Hot water stopps

[Yojimi]

Hello,
I have an antique 1996 Winnebago Adventurer. Water has been fine for 2 years and suddenly when I am using the hot water( in the shower!) sink too it suddenly stops and there is no flow. I bled the water heater through the relief valve and it returned momentarily but later when I tried to use it it started to flow then stopped again! We are on a cross country trip and it is cold here on the Upper Peninsula in Michigan. Any ideas would be appreciated. No service centers are open on Labor Day weekend.
Thanks for any help.
Gail

[Wyatt]

Originally Posted by Yojimi

Hello,
I have an antique 1996 Winnebago Adventurer. Water has been fine for 2 years and suddenly when I am using the hot water( in the shower!) sink too it suddenly stops and there is no flow. I bled the water heater through the relief valve and it returned momentarily but later when I tried to use it it started to flow then stopped again! We are on a cross country trip and it is cold here on the Upper Peninsula in Michigan. Any ideas would be appreciated. No service centers are open on Labor Day weekend.
Thanks for any help.
Gail

Sorry for your troubles.
Q. Are you connected to shoreline water or using your tanks when this happens?
Do you have water in your fresh tank?
Do you hear the pump working?
Does this happen to the cold side too, or just hot water?
Is your water heater gas or electric?
Do you have ample propane?
If you have one, have you removed the sacrificial anode from the water heater and cleaned out the tank?

Just a few questions to narrow down what might be the issues…

[Yojimi]

Originally Posted by Wyatt

Sorry for your troubles.
Q. Are you connected to shoreline water or using your tanks when this happens?
Do you have water in your fresh tank?
Do you hear the pump working?
Does this happen to the cold side too, or just hot water?
Is your water heater gas or electric?
Do you have ample propane?
If you have one, have you removed the sacrificial anode from the water heater and cleaned out the tank?

Just a few questions to narrow down what might be the issues…

Hello Wyatt,

Thanks much for your reply.

In answer to your good questions:
Yes, on shore power
Yes, water in fresh water tank
Yes, full propane
Yes, it only happens with the hot water
We flushed the water heater 2 months ago before our trip.

In addition, in the past few days when we turned on the water heater it turned on then shut down several times.
Regards,
Gail and Jimi

[FIRE UP]

Gail and Jimi,
Well, this might be a longshot but, I and a few others have had the very same issue with the hot water side on our coaches. Long story short, Winnebago installs either one or two, CHECK VALVES in the water heater inlet side and the outlet side. In my case, we'd been out Jeeping for a day and came back to camp, and I was ready to jump in the shower and turned on the hot water to warm up the shower line.

What's this, no hot water???? I thought Hmmmm, so, I went over to the bathroom sink and turned on the hot water side of the faucet. NOPE no hot water. Hmmm. I went to the kitchen faucet and, NOPE no hot water. In each case of outlet, I had plenty of cold water but no hot. Well it turned out to be the inlet check valve for the hot water heater.

It was one serious pain in the a... to get to but, I got it out, gutted it, and re-installed it. All better now. So, is this your problem, not a clue. But it sure sounds like it. You'd have to try multiple faucets in order to confirm. Good luck and do report back on your findings.
Scott

[Yojimi]

Hello Scott,
This looks like it may be the solution. I am going to try it when I get home from this trip and have the tools to work on it. I appreciate your help.
Thanks!
Jimi

[bob1947]

I agree with the check valve failing. There is a small spring that should keep a ball sealed in the valve to prevent back flow of hot water back into the tank. When the spring deteriorates the ball is pushed against the distal ridge in the valve stopping hot water exiting the tank. There is also a check valve on the cold water entry line to prevent hot water reversing into cold water line. These valves are on the lines at the tank entry and exit.
Good luck

[Bobn1957]

I replace both my check valves last fall when I was winterizing the unit, I also installed isolation valves that also allowed the hot water tank to be isolated. The check valves both new and old have a rubber disk, not a ball being held by a spring.

[Jakm]

Just had it happen to our water heater, no flow to any of the spigots in the coach. In my case it was the outflow check valve at the top of the tank. Easy enough to get to in my case with an access panel on the back of the bay. You’ll need a 1” deep well socket and a breaker bar as they’re set in there pretty tight.

[Davel]

I had the same issue with the hot water check valve. I drilled mine out because I winterize by blowing the system out and putting antifreeze in the traps. The check valve is there to enable pumping antifreeze through the entire system without filling the water heater.
Good luck.
Dave

[NeilV]

Same here and I was fortunate enough to flag down a mobile technician who had a few sets with him in his truck. The valves are for more than just winterization and also prevent back-flow of hot water into the cold water piping and fresh water tank.

They can be quite difficult to access depending on where your water heater is installed.

[Yojimi]

Thanks Bob I will look for the spring.
Jimi

[Yojimi]

Appreciate your info Bob.

[Yojimi]

Thanks for the detailed directions, Jakm. The pics will be really helpful.

[Yojimi]

Thanks for the tips about winterizing, Davel

[Yojimi]

Thanks Niel, it might save me a lot of grief to use a technician...