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Hot water Electric side not working

Yahoo Message Number: 91471
Good morning!

Sitting in a campground with 50 amp and full LPG tank. Hot water heater stays on gas side if both switches on. If turn off gas, no hot water. Breaker and switch on. Atwood pdf in files section concentrates on gas heating, not electric side.

Water heater replaced at OMC 2 years ago.
Im looking for someone who knows more than I do, which is not much. I have full set of tools and multimeter, so one would think that I can fix this myself!

Thanks for the help, Great group!

Atwood GCH10 A4 E
2000 Magna 40'

Chris and Chery Herron

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91473
Chris, this may not help much but you could use the multimeter to see if there is power to the heating element and track back from there. I am somewhat sure that these heaters also have a Thermostat/ECO Assembly for the 110v side as well as one for the gas side. If it goes out then there probably would not be power to the element. There is also an on/off switch on the side of the heater. If there is power to that switch but not the element it should be easy to track the problem down. On mine I would have to remove some drawers to get to that part of the heater.

Richard Aquino 2001 Intrigue

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91476
Chris,

If you can access the back of the hot water heater, there is an over temp that has probably tripped. It has two wires going to it with spade terminals. You will need either a jeweler's screwdriver or open up a paper clip and push in on the center, that should reset it. As Richard has said, there is also an on/off switch that may have been accidentally been turned off, or the element has opened. I am pretty confident the over temp has popped out. You will probably need a flashlight to see the white center of the over temp that has popped out.

Fred '01 Magna #5983

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91478
On the electric side there is an over temperature and a regular thermostat, they are in series with the hot side of the 120VAC line. In most cases the over temp opens up and needs to be replaced. They are normally sold as a pair so replace them both. You can start at the heater element and work your way back to the 120 input. There is a switch where the AC connects to the Water heater, it feeds the over temp switch.

Jud n Joe 98 Intrigue 10578

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91490
Good Morning!


Thanks guys for the good information. I started going down the paths you pointed out. Went to the heating element to check. Had a plastic cover on it that was "blocked" and could't be removed because there was a junction box screwed to the wood cabinet frame adjacent to it. Unscrewed the cover to the junction box and found melted/burned wires. The people who had put the water heater in had secured the wires with tiny wire nuts suitable for speaker wire, not the heavy wires that supplied power to the herating element. The little wire nuts did not make a good connection on the hot side, it got hot, melted the tiny wirenut into a blob, melted the entire connection until it lost any contact, so the water heater stopped. Hot wire insulation was burned out beyond the junction box, never shorting and blowing the breaker, just melting.
What a disappointment. We spent over 30k on that workorder with the people who put the water heater in. Mods, delaminated slideout, new tv's and such. They could have burned the whole thing down.
Had a reputable repair shop replace the front AC. they abandoned the built in drain system and let the water go down the side of the coach.
Had a check valve replaced on the water heater, tech said needed to replace some plumbing. Facility didn't have right fittings, so he had to micky mouse it, leaked immediately
Note to repair persons and facilities. If you don't have enough money to stock a full range of wire nuts, don't do electrical repair. If you cant afford to stock a full set of pex fittings, don't do plumbing. If you cant take the time to check the work of your techs, you are in the wrong business.
When we go to you guys we pay a premium to get the specialized knowledge you have. The work done above was done by some of the best people in the business, often mentioned here.
What a disappointment. Ill just do things myself and feel sorry for those of you who cannot.
Chris and Cheryl 2000 40' Magna 5912

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91492
This is just terrible. And it's scary to us out here too. My husband can fix things, but he believes that the folks in the business know a lot more than he does. Chris and Cheryl, so glad your rig did not burn. My goodness.

Mary and Mike Frederick
06 Inspire 51784

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91493
Chris,

You hit the nail on the head as to why I do almost everything myself. Not that it is easy or just to save a few bucks. If you do it yourself you know what you have! With a little research and the right tools you can accomplish most maintenance and repairs yourself, if your body is up to it. :) Barney

07 Inspire 52059

Re: Hot water Electric side not working

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 91496
I just fixed this very thing on my 98 Intrigue this week. One of those ECO/thermostats that Jud & Joe describe was bad (the one that trips if the temp gets too high). I got replacement parts for $28 bucks from Mike's LP Gas RV Service (contact info below). He knew exactly what the problem was and had the part in stock. Easily testable with a multimeter and replaceable with a pliers or 7/16" deep-well socket.
Message me if you need more detailed instructions.

Mark

1998 Intrigue 10661

MIKE'S LP GAS & RV SERVICE
1350 FROST AVE

MAPLEWOOD, MN 55109
651.770.9448