Water Heater

Lyle Michael · 10-12-2004, 11:37 PM

I have a 68 26' Land Yacht. I have very little pressure coming out of the Water Heater and faucets. I have good cold pressure coming out of all the faucets and into the water Heater. The water that does come out is plenty hot.
It is a ten gallon Attwood tank. I believe I may need to change it. How is this done? Does it come out the outside or inside? How much do they cost? Where is the best place to purchase one?

Thanks for your time.

Lyle Michael

James Schmidt · 10-13-2004, 05:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lyle Michael

I have a 68 26' Land Yacht. I have very little pressure coming out of the Water Heater and faucets. I have good cold pressure coming out of all the faucets and into the water Heater. The water that does come out is plenty hot.
It is a ten gallon Attwood tank. I believe I may need to change it. How is this done? Does it come out the outside or inside? How much do they cost? Where is the best place to purchase one?

Thanks for your time.

Lyle Michael

Lyle,

Welcome to the forum; there is a lot of very valuable information here.
Sounds like your problem is more blockage than a bad water heater. If the heater is not leaking and is producing hot water, I think you should look somewhere else for the solution to your problem.

First, I'd remove the drain plug and see if you can get a good flow there; if so , the water heater is ok. Flush it good while you are at it and see what comes out. If you get a lot of crud, it may have worked its way into the plumbing and stopped something up.

Second , see if you have the by pass valves set correctly and are in the fully open or closed position. All heaters do not have them, but those that do could cause this problem.
If this does not find the problem then you will have to work your way downstream from the water heater to find where the flow restriction is.

Good Luck,

Lyle Michael · 10-13-2004, 08:51 AM

Thanks, It is for sure a obstruction problem. I have opened the drain and only get a trickle of water out. I have pressed on the pressure releif valve to get a small to moderate amout of water output. I now have a small leak at the pressure relief drain.

I have also took off the cold water in to the tank and have good pressure going in. When I take the hot water coming out it is very slow. I was able to pull out a plastic obstruction that was at the hot water output. I still have a very small output of the hot water out.

I purchased this 68 AS last spring. The pressure was fine then. We do have lots of minerals in our city water. I'm looking for ideas to clean this water heater. I'm afraid it may not be possible. If so, thats why I may be looking for direction on getting this one out, and replacing it with a new one.

Thanks
Lyle Michael

James Schmidt · 10-13-2004, 11:56 AM

Lyle,

I changed out the water heater in my old 78 model and it is not that hard. Everything comes out from the outside.

After disconnecting all the water lines on the inside, remove the trim plate and the door. You will see all the screws that hold the heater in place. Then slide it out from outside. It will be a tight fit and may have some caulking around it that will need to be removed.

Reverse the procedure for installing the new one. 10 gallon heaters can be ordered from Camping World and other RV suppliers. If yours is an Atwood, I'd replace it with the same brand and size. These are common and used in most all RVs.

I'd try unclogging this one first. Can you remove the pressure relief? If so maybe you can back flush it using the drain opening and the pressure relief opening.

One last thing--you mentioned pressing on the pressure relief valve. The only ones I am familiar with requires that you raise the handle into a horizontal position to open it.

Lyle Michael · 10-13-2004, 03:55 PM

James: Thanks, I am going to use it this weekend and then pull it out next weekend. I'll try and cear this one out before I go with a new one. There is a campers World in New Braunfels, TX. Just down the road a little ways. They have them in stock.

I just wasn't sure which way it came out. I'm glad to hear it will come out through the outside.

Again, Thanks. I will keep you posted.

Lyle Michael.