No hot water pressure

Well as the title says for some reason I dont have any hot water pressure. Yesterday morning the water was working just fine. Hot and cold had pressure. Then later in the day my wife went to take a shower and she couldnt get any hot water pressure. It would drip just a little and I could tell it was hot so I knew it was heating. I tried every faucet in the RV and even the outside faucet. Great water pressure for cold but no hot water pressure. I removed the panel to look behind and make sure I didnt have hot water spraying somewhere else and didnt see any leaks. I found the hot water tank and saw a line coming out the back at top and one on the bottom. I felt the hose and it was hot so I knew there was water in there. Finally I flipped the bypass valve and then water would come out with pressure but it wasnt hot. This told me it had to be something with the heater. I left the hot water open in the sink and tapped on the plastic on the back of the heater where the hoses attach and wala I had hot water. This lasted long enough for our showers but again this am we have no hot water. Any help would be greatly appreciated. My wife is not happy about a cold shower lol.

Thanks,

Brad
 

cookie

Administrator
Staff member
It sounds like you were tapping on the check valve. It may be sticking.
Looks like its time for a replacement.

Peace
Dave

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jnbhobe

Well-known member
Get a brass one for your replacement. Be very carefull removing the plastic one they break easily.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Home Depot carries a nipple extractor tool for about $4 in with sprinkler parts. If the old plastic check valve breaks apart, you'll have some difficulty getting the plastic out of the metal threads of the water heater and this tool has helped some people take care of it quickly.

Also, when you put a brass check valve in as a replacement, you should change the hose fitting to brass at the same time. I'm not sure why, but I think Pex doesn't recommend female plastic fittings going on male metal fittings. Maybe the plastic is more likely to break when tightened to metal. Anyway, the brass swivel fitting is a bit hard to find, but you can order it from Grainger at this link.

The brass check valve is probably easier to locate, but I've not yet seen it at Home Depot or Lowes. Amazon has one but since you need male threads on both ends, you'll also need a close nipple.

Of course you'll need teflon pipe tape around all of the fittings.

The only thing in this that's a pain is changing the Pex swivel fitting to brass. You need an expensive crimping tool. The problem is that you need a swivel elbow fitting that screws on, and unscrews for maintance. You might be able to use a Sharkbite push-on fitting from Home Depot that has brass pipe thread on one end. The spec says it rotates after installation. You probably would have to add a 90 degree brass elbow to the end of the check valve to get things aligned.
 

boatto5er

Founding VA Chap Ldr (Ret)
Probably because people are providing information from memory, not standing there looking at the part. Get a nipple extractor from Home Depot for about $4 or $5. Take the old plastic one out. Take it to Home Depot or Lowes or order one from Amazon - get the brass replacement. Put it in. Problem resolved.


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danemayer

Well-known member
Hi Timbo,

If you'll click on the links in my prior post, they'll take you to the store pages for each of the parts mentioned. The item/part # is on the page and you can even order from those pages if you prefer to shop online.
 
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