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CMColeman

Girard 2GWHAM water heater problem

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Newbie here.

we just bought our new 2019 Fleetwood Pace Arrow LXE 38F RV. But we have a problem with the water heater and the dealership only speaks French which we do not speak.  The deal on the RV was excellent tho.  However, I find it difficult to communicate with them about this problem and they don’t seem to have any solutions.

problem is 2 fold.  
1 - water is not hot enough at 124 degrees.  We have turned off all shower and outside water taps and it still isn’t hot enough that I have to take my hand out from under pure hot water.  We have set this temp up to max on the electronic control.  We had a tank in our last rv and it was great.  Is this normal for a tankless water heater or am I missing something?

2 - when connected to city water (hose) the water heater kicks in right away and starts producing ‘hot’ water (see #1 above).  When not connected to city water and just using the onboard water pump, the hot water heater will not kick in if we open 1 tap in the rv.  But if I open 2 taps, the heater kicks in and produces ‘hot’ water.  If I close one tap the water heater shuts down until I open the second tap.

Cab anyone help us please?  Thanks

Edited by CMColeman
Correct spelling

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CMColman, Welcome to the FMCA Forum !

Could you include the make and mode of the water heater !

Is the problem when the unit is working on AC or propane?

Rich.

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Welcome to the forum. I don't know enough about the new tankless water heaters. I would try hear http://dev.fleetwoodrv.com/for-owners/support/technical-assistance.

Fleetwood Rv Phone Numbers and Emails
Toll-Free Number:
(800) 509-3417
1420 Patterson Street, Decatur, IN, USA

Parts, Service & Warranty Support:
(800) 322-8216

Good luck and let us know what you find out.

Bill

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Most tankless water heaters have a minimum flow requirement to start heating.  It sounds as if your water pump won't reach that minimum flow unless you open two faucets.  With the city water hooked up, the pressure is greater and thus the minimum flow is reached with one faucet. 

If you take a shower and mix too much cold water with the hot water to get a comfortable shower, that reduces the hot water flow.  Next thing you know, you may be standing in a cold water shower.

We installed a tankless water heater several years ago and encountered the same kind of problems.  I had it changed back to a tank after about two months working with the manufacturer trying to get the minimum flow set as low as possible.  Their last suggestion was to turn on the hot water faucet in the sink while taking a shower!  Clearly the person I was talking with had never been in an RV.

We  now have a coach with an AquaHot which is a boiler type system.  The 16 gallon tank is kept at about 180 degrees.  the AquaHot runs on diesel or electric.  It does hot water (mixing valve reduces the temperature to a safe hot water temperature), heat for the coach and can even be used to warm up the diesel engine in cold weather.  True endless hot water!

Edited by tbutler
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6 hours ago, dickandlois said:

CMColman, Welcome to the FMCA Forum !

Could you include the make and mode of the water heater !

Is the problem when the unit is working on AC or propane?

Rich.

Model is in title.  Girard 2GWHAM

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Works on Propane.  Needs to be descaled once a year, hard water & minerals are the biggest problem, it will prevent flow or reduce the flow of water!  Average replacement cost of OP's unit is US$540.

Lots of trouble shooting adv on web!

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CMColeman.  There is a possibility of a defective LP pressure regulator or an issue with the flow sensor.

The other is a build up of minerals in the water heater caused by hard water. From what I have found from other sources .

You may need to consider a adding water softener to the water input system.

Good luck !

Rich.

 

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Most tankless/instant water heaters heat the incoming water to a certain degree of rise, I've read where some only heat water to 45° above incoming water temp. The more expensive ones have more temperature rise. What does your owners manual say?

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Most tankless water heaters are made to retrofit regular tank type water heaters.  We had no problem replacing our tank with a tankless and when we decided to give it up, converting back was easy.  Changing to a regular water heater should be possible.  Just raising this as one solution.

Rather than try to deal with the dealership, you may want to contact the manufacturer.  Girard is a major RV manufacturer, I have always found them to be responsive to customers needing help.  Their contact information is:  (949) 259-4000, 1361 Calle Avanzado, San Clemente, CA 92673.  They can recommend a repair center to help with servicing or adjusting the system if that is what is needed.

 

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