Re: Replace Aquahot heater
Posted: Sun Aug 29, 2021 11:20 am
Hi. Great post. Great ideas! Thank you!
The domestic hot water coils around the combustion chamber of my AquaHot froze and burst during one of the most recent polar vortex winter storms and there was no way I was going to pay several thousand dollars to rebuild or replace my 20 year old AquaHot. I also wanted to get away from stinky ol' diesel exhaust for hot water.
So, thanks to your inspiration, I eliminated the domestic hot water side of my AquaHot and installed an on-demand propane tankless water heater from Precision Temp. I decided to avoid using the unprotected un-insulated original location of the AquaHot, so I installed the new water heater under the kitchen in the bay next to the water service manifold. It also uses a floor-vented flue that goes through the floor like a car exhaust pipe so I did not have to go through the side of the coach bay door. It is a Precision Temp RV-550 NSP EC for anyone that is interested.
I have two questions for you. Dometic now owns Atwood, correct? What did Atwood have to say about running the glycol antifreeze mixture through the water heater instead of water? You are still using that mixture for the zone heaters, right? (ie- Did they have any concerns about the water heater heating glycol and having glycol circulating through it? Did they have any concerns about adverse effects of glycol on the Atwood water heater's seals, pump, or heat exchanger?)
I love your ideas and I am thinking of the same conversion for my hydronic heat.
Thanks again!
Doug
The domestic hot water coils around the combustion chamber of my AquaHot froze and burst during one of the most recent polar vortex winter storms and there was no way I was going to pay several thousand dollars to rebuild or replace my 20 year old AquaHot. I also wanted to get away from stinky ol' diesel exhaust for hot water.
So, thanks to your inspiration, I eliminated the domestic hot water side of my AquaHot and installed an on-demand propane tankless water heater from Precision Temp. I decided to avoid using the unprotected un-insulated original location of the AquaHot, so I installed the new water heater under the kitchen in the bay next to the water service manifold. It also uses a floor-vented flue that goes through the floor like a car exhaust pipe so I did not have to go through the side of the coach bay door. It is a Precision Temp RV-550 NSP EC for anyone that is interested.
I have two questions for you. Dometic now owns Atwood, correct? What did Atwood have to say about running the glycol antifreeze mixture through the water heater instead of water? You are still using that mixture for the zone heaters, right? (ie- Did they have any concerns about the water heater heating glycol and having glycol circulating through it? Did they have any concerns about adverse effects of glycol on the Atwood water heater's seals, pump, or heat exchanger?)
I love your ideas and I am thinking of the same conversion for my hydronic heat.
Thanks again!
Doug