Just got an 03 r wagon toy hauler, and only thing I couldn't figure out was how to run water heater and furnace. Propane was low on one tank and empty on 2nd. We were at a park and I brought an electric heater and used community showers, but would like to figure out how to run them, and differences in gas vs gas/electric. I didn't see a panel. Had a button for water pump in oven hood, but was hooked to park water. There is a switch with a red light on face cover of sink, which I turned on and couldn't figure what it did
@@reallythough4591 I found a photo of your setup. I am not to familiar with this setup but i would expect that if you set the durotherm thermostat to furnace and the temperature setpoint is above the current ambient temp, the furnace should come on if it is operating correctly. For the water heater, I would have to guess that the switch with the light on it is the water heater. Being an older model, i am not sure if you have an electric element in your water heater. Your right about the propane needing to be full. If you can not resolve your problem, I would highly recommend to let a tech take a look. A good tech will not only fix any issues, they will find anything that could also be an issue that you may not know about. Such things like propane leaks, cracked lines, bloen fuses, bugs and rats nests in areas where gas flames are and so on. Also, how does the generator get tuened on.
@@HowToRV it's a toy hauler, and there wasn't a generator, so I bought a champion weekender at 3650 watts. I work with pool heaters, and aware of critters making homes, I just don't have operating manual or any marking except oven hood shroud. Does the reserve tank need filled, or just city water? I didn't fill and left propane off as it was near empty
@@reallythough4591 I am not sure about a reserve tank since i do not have one. check to see if your water heater is getting water in it. It is possible that someone left the water feed bypass off. Mine are located on the backside of the water heater. You can verify by connecting water and opening the relief valve to see if anything comes out. Do you know if the water heater has an electrical element or is gas only?
@@HowToRV I do not. This weekend was break in run. Found drain pipe leak under sink and fixed, as well as damage caused by it in flooring in forward section. Been watching vids, but didn't see anything where they set up and run. Furnace makes sense with thermostat. Water heater has a small fuse in top right side, but looked like it had a mud daub nest at on point, as I could see remains. Didn't pull fuse. Figured I would fill tanks and try at home. Gathering info now.
One of the best RV videos I have seen …to the point, moves along with the actual information yet just slow enough to get it …you made my day with this knowledge …
You are the man! Just bought a $30,000 Wildwood. Got the (30 min) dealer crash course, and don't want to screw up & void any warranties on appliances. All the manuals I got with the camper were installation manuals. None described how the appliances were operated as installed in my camper.
Thank you for the kind reply. If you have any other suggestions about videos that you would like to see, please feel free to let me know and i will see if i can help
Nice job explaining this. I'm a neophyte to the mechanics of the various components of my travel trailer so I'm consuming all the training videos I can find. This was a great one!
Neophyte. I must admit, I had to look that one up. 😀. I am glad that I was able to help you. I also have one coming out in a couple of weeks about the water pump. Stay tuned for that one as well.
Man your video was a life saver we had no idea that there was a switch for our water heater and now it's working without using the propane thanks so much man I've looked for a long time and finally found ur video that explained what we couldn't find
hey guys i have to say thank you so much for breaking it down cause honestly i was so curious being new to all this. much love cant wait to check out more videos
You explain everything really well and most of all if it’s your first time using an RV when you said, make sure that the RV has water in it in case you have both electric and propane thank you for explaining everything in your video. It was really helpful.
Great job . Very well explained with facts and much needed details to support procedures, component functions, and safety information. Thanks for leaving out the drama and comedy that so many seem to think is necessary in some How To Videos.
just got a used rv from an older man that I think maybe couldn't remember what he wasn't telling us about the rv so your video saved us. we could not find the switch behind the pipe. thank you so much for your post.
Awesome video. I have a Suburban 10-gallon water heater. This is the first travel trailer that my wife and I bought. We bought it used, but in excellent condition just without the manuals. Now I have some information to go off of to begin.
I am glad that the video helped. That is what the channel is here for. Is there any other videos from the channel that you liked? I would love your feedback.
I am glad the I could be there for you. I plan on creating more of these type of videos. Do you have anything that you would like to see on the channel? If i have the means and knowledge, I will try to make one.
What is really hard to find is a video that gets right to the point without a lot of unnecessary music and long introduction. Everybody wants to be a master movie maker these days. Just cut to the chase and give us the info without wasting our time and data.
Nice video, but I have one odd question... the water heater doesn't heat enough for a shower, even using the pause button. Is it safe and ok to use both gas and electric while showering?
I use both all the time. All I have to do is to remember to turn off the electric when I move. I have heard of folks leaving the electric on and when they plugged their RV back into shore power at another location without water hooked up yet, the heating element went bad. Long story short, yes, you can.
Excellent video. I learned a lot from this! Just a suggestion, but maybe you could add or include how to position your shut-off and bypass valves. I found another video by suburban on how to do this but would have been nice to have included it in this tutorial.
Great work on this video. Your explanation was easy to follow and I now know so much more than before. Thank you so much for sharing this. ❤️👍👏 Donovan & Jodi
Thank you. Great info! My poor husband was pulling out what he has left of his hair trying to troubleshoot. We still don't know why the knob on the circuit breaker shuts off so I suspect there is some electrical issue going on, but at least for now we have hot water running off our propane tank and that will buy us some time to get it diagnosed appropriately!!
You need to check part 2 of this video. I go over the most asked questions that come from comments and emails. Click here to see that video - th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
If you don't want to run propane can you just heat your water up with the electrical side of it im fixen to buy a camper and just learning some things im always gonna be hooked up 2 shore power always . And also if my bottles are turned on is it automatically gonna be used to heat my water I would just rather not use any propane to heat my water if possible thanks
Yes, you can run electric only. Also, if you have the bottles turned on and the propane side of the water heater is switched off, you will not use any of the propane for heating the water. Please take a look at these 2 videos. I think that they will explain what your looking for in a little more detail. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html and th-cam.com/video/n_v7QkFzNds/w-d-xo.html
@@HowToRV what did u mean when you said u have a extra holding tank for hot water but I think u said u have to run both your propane and electric something like 16 gallons
@@allencooley7048 what I was going for was to say that the amount of hot water you get to use would be like having an extra tank because of using both electric and gas. With both heating sources running, it can produce hot water for a longer time.
I would like to thank you for explaining this so simply! I am a relatively new rv salesperson who knew nothing and for some reason this subject was not clicking for me, the wheel was turning but the hamster was dead 😂this just made my life a whhhollleeee lot easier! Thank you!!
I am so glad that Iwas able to help you. If you or anyone on your team would like to discuss any topics that Ican help with, pleaes feel free to reach out.
Thank you for your honest feedback. I am so glad that you confirmed the approach that i try to take. I would love it if you could look a few more videos of mine and tell me what you think of them as well.
Great detailed video. Being a new camper trailer owner, the company did go over it but good to hear the process again so I not second guessing myself. Thank you!
Great video! Many have the same water heater and in my unit there is a 2nd electric switch for the heater inside the trailer that needs to be switched on as well.
Very good info. Thanks for sharing. Ours has a two switch’s one is 12v and 120v. We use 120v when looked up to power and 12v when boondock ing. The rv place never went over that but I think that’s the right way
Weekend RVing Agreed. The switch on the outside for mine is the 120V powered from power hook ups which will heat the water. The 12v isn’t for heating the water but used for supplying and igniting the propane side. Yes your RV dealer should have explained that to you.
After watching & saving/ sorting virtually hundreds of videos on all avail. RV chanbels; I'm convinced that I just need to watch ALL of YOURS, THANK YOU, FOR EVERYTHING!
Very informative, I need to change out my heating element as I had it switched on by mistake after emptying tank to Winterize. Will swap element myself and reminded me that I have both elec and has options for hot water tank…. as I understand it - running both when I can plug in will give me more hot water in total to draw from - cheers!!
I very much enjoyed this video. I am 64 and just moved in to a 2009 Dutchman Aerolite trailer. All completely new to me and no owners manual on hand. The online version sucks 😂 I thought this video was very informative, not repetitious and thorough. I hope that what you've shown will work for my hot water system. 🤔 The only thing I liked in a different video I watched was the purging of the hot water tank to ensure the air was out and the tank was filled with water. I'm assuming that would be a process in all RV's..? Happy travels, from your new subscriber 😊
THANK YOU ! I LOVED the way you went step by step to explain the whole system. I want to run mine on all electric Not , one person would explain to me Exactly how the entire system worked. Iv watch alot of videos They talk in circles Repeat words takes up so much time Can't TY enough. Tomorrow I will hv my Water tanks and hot water running right Even had RV plumber say her put certain parts on the gas Of course he didn't Hope you have more videos I will be following you
Thanks and that means a lot. This channel has tons of videos that I hope help you. If you have any ideas of videos that I have not already made, please e-mail them to me. How2RV@gmail.com
Thanks I didn’t know about the external power switch! Learning all the time! I had purchased a 2006 forest river and the original hot water heater was shot. The new one had a tag over the external power switch I didn’t see!
Glad that it was helpful. Be careful to not leave the switch on if you do not have water on. If you do, you take a chance in the heating element burning out if your connected to shore power. Happy camping.
I am glad that you came here to ask. I just recently released a video going over this topic. Please let me know if it helped. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
Thats great to hear. I have another video that goes into the most asked question from this video if you are interested. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
Please cover the Furnace side of the house because both are linked to each other. Btw, yhx for keeping it simple and to the pt. Please furnace side to include the board replacement.
i have seen people flush the tank, but i have not had to do mine yet and its a couple of years old. One is with with the water heater flushing tool amzn.to/35wD4Am . As for the anode rod, you should change it when it is about 75% used. You can get a new one here amzn.to/35wVVv4 for very little money and compare the one that you have to it. Hope this helps.
does the switch have to be on to run the system on propane??Think our heating element burned out this past week- end..To close to leaving to try it...thanks video is 👍
Very helpful. We are new to shore camping. Good to know the on and off switch outside the camper. My question is, once i hookup power, and turn on the water heater switch to ON outside, do we need to turn on water heater inside the camper to get hot water?
I do not on mine. The switch inside is for the propane side. I did use both at the same time so that the water heated faster and in a round about way giving me more hot water. Hope that makes sense.
MIne has 2 switches. One on the outside at the tank itself and one on the inside. The one on the outside uses the electric from when you plug your RV in at the campground. The switch on the inside is for the 12V ignitor that uses the propane to heat the water. Try out this video. It think it may help a little further. Comment on that video to let me know if it answers your question. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
I recently went to a tankless water heater but thinking about puting this one back in. If i do, I will take in consideration a video about the anode rod.
Just watched my first video of yours. Really liked the way you spoke and covered the subject. When you were through I had no questions, you covered it that well for me. I subscribed and will spread the word. Looking forward to you other videos! Thank you.
Your amazing. I appreciate that you went through the whole video and don’t even really need it. My objective was to inform all so that not only will they have more knowledge but also to be able to share with someone else that may want to know.
IYO! Thanks for doing this! I spoke with you about my total lack of knowledge regarding our hot water Electric/Gas heater. Can't wait to sponge up all this knowledge. I type comments as I watch. :) Wow, it does all seem simple now. Nice slow mo work. Love your stuff!
@@HowToRV my question is what way does the gas valve need to be turn to be on and off I have no clue of what I am doing .I have a 2004 Salam 40 ft camper trailer and I had to rebuild the 19 ft slide out and a lot of thang is missing so help me please
Excellent, clear and logical - thank you! (A related question: does the electric heating of the water only work when you’re plugged into shore power or if you are boondocking and turn on the electrical switch the heating element will run off of the 12 volt battery system?). Many thanks
Mine only works when plugged into shore power. If/When boondocking, you will have to use the propane to heat the water. The 12V side only powers the little sparky thingy that ignites the flame to heat the water.
Thanks for the video! As far as using electric for the water heater when you said make sure you have water in there. Are you talking about the water storage tank or just having the water hose hooked up and running at the site? Thanks 👍
Water in the tank. But making sure that Water is connected is highly important as well. When you turn on the faucet or shower, the water needs to run and not lose pressure. This will guarntee that you will have plenty of water in the tank so that the heating element does not overheat and burn out on you. Hope this helps
Great video I'm working on getting mine going it's from 87/5 wheel I just found out it's electric and propane and the electric switch was on which just started making electric noise only when I got water pressurized in the system the pressure valve is leaking also and it has a ground wire that needs to be reconnected which I already knewI'm hoping the electric portion is not busted it sounds like it's trying to work with that ground wire is not connected so we'll see how it goes
@@HowToRV so far i got the leaky pressure valve out and the partially stripped out drain plug finally there was no anode rod in there just a plug / drain. im thinking i should replace with s anode plug also in my 88 trailer there is no anode. and i got that water heater going today ! had a hot shower .
I am no professional but if you have a flame that is making hot water and you smell very minimal propane scent, I would think that you would be ok. If you smell any propane at all with no flame, turn it off and get some troubleshooting done by a professional. Propane is very dangerous so if you have any concern at all that something is not right, contact a professional to check for you. Also, make sure that you gas detectors are not expired and are working correctly inside of your RV.
I have thought about doing a video about that. I do not have a lot of experiences with the fridge but have been doing some research. I will try to dig a little deeper and see if i can get a similar video made. Thanks for the advice.
I appreciate this. But the answer I've been looking for remains. I have the same heater, with an on/off switch in it. I also have a single switch inside "HTR." If my propane is always on, will it always use propane, and not just the electrical element? What is the purpose of the switch inside? Is it the propane switch? I will add that I didn't know there was a switch in the box outside, and it was on since we bought the trailer. I will replace the element.
On my RV, the switch on the inside is for propane and the switch outside is for electric. I have been adding viewer comments to the end of my more recent videos and I want to use yours and talk about the electrical element being left on to other viewers. Thanks
Thank you so much for this video! Very helpful!! Can you tell me....while using the electrical heater do I leave the switch on in the inside of the RV?
Depending on your setup, you should be able to. Mineon the inside is for propaneand on the outside is for the electric. I ave often ran both at the same time without issue.
Just wondering if I should be using propane to heat the water when I'm connected to a 50 amp pedestal. Should they both be on? I have 2 switches inside my coach. Are they both 12volt or might one be 110 (one has a light next to it that says reset)?
You do not have to run both if you do not want to. Matter of fact, during the hotter parts of the summer, I leave the propane of for the water heater. As for you switches. Trying running a test. 1. Turn both switches off 2. Make sure that the propane tanks are on 3. Make sure that the water in the tank is cold enough for the tank to fire up, I do mine by turning everything off and running the water until it goes cold 4. Turn on the one with the light that says reset 5. Go outside to the tank and see if it fires up 6. If it does not fire up, turn the switch off inside and turn on the other 7. Once you find out which one is the propane, turn that one off and the other one on 8. Again, make sure that the water is cold on the hot water side 9. It is going to take a lot longer but you should start to feel the water heating up from the electrical element I do not have a panel like your so i do not have any experience with them. I am also on 30 amp. If your unsuccessful, please send me an email with pictures of the water heater and panel and i will see if I can provide some additional support. Also, I would love to hear back from you on what you find out. Be Safe and Good Luck
You did not mention the red light in the bathroom that should come on. We are hooked up to our house right now. we on the regular 110. Could that be the reason that our hot water heater is not coming on. Because we are not on 30 amp. Thank you so much your video really did help
@@HowToRV we believe it is for you turn the hot water on. I believe that it may be that we only had it plugged in to 110 and that’s why we couldn’t get it to work. I guess we will have to call will we bought it from. It’s brand new I’m sure it’s just us trying to figure it out. Darn thing didn’t come with a manual. LOL
Anytime. Are there any other videos on the channel that you found interesting or entertaining? I like getting feedback to see how the channel is doing.
Hi! I have a water pump panel inside RV on the wall and im pretty clear on everything except do i need to keep the HEATER button on while permanently hooked up at park? I do get some hot water while it's off but I do have to shower pretty quick to enjoy it b4 it goes....so is it because I have that button off?
On mine, the switch on the inside of the camper is for the propane heating side of the water heater. The electrical side is outside at the water heater. If I have to guess your setup, the electricity may already be on, and turning the switch on inside of your RV initiates the propane heat. Also, you can run both of those heating solutions at the same time, or at least I can.
Great info here. So I did turn mine on with an empty tank after winterization, I changed the element and no hot water I changed it again, no hot water. I try to push the reset buttons you were showing but they didn't reset as if if you couldn't push them in. The power was on maybe the unit should have been off when trying to reset? Any other hints here? Thanks, Noel
If you have the means to do so, check the leads to the heating element to see if you have power coming to the heating element. sounds like you know what you are doing but if you have not checked already, look at the breaker panel to make sure that the breaker for the water heater is not tripped. You can check this by turning it to the off position and then back on. Mine has an on/off switch on the tank itself and i have to make sure that it is on as well. If that all checks out, there is a thermostat control board that tells the heating element to come on and off. I found this video and may be of some help to you. th-cam.com/video/j5jN3tHVAnU/w-d-xo.html Let me know what your outcome is. You can email me at IYOconnect@gamil.com What ever you find out may be worth a new video since i have not experience this issue myself.
Good video. Explanation of the ignition assembly for the nerd in a few of us.lol On a call for heat as explained, the gas valve opens and a spark is created to light the gas. Once the gas is ignited,,,,,, the flame touches what is commonly known as a flame sensor. This flame sensor tells the control board that the flame did IGNITE and to keep running. It harkens back to high school physics that heat is energy. It's sends a small millivolt signal to the control board. If by chance you have a water heater that lights......then shuts down. Chances are your flame sensor is dirty. It can be removed and cleaned to a shiny new steel rod with a little bit of fine emory cloth or steel wool. On my model it will try to ignite 3 times. After the 3rd try. This system LOCKS OUT. Letting you know. " SOMETHING IS WRONG " On your first try of the season I always start my burners on the stove, my furnace and then my water heater in that order to purge gas lines. Notice I didn't say HOT WATER HEATER. GEORGE CARLIN SAYS HOT WATER DOESN'T NEED HEATED ! LOL HOPE THIS HELPS.
I agree. There is a part in folks like us that like to understand the intricacies of things. Mine has the 3 strike and your out as well. Thank you for confirming that this video is serving a good purpose.
That’s the way most older RVs used to be back in the day. To be honest, I use mine on propane more than electric. I like to keep the amount of electric used down so propane is what I use most. Hope this answers your question.
Great video! I would really love it if you could do another that talks about common issues with the hot water tank, or what is normal or what isn't. I have a very similar tank, might actually be the same model, or might not. But I just noticed a slight propane smell, and at first I thought it might have been because I was at the very end of my propane tank, but then I took a lighter to where the oxygen mixes in and a very small flame lit. The problem being I am running the water heater off electric, not propane. If this type of tank had a pilot light I would think that is what was going on, that the pilot light had just gone out, but this type of tank doesn't use a pilot light. Any ideas on what the issue is? Or is it normal to have a tiny bit of propane going through? I am at the very end of my propane tank, and I don't have my other propane tank hooked up...
Firstly, never use a flame near gas smell or to find leak. Believe me, i lost a few facial hairs because of that. For the leak, use soapy water in a sray bottle and spray down areas that could be leaking. you will start to see bubbles where the propane is getting out from. There should never be a leak at all, if you do then either something is mechanically not working correctly or you have a fitting or hose not seated like it should be. Once you find the leak, and need to do a repair, contact a mobile repair service to help.
Are you interested in Part 2? -- th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
Just got an 03 r wagon toy hauler, and only thing I couldn't figure out was how to run water heater and furnace. Propane was low on one tank and empty on 2nd. We were at a park and I brought an electric heater and used community showers, but would like to figure out how to run them, and differences in gas vs gas/electric. I didn't see a panel. Had a button for water pump in oven hood, but was hooked to park water. There is a switch with a red light on face cover of sink, which I turned on and couldn't figure what it did
@@reallythough4591 I found a photo of your setup. I am not to familiar with this setup but i would expect that if you set the durotherm thermostat to furnace and the temperature setpoint is above the current ambient temp, the furnace should come on if it is operating correctly. For the water heater, I would have to guess that the switch with the light on it is the water heater. Being an older model, i am not sure if you have an electric element in your water heater. Your right about the propane needing to be full. If you can not resolve your problem, I would highly recommend to let a tech take a look. A good tech will not only fix any issues, they will find anything that could also be an issue that you may not know about. Such things like propane leaks, cracked lines, bloen fuses, bugs and rats nests in areas where gas flames are and so on. Also, how does the generator get tuened on.
@@HowToRV it's a toy hauler, and there wasn't a generator, so I bought a champion weekender at 3650 watts. I work with pool heaters, and aware of critters making homes, I just don't have operating manual or any marking except oven hood shroud. Does the reserve tank need filled, or just city water? I didn't fill and left propane off as it was near empty
@@reallythough4591 I am not sure about a reserve tank since i do not have one. check to see if your water heater is getting water in it. It is possible that someone left the water feed bypass off. Mine are located on the backside of the water heater. You can verify by connecting water and opening the relief valve to see if anything comes out. Do you know if the water heater has an electrical element or is gas only?
@@HowToRV I do not. This weekend was break in run. Found drain pipe leak under sink and fixed, as well as damage caused by it in flooring in forward section. Been watching vids, but didn't see anything where they set up and run. Furnace makes sense with thermostat. Water heater has a small fuse in top right side, but looked like it had a mud daub nest at on point, as I could see remains. Didn't pull fuse. Figured I would fill tanks and try at home. Gathering info now.
One of the best RV videos I have seen …to the point, moves along with the actual information yet just slow enough to get it …you made my day with this knowledge …
That is really great feedback. Thank you.
You sound like goldy locks lol this ones just right lol
You are the man!
Just bought a $30,000 Wildwood. Got the (30 min) dealer crash course, and don't want to screw up & void any warranties on appliances. All the manuals I got with the camper were installation manuals. None described how the appliances were operated as installed in my camper.
Thank you for the kind reply. If you have any other suggestions about videos that you would like to see, please feel free to let me know and i will see if i can help
Nicely explained. We are new trailer owners and it's great to have someone lay out these details in a clear manner. Much appreciated!
I am so glad that this was helpful to you? Are there any other videos on this channel that you have found either entertaining or helpful?
@@HowToRV Great job on the water heaters...thank you
@@godrulesme8619 You are very welcome
Love how clearly points at the item over and over making sure you get the point
Thank you for the kinds words
Nice job explaining this. I'm a neophyte to the mechanics of the various components of my travel trailer so I'm consuming all the training videos I can find. This was a great one!
Neophyte. I must admit, I had to look that one up. 😀. I am glad that I was able to help you. I also have one coming out in a couple of weeks about the water pump. Stay tuned for that one as well.
I appreciate this. I didn't see my on/off button until now. Been living in my RV for 10months. 😆
Glad I could help!
Man your video was a life saver we had no idea that there was a switch for our water heater and now it's working without using the propane thanks so much man I've looked for a long time and finally found ur video that explained what we couldn't find
Glad I could help
What year is your camper
2022
This was such a great video!!
Thank you!!
hey guys i have to say thank you so much for breaking it down cause honestly i was so curious being new to all this. much love cant wait to check out more videos
Your welcome. To be honest, i learned a lot by digging and searching for information to make the video too.
You explain everything really well and most of all if it’s your first time using an RV when you said, make sure that the RV has water in it in case you have both electric and propane thank you for explaining everything in your video. It was really helpful.
Glad to help, Thanks for watching!
How about showing us the gas and electric switch inside of the trailer. Show where you find it inside
If you want to send me an email, I can send you a picture of the location of the switches
Great job . Very well explained with facts and much needed details to support procedures, component functions, and safety information.
Thanks for leaving out the drama and comedy that so many seem to think is necessary in some How To Videos.
Glad you liked it
just got a used rv from an older man that I think maybe couldn't remember what he wasn't telling us about the rv so your video saved us. we could not find the switch behind the pipe. thank you so much for your post.
larry takala I am glad that I could help.
You helped me find that "hidden" on/off switch!!!😁 A good thing. I was preparing for that proverbial cold shower but your video saved the day!
Who likes a cold shower? No one I am pretty sure. Glad to be of help.
Awesome video. Thank you
Glad you liked it!
Very complete coverage of all the features. My question is does the access door need to be open for proper exhaust ventilation?
It does not. It needs to stay for for wind resistance and safety reasons
Awesome video. I have a Suburban 10-gallon water heater. This is the first travel trailer that my wife and I bought. We bought it used, but in excellent condition just without the manuals. Now I have some information to go off of to begin.
I am glad that the video helped. That is what the channel is here for. Is there any other videos from the channel that you liked? I would love your feedback.
Great job! Straight forward and easy to understand! thanks for the info. Newbie and bought from an individual with minimal how-to help.
I am glad the I could be there for you. I plan on creating more of these type of videos. Do you have anything that you would like to see on the channel? If i have the means and knowledge, I will try to make one.
I know I’m late just bought an RV Was trying to figure this out but I couldn’t and your video helped a lot thanks for putting this out.
I am so glad that I could help. Hope you enjoyed the cinematic style too. Would love to hear your feedback.
This video is exactly what I needed, thank you
I feel blessed every time that i get to help someone. I hope that i was able to share something that you will also be able to teach someone else.
Indeed you helped me out big time... Thanks
Newbie trying to learn “everything” RV. I appreciate you sharing your knowledge!
Absolutely. I am glad that This channel can be there for you.
What is really hard to find is a video that gets right to the point without a lot of unnecessary music and long introduction. Everybody wants to be a master movie maker these days. Just cut to the chase and give us the info without wasting our time and data.
Noted. Outside of the concern, did you find the video useful?
@@HowToRV Not particularly.
@@HowToRVHi , sorry this wasn't helpful and wasted my data it was unnecessarily long. Cut to the chase.
we're all creators lol
@@HowToRVYes it was helpful. This user is obviously just a sour puss. Keep up the great videos
Nice video, but I have one odd question... the water heater doesn't heat enough for a shower, even using the pause button. Is it safe and ok to use both gas and electric while showering?
I use both all the time. All I have to do is to remember to turn off the electric when I move. I have heard of folks leaving the electric on and when they plugged their RV back into shore power at another location without water hooked up yet, the heating element went bad. Long story short, yes, you can.
Excellent video. I learned a lot from this! Just a suggestion, but maybe you could add or include how to position your shut-off and bypass valves. I found another video by suburban on how to do this but would have been nice to have included it in this tutorial.
Thank you for the feedback. I have been thinking about doing a video about everything that goes on with the back side of the water heater.
I agree..... Need a little more info to problem solve...
How about the reset switches behind the black square by the relief safety valve?
Good video
Thank you. The black square does not have switches. It’s where the heating element is wired in.
Great work on this video. Your explanation was easy to follow and I now know so much more than before. Thank you so much for sharing this. ❤️👍👏 Donovan & Jodi
I didnt really understand the whole water heater either and figured that once i did some research, that i should share it. Glad it helped
Thank you. Great info! My poor husband was pulling out what he has left of his hair trying to troubleshoot. We still don't know why the knob on the circuit breaker shuts off so I suspect there is some electrical issue going on, but at least for now we have hot water running off our propane tank and that will buy us some time to get it diagnosed appropriately!!
I am heppy that I could help. If the breaker is triping, try checking the wires to the heating element and maybe even replaing the heating element.
You need to check part 2 of this video. I go over the most asked questions that come from comments and emails. Click here to see that video - th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
If you don't want to run propane can you just heat your water up with the electrical side of it im fixen to buy a camper and just learning some things im always gonna be hooked up 2 shore power always . And also if my bottles are turned on is it automatically gonna be used to heat my water I would just rather not use any propane to heat my water if possible thanks
Yes, you can run electric only. Also, if you have the bottles turned on and the propane side of the water heater is switched off, you will not use any of the propane for heating the water. Please take a look at these 2 videos. I think that they will explain what your looking for in a little more detail. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html and th-cam.com/video/n_v7QkFzNds/w-d-xo.html
@@HowToRV thank you so much
@@HowToRV what did u mean when you said u have a extra holding tank for hot water but I think u said u have to run both your propane and electric something like 16 gallons
@@allencooley7048 what I was going for was to say that the amount of hot water you get to use would be like having an extra tank because of using both electric and gas. With both heating sources running, it can produce hot water for a longer time.
@@HowToRV yes sir thank u very much for all your help
Newbie here and learning! Thanks so much! You really broke it down to where I can understand.
Glad it was helpful!
I would like to thank you for explaining this so simply! I am a relatively new rv salesperson who knew nothing and for some reason this subject was not clicking for me, the wheel was turning but the hamster was dead 😂this just made my life a whhhollleeee lot easier! Thank you!!
I am so glad that Iwas able to help you. If you or anyone on your team would like to discuss any topics that Ican help with, pleaes feel free to reach out.
Just incase you want to see it...I added your comment in my latest video about the Haloview camera system.
Very informative, took a minute to find a simple explanation. You nailed it
Glad it was helpful! Thank you so much
Nice job. Perfectly explained with no annoying fluff in between. Appreciate your approach. Thanks!
Thank you for your honest feedback. I am so glad that you confirmed the approach that i try to take. I would love it if you could look a few more videos of mine and tell me what you think of them as well.
Great detailed video. Being a new camper trailer owner, the company did go over it but good to hear the process again so I not second guessing myself. Thank you!
Your welcome. Unfortunately our dealer didn’t explain much about the hot water system to us and I had to learn it n my own. Glad it was helpful.
Same here ! He did a great job explaining .I'm a first time TV owner to Didn't know it was going to be this difficult
Great video! Many have the same water heater and in my unit there is a 2nd electric switch for the heater inside the trailer that needs to be switched on as well.
That is great to know. Do you mind sharing the make and model?
Thank you that is the clearest explanation I've seen yet
You are very welcome
Very good info. Thanks for sharing. Ours has a two switch’s one is 12v and 120v. We use 120v when looked up to power and 12v when boondock ing. The rv place never went over that but I think that’s the right way
Weekend RVing Agreed. The switch on the outside for mine is the 120V powered from power hook ups which will heat the water. The 12v isn’t for heating the water but used for supplying and igniting the propane side. Yes your RV dealer should have explained that to you.
Good information. I just bought a new rv with a dual electric gas unit. Wasn't sure how to turn it on. This helped tremendously.
Your very welcome. I am glad that it helped. I haven’t heard of a dual gas unit. Is that the same as the one that I described
Really good information. I (Theresa) didn't know much about how it works but enjoyed learning. Very detailed and appreciated.
Glad it was helpful!
☺️ im here sending support each one of you! stay connected, see you in my place👌
After watching & saving/ sorting virtually hundreds of videos on all avail. RV chanbels; I'm convinced that I just need to watch ALL of YOURS, THANK YOU, FOR EVERYTHING!
Welcome aboard! Thank you for joining in. This makes me smile.
This has been immensely helpful as we are new to full-time RVing. Thank you so much!
I am so glad that I could help. Did you find any other videos on this channel helpful?
Very informative, I need to change out my heating element as I had it switched on by mistake after emptying tank to Winterize. Will swap element myself and reminded me that I have both elec and has options for hot water tank…. as I understand it - running both when I can plug in will give me more hot water in total to draw from - cheers!!
Glad it helped. How did the electrical element change out process go?
I very much enjoyed this video. I am 64 and just moved in to a 2009 Dutchman Aerolite trailer. All completely new to me and no owners manual on hand. The online version sucks 😂 I thought this video was very informative, not repetitious and thorough. I hope that what you've shown will work for my hot water system. 🤔 The only thing I liked in a different video I watched was the purging of the hot water tank to ensure the air was out and the tank was filled with water. I'm assuming that would be a process in all RV's..?
Happy travels, from your new subscriber 😊
That would be the same for all. You would be correct. Thank you for joining the family.
THANK YOU ! I LOVED the way you went step by step to explain the whole system. I want to run mine on all electric Not , one person would explain to me Exactly how the entire system worked.
Iv watch alot of videos They talk in circles Repeat words takes up so much time
Can't TY enough. Tomorrow I will hv my
Water tanks and hot water running right
Even had RV plumber say her put certain parts on the gas Of course he didn't Hope you have more videos I will be following you
Thanks and that means a lot. This channel has tons of videos that I hope help you. If you have any ideas of videos that I have not already made, please e-mail them to me. How2RV@gmail.com
Thanks I didn’t know about the external power switch! Learning all the time! I had purchased a 2006 forest river and the original hot water heater was shot. The new one had a tag over the external power switch I didn’t see!
Glad that it was helpful. Be careful to not leave the switch on if you do not have water on. If you do, you take a chance in the heating element burning out if your connected to shore power. Happy camping.
I always wanted to know how my hot water heater worked. This was great detail and the videography was outstanding.
I am glad that we were able to help in some way
Good explanation of the system. Helped me understand as a new owner of an RV
Glad it was helpful!
Yes it is one of the best to explain how it is working and knowing what you are doing.. well done
Glad it was helpful! and thank you for the kind words
Thank you. First time with the electric/gas heating and didn't know where the switch for electric was!
I am glad that the video could help...I have a part 2 to this video if you want to check it out. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
Your is just like mine . question can you run the hot water take just on electric without the propane?
I am glad that you came here to ask. I just recently released a video going over this topic. Please let me know if it helped. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
No, you have helped me a whole lot thank you so much for this video because nobody else has one that broke it down like you did so thank you very much
Great stuff. Glad to help
Thank you so much for this video! This answered all my questions and the best video by far that I’ve seen out there for this suburban model.
You are so welcome!
Just used hot water tank for first time ever and thanks to your video it went very well!
Thats great to hear. I have another video that goes into the most asked question from this video if you are interested. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
@@HowToRV Yes for sure will definitely watch! Thank you and Happy Belated Thanksgiving 🦃
Can you do a video regarding where the bypass is & ensuring it is in the correct position before turning on & so water fills the tank? Thank you
I can try. I recently took mine out and put in a tankless water heater but the method is about the same.
That was excellent! Thanks! I had an older trailer 1989. Much improved now! I have a 2020 Flagstaff Microlight. 👍
Glad it helped!
Please cover the Furnace side of the house because both are linked to each other. Btw, yhx for keeping it simple and to the pt. Please furnace side to include the board replacement.
Will do. I need to do some readings g up on the furnace but that’s a great tip. Thanks.
Outstanding. Thank you. If electric and propane are on, does it auto sense and select electric as the priority?
I believe that it turns both of them on and off at the same time. Would make sense to have the electrical as priority though.
Great explanation but... how do you flush the hot water tank and how do you k ow if the snood is good or needs replacing?
i have seen people flush the tank, but i have not had to do mine yet and its a couple of years old. One is with with the water heater flushing tool amzn.to/35wD4Am . As for the anode rod, you should change it when it is about 75% used. You can get a new one here amzn.to/35wVVv4 for very little money and compare the one that you have to it. Hope this helps.
does the switch have to be on to run the system on propane??Think our heating element burned out this past week- end..To close to leaving to try it...thanks video is 👍
Yes, my switch has to be on for the propane to light
Very helpful. We are new to shore camping. Good to know the on and off switch outside the camper. My question is, once i hookup power, and turn on the water heater switch to ON outside, do we need to turn on water heater inside the camper to get hot water?
I do not on mine. The switch inside is for the propane side. I did use both at the same time so that the water heated faster and in a round about way giving me more hot water. Hope that makes sense.
New to rvs, learned lots from ur video. The electric switch needs to be on and the breaker on the inside correct.
MIne has 2 switches. One on the outside at the tank itself and one on the inside. The one on the outside uses the electric from when you plug your RV in at the campground. The switch on the inside is for the 12V ignitor that uses the propane to heat the water. Try out this video. It think it may help a little further. Comment on that video to let me know if it answers your question. th-cam.com/video/r1QORFE2htM/w-d-xo.html
Thank you for the help, we were very curious about getting our hot water tank going. Very helpful.
Our pleasure!
Very nice and informative video, thanks! I was hoping you would take the anode out just to see what it looks like...
I recently went to a tankless water heater but thinking about puting this one back in. If i do, I will take in consideration a video about the anode rod.
@@HowToRV That would be nice, thanks!
Just watched my first video of yours. Really liked the way you spoke and covered the subject. When you were through I had no questions, you covered it that well for me. I subscribed and will spread the word. Looking forward to you other videos! Thank you.
Welcome aboard! Glad you joined in.
Great video. I had no idea what that rod was for. Thanks
Glad I could help
Hey out of all the videos I seen I really enjoy your quick to the point awesome explanation of how everything works. Thank you.
Awesome, thank you!
Very professionel presentation and very clear on how everything works. Great job Jason. Wow,
I appreciate that!
Your awesome..that was one of the best explanations of the hot water electric/operations..keep the videos coming
Thanks, will do!
Again another great video on this camper model. Thanks for explaining everything so clearly. I always wondered what the correct operation was.
I am so glad that it was helpful.
I appreciate the work you put into this video to inform people. Good job. I don't have a water heater but I would want to know all of this if I did.
Your amazing. I appreciate that you went through the whole video and don’t even really need it. My objective was to inform all so that not only will they have more knowledge but also to be able to share with someone else that may want to know.
IYO! Thanks for doing this! I spoke with you about my total lack of knowledge regarding our hot water Electric/Gas heater. Can't wait to sponge up all this knowledge. I type comments as I watch. :) Wow, it does all seem simple now. Nice slow mo work. Love your stuff!
Thin Blue Lane RV Life that means a lot to me. Your asking about the not water heater is what inspired me to make this one. Thanks
@@HowToRV my question is what way does the gas valve need to be turn to be on and off I have no clue of what I am doing .I have a 2004 Salam 40 ft camper trailer and I had to rebuild the 19 ft slide out and a lot of thang is missing so help me please
@@wilberthunt9863 you would turn the knob on the propane tank counter clockwise to supply your RV with gas. Hope this helps.
Excellent, clear and logical - thank you! (A related question: does the electric heating of the water only work when you’re plugged into shore power or if you are boondocking and turn on the electrical switch the heating element will run off of the 12 volt battery system?). Many thanks
Mine only works when plugged into shore power. If/When boondocking, you will have to use the propane to heat the water. The 12V side only powers the little sparky thingy that ignites the flame to heat the water.
@@HowToRV Many thanks!
Great video. Mine is exactly what you had and you were very thorough in your explanation. Thanks a lot!
Glad it helped!
Thanks for the video! As far as using electric for the water heater when you said make sure you have water in there. Are you talking about the water storage tank or just having the water hose hooked up and running at the site? Thanks 👍
Water in the tank. But making sure that Water is connected is highly important as well. When you turn on the faucet or shower, the water needs to run and not lose pressure. This will guarntee that you will have plenty of water in the tank so that the heating element does not overheat and burn out on you. Hope this helps
@@HowToRV Your a legend! Subbed and liked and look forward to watching all the videos you put out.
@@back2thebasicz thanks for the amazing feedback
Great Video! You answered my questions and made it easy to understand. Keep them coming.
I will definitely keep them coming. If you have any suggestions for more videos, please feel free to email me at IYOconnect@gmail.com
Thank you and others for this video and the comments. Very helpful for this beginner. g
You're very welcome!
Thank you! This was wonderful- oh I saw your cutting board at the beginning--
I have 18 of them! 🐾
I told the wife that you had 18 and her eyes lighted up.
@@HowToRV I have 2 beautiful female puppies!! Lol
😂
Great video I'm working on getting mine going it's from 87/5 wheel I just found out it's electric and propane and the electric switch was on which just started making electric noise only when I got water pressurized in the system the pressure valve is leaking also and it has a ground wire that needs to be reconnected which I already knewI'm hoping the electric portion is not busted it sounds like it's trying to work with that ground wire is not connected so we'll see how it goes
Good luck! Let me know how it turns out.
@@HowToRV so far i got the leaky pressure valve out and the partially stripped out drain plug finally there was no anode rod in there just a plug / drain. im thinking i should replace with s anode plug also in my 88 trailer there is no anode. and i got that water heater going today ! had a hot shower .
Sorry for getting back to you so late. I am glad that you go your water heater running. I HATE cold showers
Thanks for the info. Our tank does not provide hot enough water like it used to
I have heard of this before. You can try having the heating element swapped out and tank cleaned.
Thanks for the info..so is that gas smell near that panel anything to worry about?
I am no professional but if you have a flame that is making hot water and you smell very minimal propane scent, I would think that you would be ok. If you smell any propane at all with no flame, turn it off and get some troubleshooting done by a professional. Propane is very dangerous so if you have any concern at all that something is not right, contact a professional to check for you. Also, make sure that you gas detectors are not expired and are working correctly inside of your RV.
@@HowToRV thanks again...yeah me bursting into a ball o flame would really suck.
Hi there, great info Thanks! Do you think you could post a video troubleshooting refrigerators malfunctioning? (Dometic)
I have thought about doing a video about that. I do not have a lot of experiences with the fridge but have been doing some research. I will try to dig a little deeper and see if i can get a similar video made. Thanks for the advice.
Great video! I enjoy your way of explaining and presenting. Thank you!
djskip69 that’s awesome feed back. Thank you so much
I appreciate this. But the answer I've been looking for remains. I have the same heater, with an on/off switch in it. I also have a single switch inside "HTR." If my propane is always on, will it always use propane, and not just the electrical element? What is the purpose of the switch inside? Is it the propane switch? I will add that I didn't know there was a switch in the box outside, and it was on since we bought the trailer. I will replace the element.
On my RV, the switch on the inside is for propane and the switch outside is for electric. I have been adding viewer comments to the end of my more recent videos and I want to use yours and talk about the electrical element being left on to other viewers. Thanks
Thank you so much for this video! Very helpful!! Can you tell me....while using the electrical heater do I leave the switch on in the inside of the RV?
Depending on your setup, you should be able to. Mineon the inside is for propaneand on the outside is for the electric. I ave often ran both at the same time without issue.
Just wondering if I should be using propane to heat the water when I'm connected to a 50 amp pedestal. Should they both be on? I have 2 switches inside my coach. Are they both 12volt or might one be 110 (one has a light next to it that says reset)?
You do not have to run both if you do not want to. Matter of fact, during the hotter parts of the summer, I leave the propane of for the water heater. As for you switches. Trying running a test.
1. Turn both switches off
2. Make sure that the propane tanks are on
3. Make sure that the water in the tank is cold enough for the tank to fire up, I do mine by turning everything off and running the water until it goes cold
4. Turn on the one with the light that says reset
5. Go outside to the tank and see if it fires up
6. If it does not fire up, turn the switch off inside and turn on the other
7. Once you find out which one is the propane, turn that one off and the other one on
8. Again, make sure that the water is cold on the hot water side
9. It is going to take a lot longer but you should start to feel the water heating up from the electrical element
I do not have a panel like your so i do not have any experience with them. I am also on 30 amp. If your unsuccessful, please send me an email with pictures of the water heater and panel and i will see if I can provide some additional support.
Also, I would love to hear back from you on what you find out. Be Safe and Good Luck
You did not mention the red light in the bathroom that should come on. We are hooked up to our house right now. we on the regular 110. Could that be the reason that our hot water heater is not coming on. Because we are not on 30 amp. Thank you so much your video really did help
I do not have a red light 💡 in my bathroom. What is your for??
@@HowToRV we believe it is for you turn the hot water on. I believe that it may be that we only had it plugged in to 110 and that’s why we couldn’t get it to work. I guess we will have to call will we bought it from. It’s brand new I’m sure it’s just us trying to figure it out. Darn thing didn’t come with a manual. LOL
Thank you so much...being new to camping with an RV, this video was perfect...
Glad it was helpful!
You are doing great with these videos, ive subscribed and just moved into my travel trailer, its very cool!
That’s awesome. Are you going full time.
Very nice video, I plan to use our heater for the pair time in over a year we have had our coach. Very informative!
I am glad that it was helpful.
Great video, just one question; because I has the resets at the top does that mean it doesn't have afuse or breaks inside?
You should still have a fuse either in the power panel or behind the water heater. Mine is in the power distribution panel.
Thank you for your very detailed understanding of the RV water heater
Anytime. Are there any other videos on the channel that you found interesting or entertaining? I like getting feedback to see how the channel is doing.
Hi! I have a water pump panel inside RV on the wall and im pretty clear on everything except do i need to keep the HEATER button on while permanently hooked up at park? I do get some hot water while it's off but I do have to shower pretty quick to enjoy it b4 it goes....so is it because I have that button off?
On mine, the switch on the inside of the camper is for the propane heating side of the water heater. The electrical side is outside at the water heater. If I have to guess your setup, the electricity may already be on, and turning the switch on inside of your RV initiates the propane heat. Also, you can run both of those heating solutions at the same time, or at least I can.
This is EXACTLY what I needed. Thank you!
Anytime. Are there any other videos on the channel that has help you?
Great info here. So I did turn mine on with an empty tank after winterization, I changed the element and no hot water I changed it again, no hot water. I try to push the reset buttons you were showing but they didn't reset as if if you couldn't push them in. The power was on maybe the unit should have been off when trying to reset? Any other hints here? Thanks, Noel
If you have the means to do so, check the leads to the heating element to see if you have power coming to the heating element. sounds like you know what you are doing but if you have not checked already, look at the breaker panel to make sure that the breaker for the water heater is not tripped. You can check this by turning it to the off position and then back on. Mine has an on/off switch on the tank itself and i have to make sure that it is on as well. If that all checks out, there is a thermostat control board that tells the heating element to come on and off. I found this video and may be of some help to you. th-cam.com/video/j5jN3tHVAnU/w-d-xo.html Let me know what your outcome is. You can email me at IYOconnect@gamil.com What ever you find out may be worth a new video since i have not experience this issue myself.
Good video.
Explanation of the ignition assembly for the nerd in a few of us.lol
On a call for heat as explained, the gas valve opens and a spark is created to light the gas. Once the gas is ignited,,,,,, the flame touches what is commonly known as a flame sensor. This flame sensor tells the control board that the flame did IGNITE and to keep running. It harkens back to high school physics that heat is energy. It's sends a small millivolt signal to the control board. If by chance you have a water heater that lights......then shuts down. Chances are your flame sensor is dirty. It can be removed and cleaned to a shiny new steel rod with a little bit of fine emory cloth or steel wool.
On my model it will try to ignite 3 times. After the 3rd try. This system LOCKS OUT. Letting you know.
" SOMETHING IS WRONG "
On your first try of the season I always start my burners on the stove, my furnace and then my water heater in that order to purge gas lines. Notice I didn't say HOT WATER HEATER.
GEORGE CARLIN SAYS
HOT WATER DOESN'T NEED HEATED ! LOL
HOPE THIS HELPS.
I agree. There is a part in folks like us that like to understand the intricacies of things. Mine has the 3 strike and your out as well. Thank you for confirming that this video is serving a good purpose.
@@HowToRV
Retired HVAC/ R TECH FOR 35 YRS.
Thinking on buy a RV thatyou can only heat the hot water tank by propane. What are your thoughts on that good or bed
That’s the way most older RVs used to be back in the day. To be honest, I use mine on propane more than electric. I like to keep the amount of electric used down so propane is what I use most. Hope this answers your question.
Extremely helpful for a newbie.
Your very welcome
Great video! I would really love it if you could do another that talks about common issues with the hot water tank, or what is normal or what isn't. I have a very similar tank, might actually be the same model, or might not. But I just noticed a slight propane smell, and at first I thought it might have been because I was at the very end of my propane tank, but then I took a lighter to where the oxygen mixes in and a very small flame lit. The problem being I am running the water heater off electric, not propane. If this type of tank had a pilot light I would think that is what was going on, that the pilot light had just gone out, but this type of tank doesn't use a pilot light. Any ideas on what the issue is? Or is it normal to have a tiny bit of propane going through? I am at the very end of my propane tank, and I don't have my other propane tank hooked up...
Firstly, never use a flame near gas smell or to find leak. Believe me, i lost a few facial hairs because of that. For the leak, use soapy water in a sray bottle and spray down areas that could be leaking. you will start to see bubbles where the propane is getting out from. There should never be a leak at all, if you do then either something is mechanically not working correctly or you have a fitting or hose not seated like it should be. Once you find the leak, and need to do a repair, contact a mobile repair service to help.
Great source of information, exactly the question I was going to ask. Thank you for the video presentation!!
Glad it was helpful!