Tankless water heater use

[leadpusher]

I had the same problem (2024 290rls) shower would go cold pretty quick. My fix, behind the water heater there is a cold water supply line, turn the valve of the supply closed 1/4 turn to slow the flow down. I then set my temp at 120 and havnt had a problem since.

 

[Gamma]

Hopefully your system has the reciculate option as mine does. It’s an icon that displays with arrows in a circle, similar to the “recycle” logo on trash bins. We set our temp at 112, whoever wakes up first puts it in recirc mode, we have our morning coffee and watch some news, when one hits the shower it’s instant hot water, same for the next shower. Last one out of the shower shuts off recirc for the day to save propane. Around 5pm we again hit recirc, after dinner we have instant hot water for washing dishes or evening shower. Shut it off for the night. If you forget you will hear the unit fire up every once in a while to keep the recirc loop hot, it’s a friendly reminder. This works perfectly for us, you really need to find the temp that works best for you in order to keep the hot flow up. Don’t set it too high as you will need less flow and that is what creates the hot/cold issue. It’s been flawless for us once we found the right temp and use the recirculation feature. I have found out from others that not all units have this feature. Hope yours does!

 

[pawsport]

That's all I do is off grid camping and the tankless was total junk. Wasted way too much water. Replaced it with 6 gallon old school one. Much happier and don't waste any water. Those 12 Volt fridges are no good either for off grid camping, unless you're in the sun most of the day with big solar panels!

Never thought of hot water till this thread. But have thought about the fridge. Lots of pros and cons…… BUT I’m sold on a 12v as it won’t decide to run out of propane late at night or when I’m out hunting and defrost my freezer items. Its also got a lot more room. I added ~800 watts of solar, 1000 when I added the portable. Plus a 4300 watt generator. That with Lithium batteries and I’ll be fine off grid.

I agree though, I see the wife getting annoyed in short order and a regular hot water tank going in.

thanks for the advice all.

 

[Bluecube]

We were having the same problem. Originally had the water heater set to a higher temp that required the use of cold water to cool the temp to a comfortable temp. This caused the sudden cold water when showering you described. I called and talked to a tech at the manufacturer. He told me the water heater will start a cooling cycle when used with hot and cold water. He recommended setting the hot water to a comfortable level, such as 102 degrees, and not using cold water. This solved our issue. But that solution also requires seting the temp hotter when we are doing dishes or anything else where hotter water is needed. Personally I preferred my old propane/electric unit in my previous camper. We didn't have endless hot water, but it worked. And I also wonder how long this tankless water heater will last. I replaced the sacraficial anode corrosiion rod 2 times a year and it was always well eaten away even though I use a high capacity water line filter. There is no rod on this new tankless heater and I hate to think about the corrosion the crappy camp group water doing a number on my heater. And I always low point drain my camper when not in use.

 

[Peto]

The tankless water heater is the biggest POS and water waster in an RV unless you have a sewer hookup.

I am getting ready yank mine our and put in a tank type.

Ken

100%

Only time it can be used is with full hook upd and any campground with that will also have a much nicer shower than the one in the trailer.

I'd love to see a wright up on the swap. I plan to do it this winter and have not even begun to research the process? I have looked in the spot where the current heater is and it does not look big enough for a tank.

Also need to think about Propane lines etc.....

 

[NH_Bulldog]

Only time it can be used is with full hook upd (sic)

We camp at parks with full hookups only about 20% of the time. Another 40% of the time we have power and water, another 15% of the time just power, and 25% just plain "roughing it" (boondocking).

If we run low on power, we use the generator.
If we run low on water, we add water to the freshwater tank using 6 gallon water jugs.
If we fill 60 gallons of grey water, we empty it into our portable tote and make a couple of trips to the dump station, or arrange for the park "honey wagon" if I am unable to do it myself (like this past summer when I had knee and hip surgeries).

The point is, maybe YOU cannot use a tankless water heater without full hookups, but of there are plenty of people who have no issues with the system and actually prefer it over the old type tank heaters. I was on the same bandwagon so while waiting for my Cougar to be built, I bought a new Dometic gas/elect tank water heater and it was sitting in my shop waiting for my new camper. I had a couple of trips planned before I could do the swap, but in that time I actually used the tankless and as much as I wanted to hate it, I found that I liked it much better than the tank type. More importantly, so did my wife. So after 7 months of using the tankless, I sold the brand new tank model I had bought. I just don't see going back to the old way.

Think of it this way; at home do you take a 2 minute "Navy" shower? Hopefully not, so why is taking a shower that way okay while in an RV? I just don't see the point.

 

[Peto]

You assume everyone has a nice trailer like you. We boondock 90% of the time and only have a 30 gallon fresh and grey tank..... Filling up our tank and using all our fresh water just to let the shower run in order to stay warm is a lot different equation for some of us.

 

[NH_Bulldog]

This isn’t a whose camper is nicer post, and our Cougar is far from the Taj Mahal. A Western model Hideout has waste tanks that are 38 gallons and the fresh water is 56 gallons, which all have more capacity than the tanks in mine.

For the last 5 years we had a 24 foot Passport with no bells and whistles and we boondocked 90% of the time with small tanks (really small). We used a generator when we needed power, we added water to the tank with jugs when we needed water and when our tanks got full, we emptied them into our portable tote and made a couple of trips to the dump station. Nothing has changed, and if we ever are blessed with the good fortune of a fancy camper, we will still do the same.

Anywho, in order to get 60 gallons of grey tank capacity, I added a $20 Valtera valve and made it so I can equalize and share the kitchen and bathroom grey tanks. I don’t enjoy hauling water, or trying to manhandle a full 28 gallon sewer tote, especially at my age and with knee and hip issues, but I sure do enjoy those long hot showers.

 

[Mike Honcho]

I did measure behind it once I got it home and there is more than enough room for a conventional water heater. Other than running the 120V circuit it looks to be a straight forward swap out. We don't winterize so no need for a bypass valve. I can't imaging that would be difficult to add in if needed up north.