Shower water temperature November 10, 2011, 01:52:26 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126524This is primarily for Andy but thought it might be worth a mention to others: Andy, in some conversation 6 mos or so ago you mentioned heating the hot water only to the temperature comfortable for a shower. We've been on the road for about six weeks now and I have been using your method and love it. I spent far too much time before trying to adjust the shower water temperature. It was unpleasant (way too hot or way too cold) and wasted water. Now I don't have to fiddle with it and it does leave enough warm water to do cleanup later.Thanks for another piece of good advice.Patti and John South Rim of the Grand Canyon[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #1 – November 10, 2011, 02:50:00 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126525Quote This is primarily for Andy but thought it might be worth a mention to others: Andy, in some conversation 6 mos or so ago you mentioned heating the hot water only to the temperature comfortable for a shower. We've been on the road for about six weeks now and I have been using your method and love it. I spent far too much time before trying to adjust the shower water temperature. It was unpleasant (way too hot or way too cold) and wasted water. Now I don't have to fiddle with it and it does leave enough warm water to do cleanup later.Thanks for another piece of good advice.Patti and John South Rim of the Grand Canyon > Patti and John, how are you determining when the water temp is just right?Chris
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #2 – November 10, 2011, 05:06:49 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126528I think that quite a few of us heat the water to a "preferred, shower-ready" temperature and use only the hot water faucet when showering; as posted, it saves a LOT of hassle! The approximate "timetable" that I use is a water heater run of 20 minutes when the outside temperature is in the 30s-40s, 15 minutes for temperatures in the 50s, and about 10 minutes if the outside temperatures are higher than that, *or*, if the water heater has been run for some reason at an earlier time that day. With a little experimentation, each person can determine the length of time needed to heat the water to an acceptable temperature for him/her under different conditions. :-)Joan
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #3 – November 10, 2011, 06:08:57 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126531Years ago, I installed an adjustable thermoswitch in my water heater, and set it to about 130 degrees. That's about as low as my wife likes for washing dishes; otherwise, I'd probably use 120 degrees. 130 degrees is too hot for showering with just hot water, so we usually shut it off sooner; but even if we forget and it shuts off automatically, it's still much easier to set the showering temperature than with the usual 160 degree water.Eric
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #4 – November 10, 2011, 07:22:20 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126533On Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:08:38 -0800, Eric Greenwell eric@...> wrote:QuoteYears ago, I installed an adjustable thermoswitch in my water heater, and set it to about 130 degrees. That's the ticket. Here is one: http://kokoandpelli.blogspot.com/2010/09/adjustable-thermostat-kit.htmlWe also have an aquarium thermometer, on the hot water tank that gives a digital read out of the temp. Thanks Andy.We normally leave the heater on. It does not take much propane to maintain 130 degrees. That's a compromise temp for bathing and dish washing. We taped on markers on each shower knob so we know exactly the water mix that is right for us.
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #5 – November 12, 2011, 10:59:21 am Yahoo Message Number: 126558Set the timer and estimate considering how cold the water is to start. six to ten minutes seems to work. a finger stuck under kitchen faucet makes for final decision, kinda like checking a baby bottle. we are in a 24tk so the kitchen water is adjacent to the bath. loose a little water for that test, but use it in kitchen. Isn't it interesting how we all entertain ourselves while sitting in the boonies. Nice to have that as the biggest problem to solve.Patti & John Canyon de ChellyPatti and John, how are you determining when the water temp is just right?Chris[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #6 – November 12, 2011, 11:55:46 am Yahoo Message Number: 126560This has been an interesting discussion. Our last motorhome was a SOB, and it had the motor heat for the water heater. I.E. the radiator water ran through the water heater to heat it while driving. In the 12 years we owned it, I never once turned off the water heater while using the motorhome unless we were on a ferry. If we were staying in a campground with electric, I ran it on 120VAC. If we were dry-camped, I just let it run. We never even came close to running out of propane on a trip. It would be a nice option for Lazy Daze. Saves a lot of hassle and propane.Dick
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #7 – November 12, 2011, 01:21:32 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126563QuoteIf we were staying in a campground with electric, I ran it on 120VAC. If we were dry-camped, I just let it run. We never even came close to running out of propane on a trip. It would be a nice option for Lazy Daze. Saves a lot of hassle and propane. Our '83FL has a full-manual valve with a pilot light. Once the water heater has reached temperature, it stays warm indefinitely with just the pilot flame unless we take 2 consecutive showers - even in very cool weather. During our fall trip where we were hit in our primitive camp with a foot of snow and 17F temps, it did cycle on once during our 2 days before plowing our way out, but that is unusual. It likely takes more energy to keep heating up the water for use than it does just keeping it there.Steve
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #8 – November 12, 2011, 01:55:45 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126564On 11/12/2011 9:55 AM, W6CCD wrote: QuoteThis has been an interesting discussion. Our last motorhome was a SOB, and it had the motor heat for the water heater. I.E. the radiator water ran through the water heater to heat it while driving. In the 12 years we owned it, I never once turned off the water heater while using the motorhome unless we were on a ferry. If we were staying in a campground with electric, I ran it on 120VAC. If we were dry-camped, I just let it run. We never even came close to running out of propane on a trip. It would be a nice option for Lazy Daze. Saves a lot of hassle and propane. Our water is heated only by propane, but we've also noticed the water heater uses very little propane, compared to the refrigerator (warm weather) or the furnace (cold weather). We do turn off the water heater after using the hot water we want to, to reduce propane use and because we don't like the noise it makes, especially at night.Eric
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #9 – November 12, 2011, 02:15:46 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126567"Our last motorhome... had the motor heat for the water heater. If we were staying in a campground with electric, I ran it on 120VAC. If we were dry-camped, I just let it run." You're really talking about two separate systems here: stealing heat from the engine's cooling system and running the water heater on 120VAC from shore power. Both have their pros and cons. Engine heat is available only when driving; it dissipates within a few hours after you turn off the engine. If you drive every day and shower every night, this is an ideal system. But if you prefer to shower in the morning, the engine's heat will be long gone by then. And if you stay in one spot for a few days, engine heat won't do you much good. 120VAC water heating is a nice option to have, but it comes with a cost: the heating element requires 400 to 600 watts (3.5 to 5 amps at 120 VAC). With a rig that has a 30A electrical system, that's a substantial chunk of your power budget. If the water heater were wired to the 15A air conditioner/microwave circuit, it could trip that breaker when the microwave or A/C were in use. And if wired to the 15A household outlet circuit, it would have to share with the fridge (360 watts/3 amps) plus whatever appliances you use. turn on a hair dryer or coffeemaker and you'd overload the circuit. Of course there's an "easy" fix: rewire the coach for 50 amp shore power. But now, in addition to the increased cost of the electrical system, you have significantly restricted your choice of campsites. I wouldn't like to see my Lazy Daze's versatility reduced in that way. The point is not that these are bad ideas; Dick's experience shows that they can work well under some circumstances. But they do come with costs as well as benefits.Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #10 – November 12, 2011, 04:08:22 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126572Quote "...and because we don't like the noise it makes, especially at night."Eric Eric It shouldn't make any noise at all! Mine used to roar like a freight train until Mike Sylvester (The RV Guy) got his hands on it. He worked his magic and now I have to bend an ear just to assure myself it's running.Steve S. Lazy Bones & Jiggs
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #11 – November 12, 2011, 05:17:20 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126575I never found power consumption to be a problem. We only had 30-amp service, and never tripped a breaker. Our coach had a few A/C outlets here and there. Don't remember if they were all on one circuit or not. The one I used for the water heater was in the kitchen area where there was a microwave, coffee-maker and built-in blender. Again, don't know what else was on that circuit. We also had two roof air conditioners, but seems like one was wired to the generator, so you couldn't run two on just A/C.Our water heater element was installed at an FMCA rally. It was the type that replaces the drain plug. Originally, I had to run an extension cord from the heater plug to an outside outlet or the campground post. I found that to be inconvenient to use in the early morning or when raining. I put an A/C switch next to the outlet in the kitchen, and wired the heater through the switch to that outlet. Probably not to code, but it worked fine for several years.Dick
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #12 – November 12, 2011, 05:19:21 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126576Quote It shouldn't make any noise at all! Mine used to roar like a freight train until Mike Sylvester (The RV Guy) got his hands on it. Eric, Mike Sylvester worked his magic on mine too. An easy adjustment of the shutter valve on the burner tube. Instruction follows: http://www.rvservicesonline.com/text/trouble_waterheaterservice.htmMalcolm
Re: Shower water temperature Reply #13 – November 12, 2011, 05:47:31 pm Yahoo Message Number: 126577On 11/12/2011 3:18 PM, bmwgt31995 wrote: QuoteIt shouldn't make any noise at all! Mine used to roar like a freight train until Mike Sylvester (The RV Guy) got his hands on it. Eric, Mike Sylvester worked his magic on mine too. An easy adjustment of the shutter valve on the burner tube. Instruction follows: http://www.rvservicesonline.com/text/trouble_waterheaterservice.htm It's not obnoxious, just noticeable, but I'll go through the instructions, just to be sure it's running properly. We'd still turn it off, even it were completely silent.Eric
Topic: Shower water temperature (Read 6 times)
previous topic - next topic
Topic: Shower water temperature (Read 6 times)
previous topic - next topic