Frustrated with Hot Water heater!

billm

Member
My 12 gallon Suburban hot water on our 2011 Big Country 3450 is driving me crazy! The pressure valve is always leaking while it is heating. More times than not it will time out after 3 tries to ignite and I have to turn the switch off and on and it always fires up. So far we have made sure the tank has an air pocket in it and the dealer has replaced the pressure valve, control board and all the thermostats. Nothing has helped and of course it won't act up when the Tech is here. We are on a seasonal site and I am happy that we have the extended insurance but I wish it work the way it is supposed to. This is our 4th RV and we have never had this problem before. Any suggestions??
 

jnbhobe

Well-known member
Have you changed the T&P valve? I have seen many of them drip the best fix I've seen is to leave it alone and they usually stop dripping
 

Ray LeTourneau

Senior Member - Past Moderator
Well Bill, it certainly sounds like you've tried everything short of replacing the water heater. Have you actually watched your tech do the work? It sounds as if you've used a mobile service and he's tried everything. Honestly, I would try calling or going to the Suburban website and see if they can offer any suggestions. I'm not sure what the warranty is on their product but maybe they have a better feel for your situation.
 

danemayer

Well-known member
Hi billm,

Sounds like the water heater's had a lot of dealer attention - never fun.

A couple of thoughts:

1. sounds like you're running on LP, but the LP burner doesn't reliably light when the thermostat calls for more heat. So you flip the inside switch and then it ignites. Some possible causes, besides what's been replaced include:


  • low system gas pressure (maybe just slightly low)
  • electrode wire and gap (slightly wide gap maybe?)
  • intermittent voltage at the gas valve
  • defective gas valve.

2. On the weeping pressure valve, I think I recall a recent thread where someone had this problem due to too much pressure in the water system. I assume you're using a pressure regulator at your city water hose - maybe you need to make sure it's working correctly, or try a different regulator. Also, I think I've heard of pump problems where the system is over-pressurized. Make sure the pump is off.

Sounds like you've already dealt with the air pocket as a potential cause, but here's Suburban's procedure, in case you're doing something different:


  1. Turn off the water heater, electric or propane.
  2. Turn off the water sources, i.e. water pump or city water faucet.
  3. Open a hot water faucet in the RV.
  4. Pull or open the handle on the P&T relief valve straight out and allow the water to flow out until it stops.
  5. Allow the P&T relief valve to snap shut, close the hot water faucet, and turn on the water supply. Heat the water to insure proper operation of the P&T relief valve. If it continues to leak, the P&T relief valve is defective.

Another cause of weeping is that the water temp is too high. This seems unlikely since the thermostats have been replaced. But you can measure the temp at the faucet to confirm it's not over 140 degrees.
 
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