Water Heater

[rfdbrown32166]

Newbie question.
On my water heater there is an on/off toggle switch accessible from the outside panel. Inside my unit there is a water system Guage panel with an on/off toggle labeled water heater. The my manual doesn't specify which switch is for the propane and which is for the electric. Common sense would say the one on the water heater is the gas switch, but I'm learning that "common sense" apparently wasn't all that common during the trailer assembly.

[bncinwv]

The switch on the heater is the electric switch. On our 2007 3400RL, the inside switch was for propane, I would think that yours would be the same.
Bingo

[rfdbrown32166]

Thanks for the quick reply. That should save me some money on propane !

[bncinwv]

One thing to keep in mind is to not turn on the outside switch (electric) unless there is water in the heater. It will burn the element out in a matter of seconds.
Bingo

[kdeiss]

We use both Electric and Propane at the same time gives quicker recovery.

[BB_TX]

What Bingo and Ken said applies to us also.

[DarMar]

The switch on the water heater is absolutely for electric operation. You will find the hot water recovery to be much longer when using electric over propane but with a little planning you will certainly save some dollars by not using the propane.

[bigskyjimmy]

I very rarely use propane for my water heater unless I want a quick recovery and I do both,since Electricity is free at my resort it is Electric only,on my rig yes i switch the toggle on the water heater and On the control panel on the inside I have a electric switch and Propane switch,I have to have the that electric turned on as well

[Rondo]

Our electric switch on the outside stays on all the time unless I drain the tank when the rig is not in use or if I'm checking/changing the anode rod, then it gets turned off. We do the same as previous posters and use the propane along with the electric if we want a faster recovery from using up the hot water in a long shower or whatever.

[DQDick]

Many of us couldn't figure out why our water heater wouldn't work on electric until that little switch was pointed out to us. Ours stays on all the time.

[bigskyjimmy]

You got that right Dick, I have helped many a Newbees on that one ,you would think it would be part of the PDI when you buy a new rig

quote:Originally posted by DQDick

Many of us couldn't figure out why our water heater wouldn't work on electric until that little switch was pointed out to us. Ours stays on all the time.

[Art-n-Marge]

We started full-timing last June. We ONLY use the electric switch for the water heater - no propane. We also only run the fridge on electric. We stay in full hookup parks (30 or 50 amp). We rarely need the furnace since we live in southern California (we use the fireplace and an Edenpure to heat the rig). We love those electric switch options on our rig (water heater, fridge, etc0. We are old 1000 Trails members and have exclusively used 1000Trails RV sites since, as members, the overnight camping has been free and includes electricity, Since then I have only had to refill one 30# propane cylinder (approaching one year), the other is still full. Knowing how to use electricity options has been very good to us.

I hope you make good use of that switch. Yes, hot summers have been tough with only one A/C, but one day we'll have the 2nd. Then the hardship will be finding consistent 50 amp power poles.

[WaltBennett]

Our '10 and all the previous RVs I've owned had water heaters that you could switch from off to propane to electric with the inside switch. The one on the outside does turn off the electric no matter what position the inside switch is in. I think it's there as a safety over ride for maintenance. There's also a breaker hidden under a rubber cover outside on the heater.