Not using water heater

[Bhgoodale]

Hey guys, thanks for having me. Just upgraded to a 2014 19XUD from a coachmen pop up. I just want to ask a question about the water heater. We have no intention of using it and pretty much just use the sink to wash hands. Is there anything in particular I need to do? Do I just not turn it on? Sorry if it's a stupid question lol. Thank you!

[netlos]

You can just leave it bypassed, then no water will go through it, just becareful to never turn it on when empty or it will be ruined. Or just keep everything not bypassed and if ever someone accidentally turns it on, no damage!

[Jagiven]

Is it a dual fuel? If so, turn off the breaker, so you do not burn up the electric heating element if someone accidentally turns on the electric heating element while the tank is dry.

We tend not to use ours, as it is a long ways away from the faucets, and we camp often without utilities.

I usually do keep the tank full, but not heated. We look at it as 6 extra gallons of water if the FW tank runs dry. FYI, we have a 1 ft hose mod to our tank drain, so we can drain into a bucket.

[RogerR]

I and others have had problems from the water going bad in the water heater. Gets a real nasty odor so I would only fill if you are going to use it or if you wanted a backup water supply as noted above.

Even then I would drain between trips to stop bacteria growth.

[Hollander Mutthaulers]

We often do not use our water heater for overnight stops. As with our tent camping days, we heat water in an aluminum coffee perker on the stove and dump it in a thermos. It provides plenty for what we need. Now with electricity available, we sometimes run a carafe of water through the drip coffee maker. We keep our water heater lines open and use the hot water faucet the same as the cold so water circulates through the tank. Have never had an odor problem or any other.