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Old 04-30-2007, 01:06 PM   #1
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Trailer: Scamp 16 ft
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I made a rather sad discovery over the weekend. Found water dripping from the sidewalls and rear bumber of my 16 ft sd scamp. There was quite a bit of water under the sink cupboard. I thought originally that perhaps the rain had been driven in to the water heater vent from outside. That it appears is not the case. After further investiagtion and attempting to fill the water heater tank by use of the onboard electric pump and creating yet another puddle under the sink I think I may have somehow got the w
ater heater tank frozen over the winter. I thought I had done every thing the manual tells us to do but the tank will not fill. ON examination I find a discolloration of the styrafoam insulator around the tank which looks like a water stain. I also find the particle board shelf that the tank rests on is swelled to about 3/4 of an inch thick in the area of one of the puddles. Has anybody else had this experience? How difficult is it to remove the tank and replace it?
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Old 05-01-2007, 11:51 PM   #2
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A new Atwood G6A-7 will plug right in. You can also get just the tank to replace the cracked one. A local welder with skills should be able to repair the current tank.

All but the welding are screw driver and wrench jobs if you are flexable enough to get under the sink.

If there are no skilled welders where you are, check e bay for a new one or a replacement tank.
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Old 05-02-2007, 09:10 AM   #3
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Quote:
A new Atwood G6A-7 will plug right in. You can also get just the tank to replace the cracked one. A local welder with skills should be able to repair the current tank.

All but the welding are screw driver and wrench jobs if you are flexable enough to get under the sink.

If there are no skilled welders where you are, check e bay for a new one or a replacement tank.
for some reason I had the idea that you had to access the heater from the outside. Took it 40 miles to an RV dealer for repair. If I had thought to go from the sink side I might have done it myself or erhaps tried to do it myself and end up paying a dealer to finish what I started. There really is not much room under the sink.
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Old 05-02-2007, 11:14 AM   #4
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The outside is the easy part, you just need a screwdriver, a power one makes it quicker. There are about 20 screws if memory serves me.

BTW you may have winterized it correctly. Water tanks will corode with time.

--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dan B @ May 2 2007, 08:10 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>
for some reason I had the idea that you had to access the heater from the outside. Took it 40 miles to an RV dealer for repair. If I had thought to go from the sink side I might have done it myself or erhaps tried to do it myself and end up paying a dealer to finish what I started. There really is not much room under the sink.
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Old 07-31-2011, 09:41 AM   #5
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Trailer: 1996 Scamp 5th Wheel Standard
Texas
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Cracked water heater?

I realize this is a really old thread, but I figured I would add on to it because I think my problem might be similar.

I've got a gas Atwood heater in the cabinet next to the one under the seat in the used Scamp I recently purchased. I am still going through and testing all the systems, and today it was the city water connection. As soon as I hooked it up with water only on at a trickle, blue water started pouring out of the Mystery Hole (see another recent thread with this title in the "problems" section!) that exists in my passenger side wheel well.

The water was not coming from the fill and drain fittings on the front of the tank (the side of the tank that faces the inside of the trailer). It was, however, soaking the carboard+insulation sleeve around the heater. So I disconnected the fill and drain fittings and plugged them into each other to bypass the water heater and voila, that leaking stopped! (I still have a tiny drip from the new connection I made, but I can see that one; also the city water connection itself leaks horribly, but that is outside the trailer).

Anyway, I think the tank is shot and I would like to pull it out. A previous poster said a reinstallation was easy, just a matter of screws. What about the gas connection? That bothers me... Also, does the whole outside panel need to come out? Mine is riveted all the way around.
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Old 07-31-2011, 10:09 AM   #6
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Name: Karen
Trailer: 1996 Scamp 5th Wheel Standard
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Originally Posted by KarenP View Post

I've got a gas Atwood heater in the cabinet next to the one under the seat
Sorry, the tank is behind the cabinet door that is next to (to the right of) the cabinet door under the SINK. That makes a little more sense, right!

Also, at this point, I would just like to pull it out, safely, with the option to install a new one later. Has anyone done this, and can they offer a few pointers? It doesn't look like the tank will fit through the cabinet openings...

Cheers,
-Karen
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Old 07-31-2011, 10:47 AM   #7
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Karen,

Sorry about your problem. They do seem to eventually get holes in the bottom.

The water heater does not come out thru the cabinet doors. It comes out the side of the trailer.

It's rather easy.

First shut off the water, at the pump and at the street if you're connected to a water hose.

Second drain your system of water, particularly the hot water tank. The easiest thing to do is to remove the drain plug located near the bottom on the outdside. It's located on the left side of your water tank, probably plastic but could be brass.

Third, disconnect the two water connections on the rear of the tank.

Fourth remove the 16 screws on the outside of your trailer holding the hotwater tank in place.

Oops forgot to disconnect the gas line. The gas line is on the left front of the heater. Shut off your propane tank. Again shut off your propane tank. using a wrench undo the propane connection from the hot water tank. Now slide the tank out.

I install a screw in brass plug into the propane line when done. This will allow you to use the gas system. You want to check the plugs for leaks. You can put a little water mixed with Dawn on it and see if there are any leaks. The Dawn/water mixture will bubble if there are leaks. Brass plugs are available at Home Depot, Lowes or Hardware stores.

The heater should now lift out.

Norm
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Old 07-31-2011, 11:25 AM   #8
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Hi, Karen

No advice to offer on removing your tank, but...
Did you check for leaks around your pressure relief valve?
I understand that unless some water heaters are "burped" upon connection to city water, they can leak at the valve.

Francesca
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Old 07-31-2011, 11:47 AM   #9
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Name: Karen
Trailer: 1996 Scamp 5th Wheel Standard
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Norm, thank you so much for your detailed directions! This definitely seems doable. The one thing I'm not sure about is that I have rivets where other installations have screws. When I get ready to put a new one in, can screws go where the rivets would have gone?

Francesca,
Is the pressure relief valve the red thing in the upper right of the outside panel? If so, there was no leaking there. Also, I had the sink valves open when I turned on the city water hose, so I would imagine pressure never built up in the tank.

Thanks guys!
-Karen
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Old 07-31-2011, 02:14 PM   #10
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Water Heater Thoughts

I had not noticed your rivets; I was thinking of our installation.

Our Scamp came without the water heater installed. The previous owner had removed the heater (and pop rivets) and simply screwed in a Plastic panel on the outside. I used the same holes and stainless screws of the same size. (I will say removing pop rivets is not as easy as screws, generally they need to be drilled out.)

When I reinstalled the water heater I had leaks at a number of joints including near the water pump. Once things was dried up I checked each joint and simply retightened everything.

Before you remove the heater I'd check carefully. I've seen two water heaters with leaks, both times they were at the bottom of the tank. I've seen more leaky pipes than water heaters and they usually respond to tightening.

Norm
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Old 07-31-2011, 08:56 PM   #11
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Name: Karen
Trailer: 1996 Scamp 5th Wheel Standard
Texas
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*EXPLODED* water heater tank!

I pulled that sucker out, and here's what I found! See the pictures below. I now wonder if all the major things I have found wrong with this trailer might be due to this exploded water heater tank:
There's another thread in this forum titled "Mystery hole." Under the water heater, in the floor and in the back wall of the wheel well, there is a hole. I thought it might be from a blowout.
Another problem I noticed was, in the first hour that I towed it I drove through a thunderstorm. Lots of water collected in the back, up on the rise where the dinette is, and also some where the floor drops. I just assumed it was from a window leak or some such. But maybe it got kicked up through the hole from the road. I don't think it came out of the water heater, because it wasn't blue, and the water that leaked out when I discovered the problem was blue.

I may never know! Anyway, here are the amazing exploded water heater pictures.
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Old 07-31-2011, 08:58 PM   #12
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And Norm, thanks again for your removal instructions. I drilled the rivets out, and it wasn't bad at all.
-KP
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Old 07-31-2011, 09:03 PM   #13
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Yikes!
Some mess...
I meant to ask before:
Why is the water blue???

Francesca
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Old 07-31-2011, 10:01 PM   #14
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Name: Karen
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Originally Posted by Francesca Knowles View Post
Yikes!
Some mess...
I meant to ask before:
Why is the water blue???

Francesca
Could it be blue from antifreeze? I don't know what color the right stuff is.
-KP
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Old 08-01-2011, 11:03 AM   #15
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My antifreeze is green...but I'll bet you're right- somebody winterized it, maybe with windshield washer fluid.
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Old 08-01-2011, 02:55 PM   #16
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Think maybe your mystery hole and exploded water heater to me look like one big boom from blow out
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Old 08-01-2011, 06:40 PM   #17
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The RV antifreeze I use is pink. The antifreeze I use in my tug is a yellowish green.
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