Tank less on demand water heaters

[Mtn Charlie]

The water heater on my 2012 Itasca Suncruiser 37F decided to spring a leak last night. A new Atwood gas-electric-engine assist water heater is north of $1200 for just the heater. A replacement tank is about $270. I'm contemplating going tankless-propane. They can be had for less than half the price of the Atwood. Has anyone done a simular conversion or done a tank replacement repair on an Atwood? I've already checked the pressure relief valve and it is not the issue. It could be a water line but the RV was parked when the leak started. It is just a constant heavy drip. Bypassing the heater stops the leak.

[Mtn Charlie]

This is a little embarrassing but the leak turned out to not be the water heater, even though it was coming from the water heater compartment. The drain for the rear toilet passes over the water heater compartment and has developed a leak. The front toilet and black tank function properly, with no leaks. I'll need to remove the water heater to access the leaking drain pipe, but it should be a heck of a lot less expensive than a new tank. A change in wind direction let me know that it wasn't clear water dripping.

[Eagle5]

Good to know that you can fix it with relatively little expense. I guess not too many of us have any experience with changing to a different type of water heater. If my tank were to develop a leak, I would just replace same-with-same, if for no other reason that it would be cheaper and easier.
Eagle5

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by Eagle5

Good to know that you can fix it with relatively little expense. I guess not too many of us have any experience with changing to a different type of water heater. If my tank were to develop a leak, I would just replace same-with-same, if for no other reason that it would be cheaper and easier.
Eagle5

Thanks for the reply. In my case, replacing with the same tank might have been easier but definitely not less expensive. At $1,200+ it has to be just about the most expensive out there. I haven't torn into it yet but I'm assuming that a new insulation blanket will be in order. It will probably turn out to be a nasty job. Luckily the tanks electronics seem to have been spared.

[MadMaxWinny]

My water heater (I think) has developed a slow leak. I tried to remove it to investigate, but the knuckleheads at Winnebago used the firehose method for caulk again. I'll have to literally pry it out with a crowbar, just to trouble shoot. My first attempt just bend the $hit out of the flange. Why caulk something when 18 screws are holding it in place?

[Mtn Charlie]

Originally Posted by MadMaxWinny

My water heater (I think) has developed a slow leak. I tried to remove it to investigate, but the knuckleheads at Winnebago used the firehose method for caulk again. I'll have to literally pry it out with a crowbar, just to trouble shoot. My first attempt just bend the $hit out of the flange. Why caulk something when 18 screws are holding it in place?

My only thought on the matter is that RVs take a beating driving down the road and screws can jar loose. The caulking prevents rattles from developing a year or two later. Caulking is cheap and hides all kinds of misfits and misalignments.

[Brooks]

Yup with RVs it can be a crap shoot

[CharlesMoore]

Two years ago our Atwood water heater quit working on electricity and propane heated it ok but it was very rusty. The electric heater element turned out to be bad. We decided to replace the whole unit for about $1500 with labor. Yes, it was difficult to remove because it was sealed in pretty good. We did manage to remove it with a bit of finesse but its not an easy job due to seal and the engine heat water lines are too short. When removed the engine coolant will run out (about 5 gallons worth) so be prepared to plug these lines.. We reattached the engine coolant lines per original and I am glad we did since we have hot water going down the road plus other boondocking situations.