Tankless Water Heater in Precept

1jeb289 · 07-06-2015, 06:50 PM

Has anyone heard if Jayco will be offering the 6 gallon gas/electric water heater as an option (not mandatory) in future models instead of the Girard tankless unit? My wife and I had just about settled on the Precept 31UL, but the tankless water heater will be a deal breaker. We had the tankless water heater in a fifth wheel which we could never get to work properly and had it replaced with a 6 gallon gas/electric unit. Not going through that again.

mowdoc · 07-06-2015, 08:34 PM

To answer the question, , , no, I have heard nothing about offering a "real" water heater.

However, I am about to embark on a solution for my rig. I am sure the tankless is too hot and cycles off and on because of flow rate. Our pumps can't put enough water thru the heater fast enough for it to operate correctly.

Since I use a inline filter at the faucet and then run water thru a softener before going into my fresh tank I do not feel I need that "extra" filter Jayco installed. My plan is to remove the element from the extra filter in order to speed up flow.

If that does not help, I will try a better pump to move more water. I'm sure the tankless works great when water flow is high enough so I will try to speed things up a little.

One other thing that is hurting the performance is summer heat. Out fresh tanks are getting hot just sitting and waiting to be used. I believe the tankless will work much better with COLD water at the input. It does not take much heat to get water ready for a shower when it is 90 degrees before you heat it!!

Now, I'm not trying to sell you on Jayco, I just wanted to give my input on tankless heaters.

AugerN · 07-06-2015, 09:22 PM

Interesting. We adjusted the water heater rheostat until the shower temp was perfect with only the hot water tap on. No input from the cold water. The tank then provides hot water without the typical hot/cold cycle everyone describes. We told the kids to take the nozzle down and turn on the hot water. Once the temp was appropriate then they could replace it and shower but not to turn the cold on in the shower. This worked well the whole week we were abroad.

Robbbyr · 07-07-2015, 02:36 PM

I agree that a properly-operating tankless can deliver reliable hot water provided you have enough water flow to keep things from "cycling". But don't use the water saver valve while you are shampooing or soaping up, or else look out!

Continuous water flow is fine when you are hooked up to an inexhaustible water source and also a place to put the runoff (sewer hookup), but keep in mind if you are somewhere without water and sewer (think State Parks) then a traditional water heater may make more sense for you. You can use very low flows without a problem and if you temporarily shut off spray to lather you can expect near the same temperature when you turn it back on.

1jeb289 · 07-07-2015, 05:42 PM

We would like to go with the Jayco Precept, but not with the tankless water heater. Living in the south, the water from state parks is usually warm to almost hot. Very difficult to control with the tankless model. Not going to fill up my water tank and worry about refilling to try to get the right water pressure to operate the tankless water heater.

Still trying to figure out the advantage over the tank water heater. Why should you have to worry about all these variables just to get consistent hot water? I go camping to enjoy just that-camping.

AugerN · 07-07-2015, 09:29 PM

We live in the south as well and have not had any issues and have consistent hot water with minimal issues. In my mind the benefit is that we don't have to take "navy" showers. When I was a kid in a TT we would take a shower then wait some time before the next person could due to limited hot water and so on. With 5 in our family, not having to worry about the supply of hot water running out is great!

I'm not sure that having a Precept can in any way be construed as "camping" anyway.

Shirleyj62 · 07-08-2015, 08:42 AM

We are relatively new owners of a Precept 31UL (purchased in May). After several weeks of trying to get the endless hot water to work without scalding us we surrendered. After many complaints to both the dealer and Jayco directly, Jayco conceded to replacing the endless hot water with the conventional water heater as a "good will gesture." We are so happy with the conversion back to normalcy.

You might try convincing either the dealer or Jayco directly to replacing it. There are others who have had them replaced at no additionally cost.

Shirley

gmapatime · 07-08-2015, 10:44 AM

Shirleyj62...... I'm curious as to where they put the conventional tank HWH in your 31UL. It appears to me that there would not be enough room where the tankless heater exist. Thanks....

Steve

1jeb289 · 07-08-2015, 11:36 AM

I still do not follow the "endless hot water" argument. We have as many as 6 adults and 3 grandkids taking showers pretty much back to back. With the gas\electric tank model, you can turn on both and have the "quick recovery" mode for more hot water. Never had anyone complain about being blasted with cold water or the grandkids coming close to being scalded.

AugerN · 07-08-2015, 12:36 PM

Maybe things have changed in the 20 years since I was a child camping but that's what I recall with our Coachman TT. We have two tankless water heaters in our home and now the RV. No issues. I'm not trying to convince you but I'm merely reporting that we've had positive experience with tankless heaters and I'm happy our Precept has one.

1jeb289 · 07-08-2015, 01:40 PM

Glad you are happy with yours. But, the tankless water heater will not work for us. I started this thread hoping someone might have some insight if Jayco would offer the standard water heater in upcoming Precepts. Right now it is a "mandatory" option.

AugerN · 07-08-2015, 01:51 PM

Maybe try calling Jayco? 574-825-5861 They have been great about answering my questions.

GmaLady · 07-08-2015, 01:59 PM

Shirley, we just purchased our unit in June and had the same problem. We took it back and after much discussion with Girard and testing they finally determined we had a bad board so once dealer received parts from Girard and installed we've had no trouble. We were also told that our dealer had five other customers come in after us with same complaint so they were just able to order pasts for them and get them back to "Happy Camper" status.

1jeb289 · 07-08-2015, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AugerN

Maybe try calling Jayco? 574-825-5861 They have been great about answering my questions.

I will give Jayco a call. Thanks for their number.

Shirleyj62 · 07-08-2015, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gmapatime

Shirleyj62...... I'm curious as to where they put the conventional tank HWH in your 31UL. It appears to me that there would not be enough room where the tankless heater exist. Thanks....

Steve

They put the standard gas/electric heater in the same spot where the other one was. They somehow made it fit.

Shirley

Cycledoc675 · 07-16-2015, 10:05 PM

I went from a traditional 6 gallon gas hot water heater in my C class to the tankless in my Precept. After learning the hot water only trick, I haven't had any problems getting the temperature right and still taking my Navy showers, especially since almost all of my camping is boondocking. During the summer, I have adjusted the water temp to about 1/8 above the lowest setting, where as during some freezing February weather, I had to adjust it much higher. My 13 year daughter had no trouble getting the hang of it, too.
And don't forget, winterizing is much easier with the tankless. It was a real pain winterizing with the 6 gallon Suburban.

1jeb289 · 07-22-2015, 11:29 AM

I just saw a 2016 Precept MSRP sheet and the tankless water heater is still part of the "Customer Value Package". I was really hoping Jayco would give you the option to get the 6 gallon gas dsi/electric tank water option.

tinman353 · 07-24-2015, 11:39 PM

I have been very pleased with our tankless water heater - after - I learned how to use it.

We set the temp of the water heater hotter or cooler depending on the outside temperature, then full turn on the hot water in the shower and if the cold faucet is on at all, use it sparingly. The hot water must be flowing full or it will overheat in the heater and cycle on and off.

Also we had it not heat at all a couple times and discovered the heater vent had shifted and was slightly blocked and the heater needed to be reset. There is a small unmarked button on the heater that needed to be pushed to reset.

airman2o2 · 07-25-2015, 04:05 AM

Agree! It's a bit of an art but once yoi get the hang of it endless hot water is awesome. Also make sure no one else uses any water while someone is showering.

gmapatime · 07-27-2015, 11:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by airman2o2

Agree! It's a bit of an art but once yoi get the hang of it endless hot water is awesome. Also make sure no one else uses any water while someone is showering.

Very True... We just returned from a week long trip and had plenty of time to figure it out. With cool water supply, just less than half way on the dial worked for us. Water supply temperature is a big factor in getting it right.

Steve

You may also like: