 
Iwritecode said:
We have a whole thread dedicated to this topic:

NO (OR LUKEWARM) HOT WATER -Please read first

(There are 5 posts in this thread. Please read all five posts as it explains different valve configurations. Also make sure you have all switches turned off to the water heater, so you do not heat up a dry tank, which could be damaged by the sudden addition of cool water when you turn the bypass...
www.forestriverforums.com www.forestriverforums.com

Also, it's not completely unheard of for the valves to be bad. The handle will turn but the inside part doesn't. I know others on here have had that issue before.
Click to expand...
I have went threw that thread and none of that is my prob
 
Do you have an outside shower?... Possibly one with a coiled hose and a hose nozzle on the end?
Sometimes they get turned on and it will allow mixing.
 
tomkatb said:
If the shower has the on off valve on the shower handle that can do this if you forget to turn the main shower valve off.
Click to expand...
Shower is off and thought maybe there was some type of weird valve behind it. I removed it from the wall and checked to make sure. Found nothing. Unless I may have a bad bypass valve, which I'm going to remove tonight and check I think it's mixing elsewhere. I crimped the crossover line and put hot water tank into winterizing mode and can still run water from hot side of taps
 
5picker said:
Do you have an outside shower?... Possibly one with a coiled hose and a hose nozzle on the end?
Sometimes they get turned on and it will allow mixing.
Click to expand...
So I have one but it's cold only. I just have a port the plugs in the side with a coiled hose. I only see a cold line going to it
 
Next question... you say you thought this started at the end of last season. Are you certain the hot water system ever worked the way it should? If so, that rules out a mis-plumbed water pipe.

Did you make any modifications to the plumbing by chance?

Pinching off the water heaters bypass loop (as you mentioned you did) mostly rules out a malfunctioning valve if you have water flow.
 
It has definitely worked before, it was too hot too hold your hands under before. I can't say when if definitely became a issue but I know we noticed it before I winterized last year.

So I have the tank in bypass, with a pinched off bypass line. But still have water pressure on the hot side. Ran out time to further diagnosis. The only other water fixture that blends the water is the kitchen sink. Could it be backfeeding?
 
Rhenleyjr said:
It has definitely worked before, it was too hot too hold your hands under before. I can't say when if definitely became a issue but I know we noticed it before I winterized last year.

So I have the tank in bypass, with a pinched off bypass line. But still have water pressure on the hot side. Ran out time to further diagnosis. The only other water fixture that blends the water is the kitchen sink. Could it be backfeeding?
Click to expand...
I'll never say never but that would be unusual for sure.

When you use the kitchen faucet and swing the lever fully between hot/cold do you see a slight drop in pressure as you move the lever from one side to the other?
That would indicate the mixing valve is working.
But the only real way to know is remove the feed lines and plug temporarily.
The above is a long shot but a shot none the less.

Seems there's still something being overlooked or was added/modified.
 
Ok so I've disconnected the kitchen sink hot side, and bath room sink hot side and plugged them. but still have hot water pressure with water tanked in bypass, and bypass blocked added shut off valve to be sure. No pressure in tank. Unhooked shower line and have water pressure on hot still. Not full pressure but definite flow

The dealer did replace the shower stall 2 years ago, but that is the only time anyone but me has worked on it. I'm certain we had hot water after, but now I'm out of places to look, and starting to second guess myself. I'm about to pull that panel and make sure they didn't cross lines.

Has forest river ever used a mixing valve to prevent scalding?
 
Update!!!! I found it. There were cold and hot lines tied together see pics. I knew it was somewhere. I also found why it was never a prob from the beginning, the hot line was kinked
1000006541.jpg
1000006542.jpg
 
No prob, hopefully it will help someone else in the end. This was buried between the shower wall and bunk wall, I took pic from shower fixture. Had to cut hole in bunk wall to access. Not really sure why it was there
 
Rhenleyjr said:
No prob, hopefully it will help someone else in the end. This was buried between the shower wall and bunk wall, I took pic from shower fixture. Had to cut hole in bunk wall to access. Not really sure why it was there
Click to expand...
You never stated what year and brand your 26DBUD is since it's not listed in your profile. Did you buy it used or new?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Scubajt
Lukewarm water
Reverse_snowbird
RE
HO
2018 Salem CITY WATER vs FRESH WATER (use CW but FW is overflowing)
Aussieguy
Aussieguy
XB
Girard GSWH-2
XBeaudsxx
XB
TS
Low Water Pressure
NMWildcat
NMWildcat
CL
Furrion F2GWH Tankless Water Heater
CLemmings
CL

New posts

Try RV LIFE Pro Free for 7 Days

  • New Ad-Free experience on this RV LIFE Community.
  • Plan the best RV Safe travel with RV LIFE Trip Wizard.
  • Navigate with our RV Safe GPS mobile app.
  • and much more...
Try RV LIFE Pro Today
Back
Top Bottom