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Old 09-14-2014, 04:06 PM   #21
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Mel I would still get the gas pressure checked when you have time to run it by somewhere. Those could be carbon deposits.

Water expands like anything else when heated. A tank of cold water that is heated will expand and increase the pressure in the system. Open a hot water valve for a few seconds as the tank is almost heated up and it will relieve the pressure that was built up. If you watch closely you can see the water has a higher pressure when you first turn it on then will reduce after a few seconds. Once the water is heated it will not increase the pressure the next time it runs as much because the water is warm and you are not heating and expanding it as much. An expansion tank is installed in larger commercial systems to overcome this.
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Old 09-14-2014, 04:36 PM   #22
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Originally Posted by Brian B-P View Post
Pump on or off, relieving pressure by letting out some water works. The pump will only restore pressure to its switch setting, but the problem is the pressure going higher than that due to a rise in temperature of the water in the heater after the water was last run.

I'll admit that I didn't understand the problem until I read the section in the linked water heater manual, which describes the situation pretty well. An accumulator (usually used to smooth out variations as the pump cycles or to prevent water hammer) should provide the same "cushioning" function as the air space in the top of the water heater.
You mean like this one?

http://www.campingworld.com/shopping...ator-tank/2290
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Old 09-14-2014, 04:50 PM   #23
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An accumulator is used for the supply water side and is not designed for hot water. They will not stop pressure increase on hot water side when heating a tank of cold water. Check valves in system will stop water pressure from going back to cold water side.

Just open the hot water tap as the tank is almost heated.


http://westank.com/expansion-tanks/
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expansion_tank
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Old 09-14-2014, 07:05 PM   #24
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Thanks for clarifying. That was my next question.
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Old 09-14-2014, 07:53 PM   #25
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An accumulator (usually used to smooth out variations as the pump cycles or to prevent water hammer) should provide the same "cushioning" function as the air space in the top of the water heater.
I added an accumulator, 1" of ensolite padding (with mounting screws only into the base plywood, and the pump into only the top ply), and a flexible hose from the pump to the accumulator (previously it was plumbed in with PEX), and this quitened the pump a lot, and cut down on the cycling quite a bit too. We can easily get a couple flushes with the pump off now.



Another view

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Old 09-14-2014, 10:46 PM   #26
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We experienced the same problem at Kathy's house. Her normal water pressure was around 60PSI which was controlled by a regulator on the water service entrance. I installed a new water heater that had a TPR valve set at 150 degrees F, and 150 PSI. After heating the 40 gallons of water the TPR was burping out water. I found that the expansion of the heated water was increasing the pressure higher than the 150 PSI valve. The expanding water had no where to go. You could release some water every time stone cold water was heated to normal temp, but that would require that intervention every time that occurred. I found an accumulator tank that was about the size of a 20 pound propane tank and mounted it outside under the roof eaves. It has an internal bladder that can hold enough volume to keep the pressure well below the TPR valve set point. Air pressure is pumped into the chamber outside the bladder to balance out the pressure. Problem solved.
Adding one of these accumulators to a RV would take up too much space, so periodic burping at the faucet may be done as needed to stop the dripping. No need to burp the TPR valve.
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Old 09-15-2014, 02:41 PM   #27
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Yes.

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Originally Posted by Kountrykamper View Post
An accumulator is used for the supply water side and is not designed for hot water. They will not stop pressure increase on hot water side when heating a tank of cold water. Check valves in system will stop water pressure from going back to cold water side.
Where would there be a check valve between the accumulator (which is downstream of the pump, in the common supply piping before the water heater) and the inside of the water heater? I have only seen a few RV water heaters, but those didn't have a check valve on their inlet, the city water inlet check valve wouldn't be relevant, and I can't think of any other check valve location.

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I found an accumulator tank that was about the size of a 20 pound propane tank and mounted it outside under the roof eaves. It has an internal bladder that can hold enough volume to keep the pressure well below the TPR valve set point. Air pressure is pumped into the chamber outside the bladder to balance out the pressure. Problem solved.
Adding one of these accumulators to a RV would take up too much space...
Yes, that would be too big for an RV, but the RV units (as Robert linked and Jim showed) are much smaller.
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Old 09-15-2014, 03:06 PM   #28
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I can't sleep while hearing a drip.drip.drip but after reading the posts and the manual this is 'normal' unless you add the accumulator.

Time to install one!

It looks like the carbon soot may have been a result of the added wind gusts. I found the remaining soot burning out with a nice colored flame.

In the past we had adjustable thermostats and I always kept them at a very low temp, often just the pilot light, and we usually heated water outside on a 2 burner. With this spacious Escape 19 we'll be making our hot water inside ... wow ! indoor toilet and hot running water. Life is good : )

Thanks for your help, Mel
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Old 09-15-2014, 03:17 PM   #29
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I can't sleep while hearing a drip.drip.drip but after reading the posts and the manual this is 'normal' unless you add the accumulator.
I don't have an accumulator in my 19' and I do not experience any "drip drip drip" noises at any time, whether the hot water heater is on or off. I would not assume that adding an accumulator to your trailer will cure it of what is ailing it.
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Old 09-15-2014, 03:25 PM   #30
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Klem, do you have it off while sleeping? The water heater only needs to be on an hour or two a day. The water gets very hot and stays that way a long time unless it is cold weather.
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Old 09-15-2014, 03:36 PM   #31
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Klem, do you have it off while sleeping? The water heater only needs to be on an hour or two a day. The water gets very hot and stays that way a long time unless it is cold weather.
We always do this too. If you turn it on in the morning, it will be hot for breakfast dishes, then again just before supper to do the suppler load.

This is also why I put a switch inside the trailer to switch it on electrically, and added a light to both the electrical switch, and the gas switch to indicate that it is on. Theses lights are very obvious when going to bed, should you have forgotten.
http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f8...itch-1165.html

Since I did that mod to the gas switch, I have seen it prewired by others and sold.
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Old 09-15-2014, 03:44 PM   #32
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I don't have an accumulator in my 19' and I do not experience any "drip drip drip" noises at any time, whether the hot water heater is on or off. I would not assume that adding an accumulator to your trailer will cure it of what is ailing it.
It might be worth a try. I have installed several expansion tanks in homes and it cured the problem every time. Some cities require them in their building code. Might be another option for ETI to consider. Yet, why does one have a problem and others with the same setup don't. Loren
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Old 09-15-2014, 04:22 PM   #33
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I know I can turn it off but that's just another thing to remember! With all this new fancy automatic stuff I would like to think I can let it run.

And then the switch turns down to turn on, and the 'on' light goes off so I need to be smarter then I like to be when camping : )

We live in an old house so any drip.drip.drip is a cause for alarm until the source is found!

It is a dandy trailer, my favorite of all we've had, so it will just take a period of adjustment. Having this Forum is a great resource to learn a lot in a short time.

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Old 09-15-2014, 05:01 PM   #34
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Just noticed Jim's switch! Thank you, seeing a red light in a blue trailer (from the fridge) will help me see it.

So I need an accumulator on the hot water side? The heater manual said it's supposed to maintain an air pocket but can lose it.

I need to carefully reread this thread, there's some great wisdom.

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Old 09-15-2014, 06:45 PM   #35
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Yes.

Where would there be a check valve between the accumulator (which is downstream of the pump, in the common supply piping before the water heater) and the inside of the water heater? I have only seen a few RV water heaters, but those didn't have a check valve on their inlet, the city water inlet check valve wouldn't be relevant, and I can't think of any other check valve location.
.
Casita uses check valves at the water heater but after crawling under the Escape bed and looking ETI does not use them.

This is a Casita
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Old 09-15-2014, 06:46 PM   #36
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I believe an accumulator tank for trailers simply builds up pressure in the entire system, downstream from the pump, in order not to have the pump running as much. I've not seen a separate hot water accumulator tank for a system this small.
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Old 09-15-2014, 06:52 PM   #37
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And then the switch turns down to turn on, and the 'on' light goes off so I need to be smarter then I like to be when camping : )
Mel K. (Klem))
Don't you just love that! I have never figured out the logic of having the switch turn down for on and up for off but they are all that way.
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Old 09-15-2014, 06:53 PM   #38
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For what it's worth, I turn on the water heater for 15 or 20 minutes in the morning if I expect I'll need hot water. Otherwise, maybe 20 minutes prior to dinner. I set a kitchen timer.
I turn on the water pump when I expect to need water and turn it off ( if I remember ) when done.
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Old 09-15-2014, 06:58 PM   #39
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Don't you just love that! I have never figured out the logic of having the switch turn down for on and up for off but they are all that way.
When I was proof reading my post I thought "that's not right" and it is .......
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Old 09-15-2014, 07:14 PM   #40
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I can't sleep while hearing a drip.drip.drip but after reading the posts and the manual this is 'normal' unless you add the accumulator.
Maybe not. For one thing, it seems that if you relieve the excess pressure by releasing just a bit of water from a faucet once the heater is up to its set temperature there shouldn't be any more drip for the rest of the night.

Also, although I pointed out that an accumulator does the same thing as the air pocket that should be in the top of the heater, so does the air pocket. The water heater manual's explanation suggest that once you restore the air pocket (which stays there during normal use of the hot water), you shouldn't have the dripping due to high pressure.
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