The 1979 31ft
Sovereign we just bought needs a new water heater (not sure what happened to the first one). We're going to be putting it on an island property where it'll stay forever (or at least for a long time), where we'll have 110V access. I'm therefore looking for a model that can run on 110V. The tankless heaters seem to make sense to me, so we don't have to worry about the heater's tank capacity.
I'm considering buying the heater next week in Portland as these kinds of parts seem harder to find up here in BC, and something tells me the local RV place will have a significant premium on parts.
1) When I talked to the local RV guy (Marty from Sealand RV), he mentioned that the installation cost would depend on whether the AS had copper or plastic tubing. I don't have the AS yet -- is it guaranteed to be one way or another? He quoted me $478CAD for the part and 3-4 hours @ $75CAD/hr. That seems like expensive hot water =(. (I suspect he was not quoting me a 110V heater either).
2) Is installing the heater something a novice (who doesn't particularly like plumbing, and who doesn't have a lot of free time) should do, or should I just pay the pros?
3) Any recommendations on heater models and sources? I'll be visiting Curtis Trailers in Portland at least.
Thanks!
David