Hot water not coming out

[Durga]

I’m hooked up to a house through hose with no problems of water - but when I ask for hot water there’s no water that come out.

I went under and turned the valve for my hot water off - I checked faucet again and got water coming through — but no hot water.
So I turned valve to flow - checked faucet and no water flow scenario again.

This happened last week - but the hot water abilities came back after several hours.

The hot water heater seems hot ( it’s 95 outside in California) and there’s no wet around the reserve.

Any ideas ????

The fifth wheel hasn’t been moved since hot water was no issue - so it hasn’t been jostled around a bunch in tow.

[Roscommon48]

Confused. First what kind of hot water tank? Ele/gas?

Is water coming out of 'hot' facuet side?

If water coming out, try just gas to heat. If you turned on electric when NO water you burned out the element but gas will work.

Tell us more.

[chuckster57]

Can you access the backside of the tank? Maybe it was winterized, or at least the valves switched to winterized?

[bobbecky]

Not knowing what trailer this problem is on, but some rigs have a winterizing system that uses a check valve on the hot water outlet of the water heater tank, and if this valve is stuck, no water will come out.

[LHaven]

I'm still puzzled by having a "valve for my hot water" underneath. I get the feeling this may be one of the heater winterizing valves and the OP misattributes its function.

[ChuckS]

It’s possible the outlet check valve on water heater is stuck closed not allowing water out.

More info from OP would be beneficial to further aid in troubleshooting

[ajk170]

It sounds vaguely similar to a problem we had and it turned out to be the main valve that the you turn for city, water tank, winterize. The hot water worked one week and then the next time a few weeks later there was no hot water despite the hot water heater check valve indicating there was hot water. Apparently something moved (somehow) on that main valve and it wasn't closing properly, no matter if rotated it from city to water tank to any of the other settings. Something about the "city" position didn't allow the plunger/valve/seal to all connect properly and it somehow messed with the hot water an it not to flow properly. I can't say with certainty how this casued the problem since I didn't fix it myself, our service center tech did but I trust what he told me was right.

Something to look at if nothing else works!
-Andy

[Durga]

NO WATER is coming out when I turn hot side.
If I got underneath and turn the hot water valve off that’s connected to the HW tank - then I get water through the HW faucets — BUT ITS NOT HOT.

I can choose between electric or LP. For the tank.
I run electric.

I am plugged into shore power of main house.

I will look for the type of tank when I get back home.

[LHaven]

So to recap, when you turn a valve off, you get not-hot water from the hot faucet... and when you turn the same valve on, you get no water at all from the hot faucet. Am I reading this right?

I think a photo of this mystical valve and its surroundings is called for at this point.

[Snoking]

Systems with a single (and maybe two valve) winterising valve have the check valve. Systems with three valves do not require the check valve. Sone two valve system may not have the check valve

Check valve on the hotwater tank has failed and is stuck, and not letting water out of the tank. Carefully open the little handle on the pop off valve and see if it lets hot water out.

When replacing the check valve get the brass one vs the plastic one. A short term fix is to remove the check valve and take out the "guts" of the valve and reinstall it. Chris

https://liveworkdream.com/2018/08/01/fix-rv-water-heater-check-valve/

[Durga]

Two photos here —-one with valve for flow and the other closed. It’s the only angle I can get.

They appear to be upside down in the layout here. .... the styrofoam should be to the right... at wall of camper.
Valve should be on bottom

[Snoking]

Two photos here —-one with valve for flow and the other closed. It’s the only angle I can get.

They appear to be upside down in the layout here. .... the styrofoam should be to the right... at wall of camper.
Valve should be on bottom

Check valve is on the left in your picture, or top when the picture is in correct rotation, I circled the check valve. Chris

[Steveo57]

Two photos here —-one with valve for flow and the other closed. It’s the only angle I can get.

They appear to be upside down in the layout here. .... the styrofoam should be to the right... at wall of camper.
Valve should be on bottom

The top picture is how it should look in normal operation. If your not getting water out then as others have said the check valve is stuck in the outlet side which is on the top pipe. Might try giving it a little tap or just replace the check valve. The valve position in the bottom picture is how it would be if you are bypassing the heater to winterize it.

[LHaven]

It sure does look like the water heater winterizing bypass valve, but I can't make sense of the monkey-fist of piping at the top, where the ghostly tube behind everything else runs, or the details of the connection that must be somewhere behind the valve in question but doesn't show.

[Snoking]

The bottom picture is how it should look in normal operation. If your not getting water out then as others have said the check valve is stuck in the outlet side which is on the top pipe. Might try giving it a little tap or just replace the check valve. The valve position in the top picture is how it would be if you are bypassing the heater to winterize it.

I think maybe you are backwards on the valve positions.

Bypassed.

[LHaven]

The bottom picture is how it should look in normal operation.

The valve position in the top picture is how it would be if you are bypassing the heater to winterize it.

Are you sure? Because to me, the pipe between the two heater inlets (horizontal as the photo appears in the forum) looks like the bypass pipe. That would make the top photo normal operation, and the bottom photo (handle parallel to the bypass tube) bypass active.

[Steveo57]

I think maybe you are backwards on the valve positions.

Sorry, Yes I'm backwards, I corrected it. Thanks for keeping me honest! I can't remember what I had for dinner much less which picture was which after about five seconds! ��

[Durga]

I think I finally have all the parts - but after installing the new check valve I now have NO WATER PRESSURE for any water -- HOT OR COLD FAUCETS. ��

I have the new fixture on the top ( superior) and not replaced bottom ( inferior ) . Is it correct that hot water comes from the top fixture?
I have been through some " McGeyvoring" of parts before this - but this is the correct valve I believe.

I screwed in the new Check Valve so that the arrow is facing OUTTWARD away from tank.

It's crazy to me that there's now zero water pressure.
Please help - thoughts are much appreciated.

[LHaven]

I think I finally have all the parts - but after installing the new check valve I now have NO WATER PRESSURE for any water -- HOT OR COLD FAUCETS. ��

I have the new fixture on the top ( superior) and not replaced bottom ( inferior ) . Is it correct that hot water comes from the top fixture?
I have been through some " McGeyvoring" of parts before this - but this is the correct valve I believe.

I screwed in the new Check Valve so that the arrow is facing OUTTWARD away from tank.

It's crazy to me that there's now zero water pressure.
Please help - thoughts are much appreciated.

A photo would help. It's inconceivable that even a broken check valve installed on the hot line should choke the cold line too.

[Durga]

I'm trying to post a photo - but when I select the photo icon it asks me for an URL.
That can't be right --- but anyway, the photo ok of the Atwood tank is at top of thread.

Thank you for your consideration

[LHaven]

I'm trying to post a photo - but when I select the photo icon it asks me for an URL.
That can't be right --- but anyway, the photo ok of the Atwood tank is at top of thread.

Thank you for your consideration

Well, certainly, but it doesn't show where you put the new valve, or what positions the other valves are in now.

[Durga]

I felt the same way about inconclusive weirdness with checking out cold water too.
But I :

- checked hose was st ill at good pressure from house
- check hose for kinks or car parked on it
- cold water was definitely running before I started work o n the Atwood heater
- i only touched the plugs and screws at the heater in photos above.

[Durga]

23919

23920

[LHaven]

I can see the new valve on the LHS of your photo, but it's just impossible for me to visualize the connections here. The bypass tube obscures all the connections behind it. I can't figure out what ultimately connects to the elbow with the new valve on it, or where it comes from. I'd need a photo taken from a much lower angle to "see behind" the bypass tube. I know this is tough -- I had to take six photos of my own WH before I had one that I was satisfied showed all the plumbing paths clearly.

[LHaven]

OK, when I opened the photo into its own tab, I got much more detail. (I'm so happy mine is plumbed in red and blue pipe instead of all white.)

I think what I am seeing is this (image, properly erected). The red is hot, the blue is cold and the green is bypass. The hard part was seeing how the hot tube is connected between A and B, so if you just assure me that it is, then I understand the flow here.

What I would suggest is that you turn the hose feed on, then pop the pressure relief valve on the outside of the heater. That will tell you whether cold is feeding into the heater. I'm guessing it won't be, because regardless of whatever you have done to the heater, there is a direct blue path from the left side of the photo to the rightmost blue blob (above the heater) that feeds something and doesn't touch the heater at all; and yet you claim that no cold water is running anywhere. (Did you check the toilet and the outside faucet?)

[flybouy]

I think I finally have all the parts - but after installing the new check valve I now have NO WATER PRESSURE for any water -- HOT OR COLD FAUCETS. ��

I have the new fixture on the top ( superior) and not replaced bottom ( inferior ) . Is it correct that hot water comes from the top fixture?
I have been through some " McGeyvoring" of parts before this - but this is the correct valve I believe.

I screwed in the new Check Valve so that the arrow is facing OUTTWARD away from tank.

It's crazy to me that there's now zero water pressure.
Please help - thoughts are much appreciated.
I assume you turned the water off to work on it. Are you sure you turned it back on?

[flybouy]

23919

23920

Click on the paperclip in advanced reply. That will pop open a page where you click on attach file, search for the file location, click on the file's name, then click on "upload'. It's easy to omit the upload file part.
Hope this helps.

[sourdough]

Installing a check valve on the hwh won't have anything to do with getting cold water to the rest of the RV. It has to be something in the feed line. Is water on? Do you have flow at the inlet on the outside? All faucets no cold water? Toilet no water? If no, check where your cold water comes into the RV inside the wall at the inlet port - do you have water there? (Yes, you will probably need a bowl to catch any water).

If you've lost all cold water for some reason it won't have to do with the check valve. It sounds like you installed it correctly (arrow pointing away from the hwh). If you can't get water to the faucets or toilet it will do you no good to pop the pressure valve on the hwh to try to fill it - it sounds like you lost the water somewhere upstream.

[Durga]

Check valve is on the left in your picture, or top when the picture is in correct rotation, I circled the check valve. Chris


I think I finally have all the parts - but after installing the new check valve I now have NO WATER PRESSURE for any water -- HOT OR COLD FAUCETS. ��

I have the new fixture on the top ( superior) and not replaced bottom ( inferior ) . Is it correct that hot water comes from the top fixture?*
I have been through some " McGeyvoring" of parts before this - but this is the correct valve I believe.*

I screwed in the new Check Valve so that the arrow is facing OUTTWARD away from tank.*

It's crazy to me that there's now zero water pressure.*
Please help - thoughts are much appreciated.

[flybouy]

As previously stated if the check for water entering the camper. Saying the check valve in the water heater stopped all cold water flow is like saying your hands hurt because your shoes are too tight.

[LHaven]

If you can't get water to the faucets or toilet it will do you no good to pop the pressure valve on the hwh to try to fill it - it sounds like you lost the water somewhere upstream.


My suggestion of popping the check valve was just to see if any cold water was entering the hot water heater or whether it was also starved out.

[Durga]

Hose and house water are flowing as I disconnected camper and saw flow from hose.

Before the did that I could get some water from bathroom sink.

I can hear water rushing for a moment when in turn wnterization valve off and on at HWH.

[Snoking]

If you remove the anode or open the pope off valve do you get water coming out of the tank?

Also does the water pump provide water to the facets? Chris