Electric water heaters...

General Discussion about almost anything Teardrop or camping related

Electric water heaters...

Postby GPW » Wed Jul 30, 2008 12:50 pm

Anybody know of a good alternative to a propane water heater... we'd like to replace our Atwood 6gal Prop WH with an all electric unit ... Confusion is , The all electric units are either very expensive RV units or there's the Hot Rod conversion, which some users/reviewers say is OK ,and the manufacturers do not ... what's the real truth here?... and then there's those small tank water heaters (electric ) at Loews or HD for under the sink ... would those work ... Any constructive comments would be greatly appreciated...
There’s no place like Foam !
User avatar
GPW
Gold Donating Member
 
Posts: 14911
Images: 546
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:58 pm
Location: New Orleans

Postby SuperTroll » Wed Jul 30, 2008 1:45 pm

Ariston....

http://www.thesolar.biz/Electric%20Poin ... eaters.htm

Point of use...no waiting on the hot water....

get the GL6+ with a seven gallon storage tank for 159.00 + or -


then again ever consider the Coleman Waterheater?......

I know it's propane,not electric.....do you NEVER camp in primitive sites?
Keep thinking outside the box and all manner of ideas will become reality......

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/alb ... Ul?start=0
SuperTroll
Teardrop Master
 
Posts: 166
Images: 8
Joined: Tue May 27, 2008 9:16 am
Location: Huntsville AL

Postby brian_bp » Wed Jul 30, 2008 2:03 pm

The electric heating element in an RV water heater - whether it is original equipment or a later add-on - doesn't have enough heat output to quickly heat 6 gallons of water... recovery time is slow. I think they really exist primarily to reduce propane consumption and improve recovery time when also using propane; however, they (at least the more recent Atwood units) are configured so you can choose either heat source, or both.

If you really want to heat water only with electricity, and don't need a high flow rate, then I think an "on demand" electric-only heater, rather than any tank-type unit or combined electric/propane appliance, would be a more compact, straightforward, and effective solution.
brian_bp
1000 Club
1000 Club
 
Posts: 1355
Images: 9
Joined: Sun Nov 19, 2006 1:25 pm
Location: Alberta
Top

Postby closurdo » Wed Jul 30, 2008 2:21 pm

brian_bp wrote:The electric heating element in an RV water heater - whether it is original equipment or a later add-on - doesn't have enough heat output to quickly heat 6 gallons of water... recovery time is slow. I think they really exist primarily to reduce propane consumption and improve recovery time when also using propane; however, they (at least the more recent Atwood units) are configured so you can choose either heat source, or both.


That's not really true.
I have an Atwood water heater in my Travel Trailer that has both electric and gas operation, the electric element is all I use unless we are camping w/out electricity. The electric element will heat my tank up in 25 minutes from cold.
The recovery time is not important because we never use all the hot water up and even if we did we know that it would be hot again in another 25 minutes.

Larry
User avatar
closurdo
Teardrop Inspector
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Sep 08, 2006 3:30 pm
Location: S.E. Michigan
Top

Postby rxc463 » Wed Jul 30, 2008 5:26 pm

I have noticed that quite a few of the campgrounds that I like have notices on their websites stating that they do not allow electric water heaters. Just two cents worth :D
Russ

Politicians and diapers have one thing in common. They should both be changed regularly, and for the same reason.
User avatar
rxc463
The 300 Club
 
Posts: 488
Images: 20
Joined: Wed Mar 12, 2008 6:05 pm
Location: Allentown, Pennsylvania
Top

Postby Miriam C. » Wed Jul 30, 2008 5:57 pm

rxc463 wrote:I have noticed that quite a few of the campgrounds that I like have notices on their websites stating that they do not allow electric water heaters. Just two cents worth :D


I wonder if that is just the larger kind where the water is heated constantly. :thinking:
“Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past.â€
User avatar
Miriam C.
our Aunti M
 
Posts: 19675
Images: 148
Joined: Wed Feb 15, 2006 3:14 pm
Location: Southwest MO
Top

Postby GPW » Thu Jul 31, 2008 7:06 am

Aunti, they're probably just trying to cut their electric bill,figuring you can heat your own water..RV style ...on your buck... :roll:
We don't go to campgrounds anyway...so it matters little what silly restrictions they have ... Our mission is SOLELY about hurricane EVAC...sitting in a friends backyard/driveway elsewhere, connected to their 110V AC power...awaiting the word that it's OK to go home ...Electric or Solar Water heaters suit me just fine ...
During Katrina , the other displaced million people were scrambling to find propane which was in short supply, you had to drive a long ways to find it , only to find a line longer than your patience...... electricity was plentiful...anywhere out of the direct storm area... :thumbsup:
Many here seem to keep applying "social " camping parameters here, which don't apply in this situation...Having been an storm evacuee for most of my 60 years, (yearly Hurricane risk)we've developed a sense of exactly what we need to survive living /evacuating in these storm ridden zones...
Even before TTTs and TDs , every year we'd assemble our containers of "stuff" (house papers, family photos, sentimental objects d'art, canned food, clothes , a few handmade guitars , the "royal' needs : ), anything that just HAD to go...so we're well practiced at "getting outta' Dodge"....
The small electric WHs would be all we need for the wife and I... we're getting Old so we're never in a rush to do anything ...

The wife keeps leaning towards the "Hot Rod" idea(I did request her input) as being a cheap alternative ,and allowing us to retain the propane WH , in case we sell the trailer in the future. (her words)...as I read the Atwood manual , I see similar heating elements in their P/E WHs...typically ,I guess it's OK as long as you use their products exclusively... :roll:
Last edited by GPW on Thu Jul 31, 2008 7:23 am, edited 1 time in total.
There’s no place like Foam !
User avatar
GPW
Gold Donating Member
 
Posts: 14911
Images: 546
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:58 pm
Location: New Orleans
Top

Electric heating element and other ideas

Postby Johno » Thu Jul 31, 2008 7:18 am

I would have to second closurdo’s comments. We are currently living in a 5th wheel and have been running on our Atwood’s built-in electric heating element for over a year now. About the only time I have noticed an issue was if my wife takes a shower and I wait 15-20 minutes later to take mine, the water is luke warm and has not had time to fully recover. Interestingly, if I take a shower immediately behind her, I do not have this issue. Either way, I doubt you will ever have this problem in a teardrop.

Another item to consider is weight, not only that of the heater, but of the water in the heater. By the time you add 6 gallons of water onto the weight of the heater, you are most likely looking at around 75 or so pounds. Assuming you are not talking about winter camping, have you considered a dark colored bag filled with water hanging outside? You would be surprised how hot water can be just by solar heating. Leave a garden hose outside and then turn it on and feel the temperature of the water coming out. Last but not least, what about just heating up water on the stove? I have used this method for taking sponge baths. Just some other idea. – John -
Johno
Donating Member
 
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Jul 15, 2008 10:02 pm
Location: Hempstead, TX
Top

Postby GPW » Thu Jul 31, 2008 7:30 am

John , for my bucks , Solar is the ticket, cause' it's FREE...and plentiful where we live...
For my house I'm working on a 55 gal drum mounted on a platform , painted black ,and a toilet bowl float inside to regulate the level....feeding into my water system and outside kitchen and shower...sorry to digress... :thinking:
There’s no place like Foam !
User avatar
GPW
Gold Donating Member
 
Posts: 14911
Images: 546
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:58 pm
Location: New Orleans
Top

Postby 48Rob » Thu Jul 31, 2008 7:40 am

I have a 6 gallon propane, and love it.

That said, the next one I buy will be electric and propane.
No sense in burning propane if electric is available.

Since you have 60 years of evacuation experience, I won't go there, but suggest that while electricity may be more availaible after a storm than propane, it is only prudent to better your odds of weathering the aftermath in comfort by having more than one option...

A 6 gallon water heater (mine anyway) providing 2 showers a day, and used along with our 2 burner cook stove will take about 5-7 days to deplete our 11 pound tank.

If you had a couple 20 pound tanks put away, wouldn't that get you through a pretty long recovery period?

Another option may be to install a 2.5 gallon electric water heater.
I had one in my last trailer, and it would recover after a shower in 10-15 minutes.
On demand units are okay, but you need a really big one if you expect anything more than a trickle of hot water.
The greater the volume of water, the cooler the water gets...

Rob
Waiting for "someday" will leave you on your deathbed wondering why you didn't just rearrange your priorities and enjoy the time you had, instead of waiting for a "better" time to come along...
User avatar
48Rob
Super Lifetime Member
 
Posts: 3882
Images: 4
Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2005 6:47 pm
Location: Central Illinois
Top

Postby bobhenry » Thu Jul 31, 2008 7:47 am

Ours is now equiped with a redneck water heater. The 48 cup coffee maker produces 3 gallon of hot water in 12 minutes. You might not be able to shower but a good warm sponge off and hot water for greasy dishes will still be a small luxury. And just $3.00 at goodwill.

P.S. I have the option of making coffee for a large group if I remember the basket and stem :lol: :lol:
Growing older but not up !
User avatar
bobhenry
Ten Grand Club
Ten Grand Club
 
Posts: 10353
Images: 2609
Joined: Fri Feb 09, 2007 7:49 am
Location: INDIANA, LINDEN
Top

Postby GPW » Thu Jul 31, 2008 8:03 am

Rob , as you suggest, an alternative is always a wise idea... :thumbsup: The Hot Rod alternative would allow me to retain the existing gas heater too, as an alternative and being the least labor of all ...
Typically, we just drive till we find the services we need... we have friends all over that are Happy to have me there just to cook for them ... True !!!
As I stated earlier , the wife and I just don't care for propane ...being of "rural' living , I have mucho' experience with propane ... and now just care not to use it whenever I can...and then there's what the wife said, "there's always a Hotel "... :o
so here I am trying to be GREEN , Solar my first choice, burning something , my last..sounds like a hybrid system is in order, not only electric , but a valve to introduce a solar heater... all this for a couple showers....????? I dunno '...A Rocket Stove and a few twigs would do the same thing ...or one of those "redneck water heaters"..hahahahaha

:thinking:
There’s no place like Foam !
User avatar
GPW
Gold Donating Member
 
Posts: 14911
Images: 546
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:58 pm
Location: New Orleans
Top

Postby GPW » Fri Aug 01, 2008 8:03 am

Ya know , we've seen the roof mounted Solar water heating units that mount on the roof of your particular trailer... for like 600.00 USD + shipping :o That's all very nice , but what if we took a coil of copper pipe (the way the plumbers get it rolled up in a large donut shape ) add an inlet and outlet fitting/hose ,Paint it black , put it in a shallow box lined with aluminum foil , and covered with a sheet of glass, acrylic, whatever is best for UV...may not be the most efficient unit , but sure could be made cheaply for the top of a TTT , or any trailer needing hot water...a small insulated storage tank would allow operation(showers) long into the dark time ..Probably could be built for under a "Croaker" (100USD) Makes one wonder if just a common 100ft garden hose on the roof (box optional) would work ??? Schmaybe' the hose plastic might be too TOXIC!!! :shock:
Although I probably could afford most any of these units , it's such a challenge to stay GREEN, and the feeling of independence is ...thrilling!!!

On the other hand , the black plastic bag on the roof is such a beautifully simple idea of heater and tank ...
There’s no place like Foam !
User avatar
GPW
Gold Donating Member
 
Posts: 14911
Images: 546
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:58 pm
Location: New Orleans
Top

Postby Elumia » Fri Aug 01, 2008 11:20 am

you'd risk your copper being stolen for recycling! Copper cost a lot these days. Check out plastic tube meant for water distribution - I beleive Pex is what you want. Put is on a sheet of plywood painted black, plexi on top and 1x material for the sides. Just need some place to store it once it is heated.

Why not just take a shower at your "friend's" house and use your current gas hot water sparingly?

Mark
User avatar
Elumia
500 Club
 
Posts: 641
Images: 15
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2006 2:02 am
Location: Napa, CA
Top

Postby GPW » Fri Aug 01, 2008 12:01 pm

Yes , we always have to watch out for the "Parasite Class"...copper thieves, metal thieves... why they even steal the bronze vases from the cemeteries and manhole covers...Low life types...good reason to keep a gun handy...:o
Pex sounds cool and probably much cheaper than copper...Thanks for the info...

Quote: "Why not just take a shower at your "friend's" house and use your current gas hot water sparingly?"..
Well, basically that's the idea...most of our friends have pool houses, cabanas,barns,garages with shower facilities.. Just that the wife needs to be 'comforted" with the idea of a backup...but that gas has gotta' go...just a personal preference...I know others love propane , and that's Cool , just not for us...
There’s no place like Foam !
User avatar
GPW
Gold Donating Member
 
Posts: 14911
Images: 546
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2006 7:58 pm
Location: New Orleans
Top

Next

Return to General Discussion

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 8 guests